Europe should not fear political Islam says Archbishop of Tunis

Archbishop Lahham

"If they held free and democratic elections in any Arab country at this moment, Islamic inspired parties would win," the Archbishop of Tunis, Migr Maroun Elias Lahham said yesterday. "This has happened in Tunisia and will probably happen in Egypt, but it should not lead to fears and concerns."

Archbishop Lahham explained that the Muslim party Ennahda won, because for years it represented the only real opposition to the regime of Ben Ali. "Members suffered persecution through the years, and the party became the bearer of values felt by all," Mgr Lahham said.

Ennahda also ran a good election campaign, because they were organised and experienced, he said.

Archbishop Lahham said the secular parties had been defeated partly because some had kept 'uncomfortable' relationships with personalities from the old regime. Also there were so many secular parties, the vote got divided.

Paradoxically, many secular minded people have chosen Ennahda because it touched the right chords for voters who shared little with the party platform.

"On the other hand" the Archbishop said, "no one, including the leaders of Ennahda, expected such a success, a victory by more than 40% of the votes, when all the predictions gave 20-30% at most."

He said: "The vote is laden with symbols for Tunisia. It was the first country to revolt against decades of a dictatorship disguised as democracy or otherwise accepted by the West. Tunisia was also the first country in the so-called Arab Spring to take a process of transition."

"I think that in Egypt, the Islamic parties will also do well in elections... And if one day they vote in Libya, there will probably be the same scenario.

"The point is not, however, that an Islamic party governs, but rather what kind of Islam. Tunisian Islam is not Sudanese Islam, it is not Iranian nor is it Egyptian. Probably in Egypt, the situation would be different, but there is something new now that any party or coalition that wins power must remember. The street has shown that it is capable of rebelling against dictatorship and those who fail to respect democracy will likely face the same end. It is this challenge which now faces Tunisia.

Archbishop Laham concluded: "Europe must have a new and different approach to the realities that are taking shape in the southern shore of the Mediterranean: just as it has had parties of Christian inspiration, it must not place conditions that compromise governments featuring parties of an Islamic inspiration. Islam can be democratic and Ennahda has been asked to demonstrate that".

Source: MISNA