Tahar Ben Jelloun on multiethnic identity in the EU

The Franco-Moroccan writer Tahar Ben Jelloun considers that it is necessary for the EU to adopt a common policy on immigration. "When one ponders the future of European societies, which are evermore multiethnic, we are confronted with the question of whether or not it is acceptable for European identity to be composed of foreign components. The question that arises most clearly is that of Islam, for the Portuguese, Spanish and Italians have no problem being integrated in France. ... To welcome someone into one's home does not mean they can disrupt everything and be allowed to conquer the territory ... . Instead, the rules of hospitality must be observed in order for an agreement on cohabitation to be established. ... We need to accept the idea that the European landscape is going to be composed of a mixture of races and will thus be enriched, transformed and more open. Integration is a two-way operation, which does not imply the renunciation of one's origins, but rather their adaptation to the new life one is embracing and according to what one receives."

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