Danish Minister’s Ramadan Comment Sparks Outcry

Date: 23 May 2018 - 20:19

News ID: ۵۳۲۸۹

COPENHAGEN (Dispatches) -- A Danish government minister has sparked outcry after calling fasting Muslims a "danger” to the society and urging them to take time off work during the month of Ramadan.
Immigration Minister Inger Stojberg said on Monday that fasting throughout the working day raised challenges for the society. She claimed that Muslims doing certain jobs, such as bus drivers, may be unable to focus if they have not eaten.
"I want to call on Muslims to take leave from work during the month of Ramadan to avoid negative consequences for the rest of the Danish society,” Stojberg wrote in a tabloid newspaper.
During the month of Ramadan, millions of Muslims around the world fast everyday from dawn to dusk. The practice of fasting, which reminds Muslims of those less fortunate, is also meant to increase spiritual discipline.
Denmark’s Muslim Union reacted to the minister’s remarks by saying that Muslims were capable of functioning in the Danish society "even when we fast.”
The chairwoman of Finland’s Muslim Union, Pia Jardi, called Stojberg’s comment about fasting Muslims "a completely absurd idea.”
"There’s no information or statistics to show that bus drivers or other Muslim workers would somehow behave dangerously while fasting,” she said. "In most Muslim countries, stores and businesses continue operating normally.”
Hammershoy Splittorff, a spokesman for Arriva — one of Denmark’s main bus operators — said there was no history of bus accidents during Ramadan, and "so de facto it’s not a problem for us.”
A Muslim integration consultant, Natasha al-Hariri said Stojberg was "stirring up a debate based on no figures, no statistics, and no anecdotes.”
Members of the minister’s own anti-refugee center-right Liberal Party, which leads the current government, however, distanced themselves from her remarks.
"In Denmark, there’s room for everybody... as long as you mind your duties and take responsibility for your actions,” The New York Times quoted Fatma Oktem, a party member and former member of the parliament as saying.
Earlier, Stojberg had said the "a significant proportion” of refugees "cheat, lie and abuse our trust.”
The minister also made headlines last year, when posted a picture of herself on Facebook with a cake celebrating the passing of the country’s 50th immigration restriction. "Today, the 50th restriction was passed on immigration. This must be celebrated!” she wrote.