Main focus of Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Building of mosque divides the US

In the row over the planned construction of an Islamic cultural centre near Ground Zero in New York, democratic politicians have distanced themselves from the position of US President Barack Obama. The latter had spoken out in favour of the project but then qualified his remarks. Both religious freedom and the memory of 9/11 must be respected, commentators say.

The Times - United Kingdom

Settling the dispute over the building of a mosque near Ground Zero will require empathy from both sides, the conservative daily The Times advises: "The constitutional position is clear and unequivocal. The State should not withdraw the right of people to pray on their chosen ground. That said, not everything important is contained in the contract. ... The dead and those who mourn them may not have their rights enshrined in the Constitution but their memories and grief surely deserve to be honoured too. The Muslim community of New York would best show the compassion and humanity of Islam by respecting the feelings of others and choosing to build their mosque elsewhere. The right exists but it does not necessarily need to be exercised. ... It is in these instances that democracies show their resolve. The question should be thrown back to the Muslims of New York but surely there is no better embodiment of the ideals of the Founding Fathers than that a mosque should be permitted on such a site." (18/08/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » Weltanschauung, » U.S.

Blog Gad Lerner - Italy

In the name of a friendly vision of Islam which doesn't equate Islam with the al-Qaida terrorist network, Gad Lerner advocates the building of a mosque near Ground Zero in his blog Del Bastardo: "Before he was reined in by the constraints of real politics Barack Obama drew inspiration from the his personal beliefs. I'm talking about his belief in a God who opens eyes and hearts and helps us to distinguish very precisely between Islam in its entirety and al-Qaida. A God who trusts in the virtues of praying and cultural reflections. Why shouldn't we believe that Muslims can draw inspiration for wisdom and sympathy by being only a few steps away from the symbolic site of New York's bloody memory?" (18/08/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Gender equality, » U.S.
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ABC - Spain

For it to serve as a place of reconciliation among religions the planned mosque in New York should not be built right next to Ground Zero, the daily ABC finds: "Irrespective of the fine line between tolerance and the practice of freedom of religion, we can't ignore that constructing a mosque on this site would be to load it with a symbolism that is very distant from the principles its advocates claim to defend. ... New York has many mosques. This proves that people aren't bothered by the mosques themselves but by the decision to build one on the same site where the criminal attack was carried out by fanatics who saw themselves as defenders of Islam. The best way to show that Islam does not defend this mass murder would be to build the mosque somewhere else." (18/08/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Religion, » Integration, » U.S.

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