The Islamic association has sent a letter to Muslim high school students.
Henrik Vestergaard Stokholm is principal at Mulernes Legatskole in Odense. He fears giving Hizb ut-Tahrir more airtime, but at the same time believes it is important to speak out against their campaign. (Photo: © Niels Ahlmann Olesen, Ritzau Scanpix)
By
Laura Kirkebæk-Johansson ( [email protected] ) Today at 5:57 PM
The Islamic association Hizb ut-Tahrir has launched a new campaign aimed at Muslim high school students, which has left Immigration and Integration Minister Morten Bødskov (S) "deeply concerned" ( https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/indland/boedskov-dybt-bekymret-over-hizb-ut-tahrir-kampagne-maalrettet-gymnasieelever ).
Under the headline "stand firm on your Islamic identity and carry it with pride," Hizb ut-Tahrir writes, among other things, to the new students that "many of you will experience a youth environment where behavior, norms, and a lifestyle that does not harmonize with Islam are presented as the natural or desirable choice."
Read also: Bødskov deeply concerned about Hizb ut-Tahrir campaign targeting high school students ( https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/indland/boedskov-dybt-bekymret-over-hizb-ut-tahrir-kampagne-maalrettet-gymnasieelever )
And that has no place anywhere, believes Henrik Vestergaard Stokholm, who is principal at Mulernes Legatskole in Odense, where many Muslim students attend.
- I actually fear that this very feature and everything you are running in the media today gives airtime to some people who should not have airtime at all, he says.
- But on the other hand, we as both principals and politicians are also forced to take strong distance from this, because we are in Denmark, and we have some fantastic democratic values and a school system that is founded on some egalitarian values and a view of humanity that does not harmonize with what I have read in this letter.
-----------------------
What is Hizb ut-Tahrir?
-----------------------
*
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Islamic and political party that wishes to unite all Muslim nations in an Islamic state - a caliphate.
*
The party is opposed to democracy and strives for a society based on Islamic law, sharia.
*
It is estimated that Hizb ut-Tahrir operates in more than 40 countries, although the party is banned in many of them.
*
Began its activities in Denmark in the 1990s.
*
The membership number is uncertain.
-------------------------------------
'Contradicts everything the high school stands for'
-------------------------------------
That view is supported by Allan Kortnum, who is chair of Danish Vocational Schools and High Schools (Danske Erhvervsskoler og -Gymnasier).
- It fundamentally contradicts everything that Danish school culture and the high school stand for: Freedom, open-mindedness, personal empowerment, democratic formation, he says.
- We must protect that fiercely, and therefore we cannot accept such inquiries.
Hear Allan Kortnum elaborate here:
Oscar Tønsberg Hoffmann, who is chair of the Danish High School Students' Association (Danske Gymnasieelevers Sammenslutning), does not think there is a contradiction between being a religious high school student and participating in the culture that exists at high schools.
But can you not understand that some might feel pressured to be part of a culture where it is normal to drink, go to many parties, and have partners?
- Yes, but I do not think it is a uniquely Muslim problem that as a young person you can sometimes feel that there can be a somewhat wild party culture, but it also depends on how you frame it.
- And actually, my experience is that in most places there is room to say no and room to be whoever you want to be.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hizb ut-Tahrir: The high schools have jumped on the Islamophobic political bandwagon
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hizb ut-Tahrir's media representative Elias Lambaret has not wished to sit down for a recorded interview, but DR has sent him a number of questions in writing.
The purpose of high schools is, among other things, to create freedom of thought, equality, and democracy and to strengthen students' knowledge of and respect for fundamental freedoms and human rights, including gender equality. Does Hizb ut-Tahrir not stand for the exact opposite?
- If the high schools really wanted to promote freedom of thought and independent thinking, they would hardly have jumped on the Islamophobic political bandwagon, where ordinary Islamic behavior and opinions are suspected and prohibited at educational institutions with reference to thin politicized umbrella concepts such as "social control" and "radicalization," says Elias Lambaret.
Facebook ( https://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=undefined )
Warning: This article was translated by a Large Language Model, in case of doubt, you can always visit the original source.