On the eve of 9/11, a Dutch Muslim politician has launched a campaign calling on Muslims around the world to stop blindly following decrees issued by a handful of extremists, and to start thinking for themselves, according to the British news agency Reuters.
“Tofik Dibi, a member of parliament for the opposition GreenLeft Party, said that as a ‘normal, ordinary Muslim,’ he wanted his ‘Final Fatwa’ to ensure that the debate about Islam included a more ‘reasonable, free-thinking Muslim voice.'” he told Reuters staff writer Roberta Cowan.
Muslims now comprise about 5 percent of the Netherlands population. Most are of Moroccan or Turkish origin. Dutch politician Geert Wilders, whose Freedom Party is the fifth-largest party in parliament and the third-largest opposition partyhas campaigned for a ban on burqas, and wants to stop immigration, particularly from Muslim countries.
Dibi’s fatwa, announced on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on America, writes Cowan, “calls on Muslims to reject all fatwas issued by extremists and to reclaim their religion.”
Such fatwas “reduce a Muslim to a mindless and heartless machine,” Dibi said.
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