Dutch can't rush imam training drive
The Dutch have a problem with Islam and they're in a hurry to solve it. They're finding out, however, that some problems just refuse to be rushed. Once a haven of religious diversity, the Netherlands realized several years ago that Muslim immigrants were not integrating as expected. Some rejected Dutch tolerance and the Dutch were becoming increasingly intolerant of them. This concern turned to alarm last November after filmmaker Theo van Gogh, a blunt critic of Islam, was slain while cycling to work in Amsterdam. A Dutch-Moroccan with suspected links to Islamic militants was charged with the crime. Shifting in to high gear, policy makers urged universities to start training imams, on the theory that a Dutch education would make these prayer leaders moderate, westernised and able to stem the influence of radical preachers from abroad. Neighboring states such as France, Belgium and Germany are considering ways to mold future Muslim generations, but none seem to have gone as far and as fast as the Netherlands.
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