MUSLIMS in COPENHAGEN Muslims in Copenhagen
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coppenhagen-cover-20110220:Layout 1 2/21/2011 12:31 PM Page 1 AT HOME IN ★ EUROPE MUSLIMS IN COPENHAGEN Muslims in Copenhagen Whether citizens or migrants, native born or newly-arrived, Muslims are a growing and varied population that presents Europe with challenges and opportunities. The crucial tests facing Europe’s commitment to open society will be how it treats minorities such as Muslims and ensures equal rights for all in a climate of rapidly expanding diversity. The Open Society Foundations’ At Home in Europe project is working to address these issues through monitoring and advocacy activities that examine the position of Muslims and other minorities in Europe. One of the project’s key efforts is this series of reports on Muslim communities in the 11 EU cities of Amsterdam, Antwerp, Berlin, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Leicester, London, Marseille, Paris, Rotterdam, and Stockholm. The reports aim to increase understanding of the needs and aspirations of diverse Muslim communities by examining how public policies in selected cities have helped or hindered the political, social, and economic participation of Muslims. By fostering new dialogue and policy initiatives between Muslim communities, local officials, and international policymakers, the At Home in Europe project seeks to improve the participation and inclusion of Muslims in the wider society while enabling them to preserve the cultural, linguistic, and religious practices that are important to their identities. muslim-coppenhagen-incover-publish-110220-OSF:publish.qxd 2/21/2011 5:59 PM Page 1 Muslims in Copenhagen At Home in Europe Project muslim-coppenhagen-incover-publish-110220-OSF:publish.qxd 2/21/2011 5:59 PM Page 2 © 2011 Open Society Foundations All rights reserved ISBN: 978-1-936133-09-3 Published by OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONS 400 West 59th Street New York, NY 10019 USA For more information contact: AT HOME IN EUROPE PROJECT OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATION 100 Cambridge Grove W6 0LE London UK Website www.soros.org/initiatives/home Cover Photograph by © Mikkel Østergaard/Panos pictures for the Open Society Foundations Cover design by Ahlgrim Design Group Layout by Q.E.D. Publishing Printed in Hungary Printed on CyclusOffset paper produced from 100% recycled fibres. TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents Acknowledgements .................................................................. 5 Preface ..................................................................................... 7 Muslims in Copenhagen .......................................................... 9 List of Abbreviations ........................................................ 16 Definitions and Terminology ........................................... 17 Executive Summary ......................................................... 20 1. Introduction .................................................................... 23 2. Population and Demographics ......................................... 32 3. City Policy ....................................................................... 44 4. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Identity, Belonging and Interaction ................................................ 62 5. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Education ............. 79 6. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Employment ...... 111 7. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Housing .............. 135 8. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Health and Social Protection ............................................................ 152 9. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Policing and Security ................................................................... 173 10. Experiences of Muslim Communities: Participation and Citizenship .............................................................. 198 11. Experiences of Muslim Communities: The Role of the Media ...................................................................... 213 12. Conclusions ................................................................... 226 13. Recommendations ......................................................... 236 Annex 1. Bibliography and Websites ......................................... 243 Annex 2. List of Interviews ........................................................ 267 AT HOME IN EUROPE PROJECT 3 Open Society Foundations Mission Statement The Open Society Foundations work to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens. Working with local communities in more than 70 countries, the Open Society Foundations support justice and human rights, freedom of expression, and access to public health and education. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Acknowledgements This report was prepared as part of a series of monitoring reports titled “Muslims in EU cities”. The series focuses on 11 cities in the European Union (EU) with significant Muslim populations. Each report focuses on the following neighbourhoods within each city: Slotervaart, Amsterdam; Borgerhout, Antwerp; Kreuzberg, Berlin; Nørrebro, Copenhagen; Hamburg-Mitte, Hamburg; Evington, Spinney Hills, Stoneygate, Leicester; 3rd Arrondissement, Marseille; 18th Arrondissement, Paris; Feijenoord, Rotterdam; Järväfaltet, Stockholm; the London Borough of Waltham Forest, London. The report has been prepared by the At Home in Europe project of the Open Society Foundations in cooperation with local/national experts. The At Home in Europe Project would like to convey its sincere thanks to Mustafa Hussain, Lecturer in Sociology, Roskilde University, who has been engaged with the study since 2007 and is the principal researcher. Alongside Mustafa, a number of other individuals have been instrumental in the research and final report. These individuals are Lene Timm, Senior Consultant, Complexitet, and Professor John Andersen, Department of Enviromental, Social and Spatial Change (ENSPAC), Roskilde University, whose knowledge and constructive comments have been invaluable. Professor Andersen has offered solid support throughout the different stages of this research and has reviewed the various drafts of the report of which we are appreciative. Under the supervision of Mustafa Hussain, the interviews were conducted by a team of graduate students from the Universities of Copenhagen and Roskilde. This team included Gülsüm Akbas, a lecturer at Copenhagen University, who interviewed Turkish-speaking females and Yasmin Butt, who facilitated a number of focus groups with Muslim women. We are also grateful to Muhammed Aslam, the chair of the Residents Association in the neighbourhood of Mjølnerparken for allowing the research team to use their facilities to conduct three focus groups and assisting in the identification of participants for the sessions. In November 2009, Open Society Foundations held a closed roundtable meeting in Copenhagen inviting critique and commentary on the draft report. We are grateful to the many participants who generously offered their time and expertise. These include representatives of Copenhagen City administration, various civil society organisations, academic experts, members of the police force, representatives of grass roots and minority organisations and relevant experts. We would also like to thank the team at the Documentation and Advisory Centre on Racial Discrimination (DACoRD) for organising and hosting the roundtable meeting. Particular thanks are offered to its director Niels-Erik Hansen. The following people and institutions are acknowledged and thanked for their contribution to the report by being available for interviews, providing information or research, or reviewing and critiquing drafts of the report: Dr Flemming Mikkelsen, Asad Ahmed, Anita Kedia, Omran German, Bashy Quraishy, Eric Tinor-Centi, Pernille Kjeldgaard, Margrethe Wivel, Abdul Wahid Petersen, Hamid El-Mousti, Boye AT HOME IN EUROPE PROJECT 5 MUSLIMS IN COPENHAGEN Haur, the research groups Significance of Religion and Intercultural Studies at Roskilde University. A number of other individuals, based in Copenhagen, also agreed to be interviewed by the Open Society Foundations Office of Communications team, to whom we offer thanks. The At Home in Europe Project has final responsibility for the content of the report including any errors or misrepresentations. Open Society Foundations Team Nazia Hussain (At Home in Europe Project) Director Tufyal Choudhury (At Home in Europe Project) Senior Policy Advisor Klaus Dik Nielsen (At Home in Europe Project) Advocacy Officer Hélène Irving (At Home in Europe Project) Programme Coordinator Andrea Gurubi Watterson (At Home in Europe Project) Programme Officer Csilla Tóth (At Home in Europe Project) Programme Assistant Penelope Farrar Consultant Editor 6 OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONS 2011 PREFACE Preface A central belief of the Open Society Foundations (Foundations) is that all people in an open society count equally and should enjoy equal opportunities. The Foundations works to mitigate discrimination, in particular harm done to minorities through discriminatory treatment, and to ensure that access to equal opportunities for all is an integral part of social inclusion policies of governments. The At Home in Europe project of the Open Society Foundations focuses on monitoring and advocacy activities that examine the position of minorities in a changing Europe. Through its research and engagement with policymakers and communities, the project explores issues involving the political, social, and economic participation of Muslims and other marginalized groups at the local, national, and European levels. Whether citizens or migrants, native