I would like to see the comments on the Ali's article published in last Sunday's LA Times in general but the hi lighted para in particular. I was going to fire a letter to the editor but I need some feed back from across the pond. Europe's Immigration Quagmire
The continent needs more realistic policies that recognize both immigration's economic benefit and the dangers of Islamism.
By
Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a former Dutch legislator from
Somalia, now lives in the U.S., where she is a fellow at the American
Enterprise Institute.
October 22, 2006
IN AFRICA, we sometimes used animals to say things on sensitive issues
to avoid discussing the messenger instead of the message. So I shall
use the ostrich and the owl to sketch the two most important positions
on immigration and pluralism in Europe.
The
view of things in Europe today, as the ostrich sees them, is bright. He
sees an open market of 450 million people with an amazing potential. He
sees a thriving economy and the free movement of people, goods, money
and services. Immigration, to the ostrich, can only be viewed as an
opportunity for an aging native population. Borders are better open
than closed. Islam is a faith like Christianity, and Muslims shall
adapt their religion to life in Europe.
According to the ostrich, very soon there shall be a European Islam,
signs of which are already visible in the young women in tight jeans;
high heels; black, sleeveless, tight tops and matching head scarves,
all designed by Prada. This Prada Islam will replace the old rural one
and function as a vaccine against the Wahhabi Islam of the Saudis.
The
over representation of migrants in all the wrong statistics � such as
unemployment, unfinished education and crime � is to the ostrich merely
a temporary affair. It's a phase that all groups from underprivileged
backgrounds go through, and it will be short, as long as there is
economic growth.
According to the ostrich, the wealthy natives
should stop whining about the backwardness of immigrants and
concentrate on the benefits. The ostrich points to the nurses, nannies,
construction workers, grocers, bag carriers, cleaners, factory workers
and a host of other jobs natives won't do but are necessary to keep the
economy going.
The ostrich is not worried about the flow of
migrants transforming the culture and society of Europe in any negative
way. He sees only one thing as a setback: the xenophobia of native
Europeans. If only the inherently racist white society could overcome
its fear of what is alien, it would notice how migrants have improved
the cuisine, the music, the arts and the economy of Europe.
Then
there's the owl, which is a night bird and gets, more often, a glimpse
of the dark side of things. Europe is healthy and wealthy, but the owl
worries that it may not be so wise.
The shadow side of the free
movement of people, for instance, is the trade in women and children
for the ruthless sex industry. Also, weapons go unnoticed from hand to
hand, from country to country. Some of these weapons could be
biological, chemical or worse.
The old owl sees how poor
migrants are exploited by cruel employers who provide little or no pay
and hire and fire the migrants at will. The owl can't help but notice
that even after the recent amnesty, Spain has an estimated 1 million
illegal immigrants. Britain has roughly half a million. France, 200,000
to 400,000, if you trust the French. I think there are more. Germany
has about 1 million.
The owl acknowledges unreservedly
Europe's aging populations, its decreasing population growth and its
need for migrants � but also sees that selection of migrants is not
always based on who is useful for the economy.
The owl sees that
Islam is not Christianity and that not all Muslims understand or want
to share in any European future based on European values of freedom,
tolerance and an attitude of live and let live.
The owl sadly
looks on as poor kids are taught to view themselves as victims, and the
society in which they live as the enemy. He can't help but notice that
Muslim migrants are receptive to the seduction of the Islamist
movement. Even worse, there are now natives converting to this brand of totalitarianism.
Nor
can the owl ignore the growth of the extreme right-wing movements and
parties. He fears that the debate on pluralism in Europe will be
hijacked by two uncompromising extremes: whites' power fascism and
Islamic fascism.
The owl thinks that the ostrich is right: We
should always look on the bright side of life. But he also thinks we
should be careful not to get delusional.
Foretelling the
future can be fun for astrologists and crystal-ball gazers. For
academics, it is not. If you get it right, you're damned like Samuel
Huntington. If you get it wrong, you're called a certified idiot. So
instead of predictions, we draw rough sketches of a best-case scenario
and a worse-case scenario.
In a worst-case scenario, the
warnings of the owl will not be heeded. The optimism of the ostrich
will be abandoned. The monopoly of force that is now exclusive to
states will be challenged by armed subgroups. European societies will
be divided along ethnic and religious lines. The education system will
not succeed in grooming the youth to believe in a shared past, let
alone a shared future.
The European states will find
themselves limiting civil liberties. Europeans will come to accept the
de facto implementation of Sharia law in certain neighborhoods and even
cities. The exploitation of the weak, women and children will be
commonplace. Those who can afford to emigrate will do so.
Instead of an ever-growing union in Europe, future generations may witness an ever-disintegrating one.
In
a best-case scenario, Europeans will heed the caution of the owl
without losing the liveliness of the ostrich. This approach will be
translated into a three-dimensional, comprehensive policy.
First,
controlled or planned immigration. The European Union will introduce
quotas such as those in the U.S., based on the selection of migrants
who are beneficial to the economy. The current system in most European
countries is designed to attract the highest number of people with
truly heartbreaking stories, not the highest number of people who are
willing and able to adapt to the European society.
Second, an
intervention, sometimes proactive, in Europe's neighboring states or in
failed states with conditions that force people to migrate in large
numbers. This plan will consist of aid, trade, diplomatic pressure and
military intervention, if necessary. That's taboo in Europe at the
moment. Right now, the EU selects the countries it wants to aid based
on lists provided by the World Bank or the United Nations. The criteria
for aid are based on such vague notions as the 100 poorest countries or
countries with good governance or some other goody-goody sounding
reason. That should change.
Finally, in a best-case scenario,
the EU will implement an assimilation program guided by the lessons
learned from our failed attempts at multiculturalism. It will
acknowledge that the basic tenets of Islam are a major obstacle to
integration. In practice, Muslims will continue to enjoy religious
freedom, as long as exercising that precious right does not infringe
upon the freedoms of others, including daughters and wives.
In a
best-case scenario, EU policymakers will invest in girls and women,
protect them from violence and punish those who try to limit their
freedoms. Those policymakers will reform the welfare state; regulations
pertaining to the hiring and firing of employees will be made more
flexible, making it easier for migrants to enter the labor market.
The
combined vision of the ostrich and the owl is indeed possible in
Europe, but it requires a great deal of willpower, leadership and,
above all, the recognition that tolerating oppressive cultures and
encouraging more mass migration from Islamic countries often hurts
precisely the people we seek to help.
A misguided vision
brought Europe to its current predicament; an idealistic vision
convinced of the inherent superiority of enlightened values over the
values of oppressive cultures, a vision steeped in individual rights,
the rule of law and the equality of men and women can help guide Europe
out of it.
------------- Kismet Domino: Faith/Courage/Liberty/Abundance/Selfishness/Immorality/Apathy/Bondage or extinction.
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