Tariq Ramadan will speak opposite playwright and producer British-Pakistani secular Hanif Kureishi in the final day of the Festival of the Philosophy. Critics see Ramadan’s presence at the conference as support for what they consider a radical position. Daniela Santanch_ (An) accused the Mayor Veltroni of Rome of having invited “a declared fundamentalist, a bandit from the university, and an accomplice to terrorism. Gabriella Carlucci (Fi), argued, “Tariq Ramadan cannot be granted a public forum to sow the seeds of his \wicked theories, and whoever does is his accomplice. Isabella Bertolini, accused Ramadan of anti-Semitism and called him an enemy of western civilization. Angelo Bonelli, President of the Federazione dei Verdi accuses the CDL of being blinded by Islamophobia and believes cross-cultural dialogue to be critical. Ramadan is a consultant of the English government, appointed by Tony Blair to help combating extremism and terrorism; in France he is involved with the Commission on Islam.
