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Recommendation 1927 (2010)1

Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia in
Europe

1. Referring to its
Resolution 1743 (2010) on Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia
in Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly emphasises the
particular importance for the Council of Europe and its member
states of increasing their action in this field. Under its
Statute, it is a priority task for the Council of Europe to
work towards ensuring freedom of thought, conscience and
religion while combating religious intolerance and
discrimination as well as religiously disguised attacks
against the values it upholds. Member states should be guided
by this recommendation and
Resolution 1743 (2010).

2. In order to construct on a daily basis a
democratic society governed by the rule of law and universal
human rights, the Council of Europe must step up its efforts
to embed those values in European culture. Cultural and
educational action by the Council of Europe is a necessary
condition for both European integration based on common values
and full understanding and respect for human rights, including
political, social and cultural rights and freedoms. The
Council of Europe should also seek to encourage other parts of
the world to adopt and promote the values it upholds.

3. Because of its Statute, geographical remit
and experience, the Council of Europe should serve as the
pan-European forum for discussing common strategies for
strengthening democratic stability faced with Islamism,
Islamophobia and other forms of political extremism in Europe.
Therefore, the Assembly asks that the Committee of
Ministers:

3.1. ensure, through the general budget and
voluntary contributions, that adequate funding is available
for standard-setting and assistance and co-operation
activities for member states and neighbouring regions in the
fields of culture and education as well as migration and
refugees;

3.2. reinforce its activities to ensure that
knowledge about Islam and other beliefs is taught at school
and through lifelong education and that institutions of higher
education and research in Europe provide Islamic studies in
order to educate religious scholars, teachers and leaders;

3.3. seek to enlarge geographically the
Council of Europe treaties in the field of culture and
education by opening them for signature by non-member states,
in particular states from Eurasia, North Africa and the Middle
East; this is particularly important with regard to the
Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning
Higher Education in the European Region (ETS No. 165), the
Council of Europe Framework Convention on the Value of
Cultural Heritage for Society (CETS No. 199) and the
European Convention on Transfrontier Television (ETS No. 132)
and its Amending Protocol (ETS No. 171);

3.4. study the possibility of opening the
geographical scope of the European Cultural Convention (ETS
No. 18) to non-European states, for instance by drafting a
protocol on education for human rights and democracy to this
convention;

3.5. actively seek accession by states in
North Africa and the Middle East to the Council of Europe’s
European Centre for Global Interdependence and Solidarity
(North-South Centre) and, in particular, reinforce the
programmes dealing with gender equality, specifically the
combating of all forms of violence against women and the
promotion of women’s participation in public decision making.
In this context, the Assembly welcomes the accession of
Morocco and Cape Verde to the North-South Centre;

3.6. consider opening the European Commission
against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) to participation by
non-member states, in particular from North Africa, the Middle
East and Eurasia;

3.7. consider opening the European Outline
Convention on Transfrontier Co-operation between Territorial
Communities or Authorities (ETS No. 106) for signature by
non-member states, in particular from North Africa, the Middle
East and Eurasia;

3.8. set up joint programmes of activities of
the Council of Europe with the United Nations Alliance of
Civilizations;

3.9. continue its important action on
intercultural dialogue and its religious dimension, in
particular its regular “exchanges on the religious dimension
of intercultural dialogue”, and further the involvement of the
Assembly in order to enhance the role of interparliamentary
co-operation in this process;

3.10. call on member states which have not
already done so to sign and ratify the European Convention on
the Legal Status of Migrant Workers (ETS No. 93) and the
Convention on the Participation of Foreigners in Public Life
at Local Level (ETS No. 144); the social and political
inclusion of migrants and foreigners, who are often Muslims,
will be essential for democratic cohesion and stability;

3.11. seek to develop common political
approaches by all member states towards non-European states
which support Islamism in Europe and call, in this context, on
member states which have not yet done so to sign and ratify
the European Convention on the Suppression of Terrorism (ETS
No. 90) and its Amending Protocol (ETS No. 190) and the
Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism
(CETS No. 196) in order to strengthen political and legal
co-operation in this area;

3.12. call on Switzerland to enact a
moratorium on, and to repeal as soon as possible, its general
prohibition on the construction of minarets for mosques, which
discriminates against Muslim communities under Articles 9 and
14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ETS No. 5); the
construction of minarets must be possible in the same way as
the construction of church towers, subject to the requirements
of public security and town planning;

3.13. call on member states not to establish
a general ban of full veiling or other religious or special
clothing, but to protect women from all physical and
psychological duress as well as to protect their free choice
to wear religious or special clothing and ensure equal
opportunities for Muslim women to participate in public life
and pursue education and professional activities; legal
restrictions on this freedom may be justified where necessary
in a democratic society, in particular for security purposes
or where public or professional functions of individuals
require their religious neutrality or that their face can be
seen;

3.14. step up efforts to ensure that a
convention to combat violence against women, including
domestic violence, comes into being as swiftly as
possible;

3.15. invite states to guarantee women’s
freedom of expression by penalising, on the one hand, all
forms of coercion, oppression or violence that compel women to
wear the veil or the full veil, and by creating, on the other
hand, social and economic conditions enabling women to make
informed choices though the promotion of genuine policies on
equal opportunities for women and men which embody access to
education, training, employment and housing.

1. Assembly debate on 23 June 2010
(23rd Sitting) (see Doc.
12266, report of the Committee on Culture, Science and
Education, rapporteur: Mr Mogens Jensen; Doc.
12303, opinion of the Political Affairs Committee,
rapporteur: Mr Hancock; Doc.
12305, opinion of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human
Rights, rapporteur: Mr Rafael Huseynov; and Doc.
12304, opinion of the Committee on Equal Opportunities for
Women and Men, rapporteur: Mrs Memecan). Text adopted
unanimously by the Assembly on 23 June 2010 (23rd
Sitting).

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