This article in the the Guardian profiles Rachida Dati (b. 1965), former French justice minister, which she stepped down from in May 2009. She has come under scrutiny for her fashion sense and as a single mother of Algerian-origin. She was the second of 12 children born to north African immigrant parents, neither of whom…
An opposition movement against the Dutch cabinet’s support for mosques has failed. The Home Affairs Ministry and Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG) assert that government subsidies for religious organizations are permissible on the basis that it fosters integration. The failed opposition bid was supported by the conservatives (VVD), Party for Freedom (PVV) and centre-left D66,…
The Volkskrant reports that government ministers will discuss a request by Geert Wilders’ PVV party to calculate exactly how much non-western immigrants cost Dutch society. Ministers must decide how far they will go in their reply on this ‘sensitive issue’, which some political parties had hoped to ignore. Integration minister Eberhard van der Laan has…
Imams graduating from Dutch government training programs are unable to find work in mosques, Trouw reports. Three educational institutions offer courses for qualification, an initiative of the cabinet to train imams familiar with Dutch language and culture. However mosques do not have the funds to hire graduates of the program and locally trained imams are…
The Dutch cabinet will make it more difficult for lenders to obtain influence in Dutch mosques. According to the minister of internal affairs, Guusje ter Horst, international foundations must be more transparent about their finances, and the cabinet will make a law proposal for the regulation of international funds used on mosques in the Netherlands….
