A Muslim has made an anonymous call to the Islamic community to stop complaining about discrimination and distance itself from violence committed in the name of Allah. “We Muslims must finally just let go of our egoism and our superiority, sanctimoniousness and ignorance,” she said in an open letter published yesterday by newpaper De Volkskrant.
“We find it marvellous that Islam is growing. But there is a growth of blind belief (...) Take the beheading of non-Muslims in Iraq and Pakistan. The so-called heroic deeds are carried out in the name of Allah. What do we do? Do we condemn these? No, we look on silently. We do however take to the streets if there is an insulting cartoon in a newspaper and we threaten politicians with death (...).”
“What do we say about (...) Iran, where non-Muslims are not allowed to take a university course? About Afghanistan, where non-Muslims are spat at, insulted and hunted by Taliban-like Muslims? Or about the Netherlands, where non-Muslims are pestered with similar tactics by Muslims and preferably hunted out of the district? Nothing.”
“Why do we not take to the street against these and other actions of our fellow-believers? Why do we behave without respect in the Netherlands, take few social rules or standards of decency into consideration and commit senseless violence, while we make much use of medical provisions (...), complain a lot and say that others must take account of us?”
“We blame the politicians or the media. But Geert Wilders, he was not just dropped by a stork, was he? If we had given a bit more respect to others, he would never have sprung up. Do we ever wonder why there is no anti-Chinese party?”
“We have to let go of our egoism, and our short-sightedness, superiority, sanctimoniousness and ignorance. Otherwise, we would be better to return to our Muslim countries, so that non-Muslims get peace and we are delivered from the Muslim hatred that we ourselves keep going.”
De Volkskrant published the article yesterday under the fictitious name of Samira al-Onal. The writer is a highly-educated Dutch Muslim woman, according to the newspaper. “As an exception, the editorial staff sometimes backs publication of an article under a pseudonym, due to the author’s fear of reprisals.” De Volkskrant is publishing a longer article by her today.