BERLIN: GermanyÂ’s foreign minister says the West must avoid the mistake of assuming that Islamic-oriented parties arenÂ’t compatible with freedom and modernization as it encourages democracy in the Arab world.
Germany’s Guido Westerwelle wrote in an article in the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung Friday that “political Islam is not the same as radical Islamism” and “we must learn to look carefully and differentiate.”
Westerwelle argues for dialogue on the relationship between the state and society, politics and religion with moderate forces such as the winners in Tunisia and Morocco. He writes: “I am convinced that the combination of Islamic orientation and democratic attitude, of Islam and democracy, is possible.” |