I would guess that the Finnish establishment is beside itself with glee over this development, for they take it as evidence that Muslims are assimilating, joining the political process, becoming responsible Finnish citizens. But look at the party program: “The Finnish Islamic Party platform supports a ban on alcohol sales, the option for Muslim children to be excused from school music classes and outings to swimming pools, legal status for ritual animal killing and male circumcision, and the eventual introduction of shari’a law in Finland.”
Most Finns, like most Westerners, have no idea what Sharia has in store for them. It involves a lot more than “preventing crime” — it involves the institutionalized subjugation of non-Muslims and women. The Finns would no doubt now consign such an idea to “racism” and “Islamophobia.” But they will find out soon enough what Sharia really involves.
“Islamic party forms in Finland,” from Catholic World News (thanks to Josephine):
Helsinki, Sep. 12, 2007 (CWNews.com) – Europe’s first Islamic political party has formed in Finland.
The Finnish Islamic Party plans to collect 5,000 signatures in order to qualify for official registration by the end of the year. Counting on support from the 55,000 Muslims living in Finland, the party anticipates some success in next year’s municipal elections as well as in the 2011 parliamentary elections. Party spokesman Abdullah Tammi acknowledged to reporters that to date the party has enrolled only a few dozen members.
The Finnish Islamic Party platform supports a ban on alcohol sales, the option for Muslim children to be excused from school music classes and outings to swimming pools, legal status for ritual animal killing and male circumcision, and the eventual introduction of shari’a law in Finland. Tammi added that the purpose of Sharia law was to prevent crime.