For the second time this week, the Islamic organization Hizb ut-Tahrir has approached a Danish high school with their messages. Earlier in the week, they distributed flyers at a high school in Copenhagen.
Police were called when Hizb ut-Tahrir showed up at Mulernes Legatskole in Odense this morning. The situation unfolded peacefully and calmly. (Photo: © Mette Marie Rasmussen, DR) 25 minutes ago.
Police responded this morning to Mulernes Legatskole in Odense, where five representatives from Hizb ut-Tahrir had gathered.
The high school is currently flying rainbow flags in connection with Copenhagen Pride. At the same time, the people from Hizb ut-Tahrir arrived to distribute flyers, in which Danish youth culture is described as 'boundless and shameless,' and where Muslim students are urged to stand firm in their Islamic identity.
> "I think it's a harsh message to have thrown in your face."
> Clara Guldbæk Grønbæk, student, Mulernes Legatskole
The principal of Mulernes Legatskole, Henrik Stokholm, believes Hizb ut-Tahrir's presence was a direct reaction to the Pride flags.
- I wrote yesterday that we would raise these flags to celebrate diversity and Pride in Copenhagen, and then this morning there were people from Hizb ut-Tahrir, who are not from Odense and have come from far away. I suspect they intended to send a signal with their presence, the principal says.
Henrik Stokholm, principal of Mulernes Legatskole in Odense, called the police when he became aware that five people from Hizb ut-Tahrir were standing by the school distributing flyers on Friday morning. (Photo: © Mette Marie Rasmussen, DR)
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Harsh message
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The Islamic organization stood peacefully and calmly on the school grounds, distributing flyers to students who had just wiped the sleep from their eyes before heading in for classes.
But Clara Guldbæk Grønbæk, a student at Mulernes Legatskole, certainly did not appreciate the visit.
- I think it's a harsh message to have thrown in your face. It's a bit of an intense place to position yourself, when it's just young people going to school.
But it was just five men who were polite and smiling and handed out a flyer. So in that way, it wasn't harsh, was it?
- It's not the men who are harsh. It's more the message that is harsh. When you read the flyer, that's what they mean, is harsh, says Clara Guldbæk Grønbæk.
Clara Guldbæk Grønbæk, who is in the 2nd year at Mulernes Legatskole in Odense, thinks the message in the flyer is harsh. (Photo: © Mette Marie Rasmussen, DR)
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Politicians want to ban the organization
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Several politicians have this week taken aim at Hizb ut-Tahrir and want to ban the organization, after they published a flyer over the weekend urging Muslim students to remember their Islamic identity and to deviate from a culture where "following one's desires and cultivating an often shameless and boundless youth culture is presented as normal and valuable."
Professor at the Institute of Law at the University of Southern Denmark, Steen Schaumburg-MĂĽller, does not rule out that a ban could be considered.
Legal practice has changed in recent years following the ban on the Loyal to Familia gang, and therefore it is possible again to examine whether Hizb ut-Tahrir falls into the same category, he explains.
- Have some things happened there that they (Hizb ut-Tahrir, ed.) could actually fall under in a possible ban? I can't say if it's sufficient, but there are those who can say if they investigate it, the law professor says.
The five representatives from Hizb ut-Tahrir did not wish to be interviewed by DR News when we met them this morning in front of the high school, and referred us to their press spokesperson. DR News has reached out to this person several times, who has not returned our inquiry.
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