Posted on 11/19/2004 12:04:58 PM PST by killthedonkey
European Union justice and interior ministers agreed Friday that new immigrants to the 25-nation bloc should be required to learn local languages, and to adhere to general "European values" that will guide them toward better integration.
Dutch immigration minister Rita Verdonk, who chaired the meeting, said all countries agreed to make integrating newcomers a priority, considering the growing ethnic tensions as EU nations struggle to absorb a steady stream of poor, mostly Muslim immigrants.
Just this month in the Netherlands, the slaying of filmmaker Theo van Gogh by a suspected Muslim radical unleashed a wave of attacks against mosques, churches and religious schools in a country once famed for its tolerance.
Tensions also rose in Belgium, where authorities arrested a suspect Friday accused of sending death threats to a senator of Moroccan heritage who criticized radical Muslims.
"It's not like we are against immigration," Verdonk said. "If you want to live in the Netherlands, you have to adhere to our rules ... and learn our language."
Highlighting a European-wide problem, Verdonk said that some 500,000 Turkish and Moroccan immigrants in the Netherlands don't speak Dutch.
For now, integration policies across the continent vary greatly. Public concerns over immigration have fueled electoral successes for far-right parties in several European countries, including Austria and Italy, where they have joined the national government.
Many Muslims have bristled at new rules targeting immigrants that they say amount to racial profiling that is insensitive of their religion.
Yet incoming EU justice and home affairs commissioner Franco Frattini told reporters in Rome that integration had to be an essential part of an EU policy.
"We can't imagine an immigration policy that focuses only on the prevention of illegal immigration, without considering the integration of those who want to enter a European country to live and work there in full respect of the law of both the country and Europe," Frattini said.
The EU ministers also set out a list of 11 nonbinding guidelines for governments and immigrant communities, including accepting basic European values, providing employment and education, knowledge of the local language, culture and history, and open access to local health care and other public services.
That would be:
Bathe rarely, drink heavily, work hardly and complain loudly for all the wrong reasons.
Now you to are taking great steps to being more European.
Europeans have no values....and you can't fight something with nothing.
They can require immigrants to become more "Yuropeean" (whatever that is), but God for-freaking-bid we should require illegals to learn English (or even "American").
Border, Language, Culture. We need to protect that as do the eurotrash.
Funny...I seem to recall a number of Euro-twits and other Leftists condemning the United States because we want immigrants to our nation to adapt to American values.
Looks like this incident was an education.
Too little, too late and very LAME
More (evil) EU values.
Hey Europe - instead of just mopping around that overflowing sink - TRY TURNING OFF THE TAP!
You know if telling insane muslim terrorist that they need to adhere to European values doesn't solve the problem.....I just can not figure what would!
Just what are these values?
It just too funny.....decadence, quarreling, back stabbing, hypocricy...Oh its too much.
Can you imagine the Dutch, for example, insisting that these Muslums learn their language?....There would be more murder and mayhem in the streets.
I'm almost of the opinion that Muslim (not radical Muslim) values might be an improvement over French "values" or lack thereof!
Man, I didn't know there were so many Europe haters here. My guess is that most of those bashing Europe the most have never even been there. Europe has a lot of good things to offer. Europeans have done some great things throughout history and most of us descended from Europeans. Yet so many here just hate Europe so much. But then again, most people I know who hate Europe haven't even been there. A lot of these chuckle heads haven't even been out of US, let alone spent any significant amount of time living in another country and making an effort to see what these other people are all about.
Some "conservatives" embarrass me.
BTW - we don't hate Europe, we just sincerely dislike commies and pinkos and prefer a country that at least tries to support individual liberty. That help you understand a little better ?
I grew up in Europe. I was educated in European schools and am bilingual. From my experience when I lived there and return from time to time the blatant prejudice many of them displayed to some Muslims (like Turks) prohibits many Muslims from blending in. Their sometimes blatant hatred of people not European contradicts your apparent impression of them being nuanced or cultured perhaps.
I've been to four continents, twenty some odd countries, and lived and worked in Europe for four and a half years. I spent ten days in the Amazon in Brazil last month.
As for supporting individual liberties, in some ways many other countries do a better job of that than we do. Unfortunately, we are not exactly the most "free" country in the world.
This isn't an argument worth pursuing. I just get a little unnerved when I come across threads filled with nothing but hateful talk.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.