In the Netherlands Anti-Jewish slogans and praying Muslims on Dam Square, is that allowed? 'Public space is not an extension of prayer space' author avatar Wierd Duk
03 Apr 2025in Domestic
Amsterdam - Who owns the Dutch public space? The question arises after Muslims recited anti-Jewish verses and burned the Israeli flag during a prayer on Dam Square. "It is organised hatred."
Arabist and historian Machteld Allan (61) looked in amazement last Saturday at the images from Amsterdam of praying Muslims on Dam Square. "It was on Dam Square, of all places, between the Palace, symbol of the constitutional monarchy, and the national monument with which we commemorate the war, that the prayer was performed. And anti-Jewish verses from the Koran were also recited. A multiple, deliberate insult to Dutch society."
The anti-Jewish verses and also the burning of the Israeli flag on the Spui led to commotion and questions in the city council and the House of Representatives.
Is all this allowed? Two worlds collide here, says Allan. “In Islamic countries, there is a completely different view of public space than here. We see public space as the face of society. That is why we cherish it as a place where everyone is equal, we make it beautiful, put down a flower box, sweep the pavement and give each other space. Civil society takes shape in public space. In Islamic law, public space as such does not exist. For Islam, public space is only something to which the Sharia, Islamic law, must be imposed. What the street looks like does not matter. What does matter is what the woman walking on the street looks like: is she sufficiently covered?”
Separation of church and state "It is precisely the separation between the private and the public that characterizes our constitutional state," says Jos Teunissen (70), emeritus professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law and General Political Theory. "Everything flows from that, including the separation of church and state."
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Astonishment over masked demonstrator who sets fire to Israeli flag in the heart of Amsterdam: 'Apparently this is all possible' According to Rotterdam alderman Faouzi Achbar (Denk), the separation of church and state is 'outdated'. Achbar was responding to criticism of the first iftar at Rotterdam city hall. Coalition partners VVD and Leefbaar, for their part, called that statement 'unacceptable'.
'Islam is a political enterprise' According to Machteld Allan, Achbar's view fits seamlessly within Islamic doctrine, in which there is no separation between mosque and state. "Sharia determines everything in life, down to the smallest detail. We in the West just don't want to understand this, even though there has been literature on this subject for 1,400 years. Ultimately, the goal of pious Muslims must be to establish an Islamic state, here too. Islam is a political enterprise."
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Defending the separation of church and state is not hatred of religion Partly for that reason, Allan continues, praying Muslims claim sidewalks and squares on their holidays, in order to express their piety and demonstrate their solidarity with the ummah, the worldwide Islamic community. "And they show that they, as Muslims, do not respect our idea of ??public space."
Praying Muslims on Dam Square in Amsterdam: the Western and Islamic worlds are at odds.
The government should not allow this abuse of public roads, says Jos Teunissen. "The public nature of roads is crucial in a constitutional state. Otherwise you cannot leave your house. Blocking, as XR does and the blocking Frisians did before it, is a crime because it can endanger safety. That safety must be guaranteed by the government. The function of Dam Square, a public square, does not seem to me to be to organize such prayer meetings there."
Experts by experience, from countries where Islamic law applies, warn: do not give in to Islamic demands so often and so easily. "Public space is not an extension of your prayer room," says Shermin Amiri (43), a social issues advisor who once fled the Iranian ayatollahs. "In a secular society, freedom also requires restraint - out of respect for those who do not pray."
Religious duty Amiri agrees with Machteld Allan's analysis: "In Islam, public space is not neutral. It is a place where one is expected to serve Allah and show one's Islamic identity. Hence the public prayer, the dress code and the desire to see halal requirements respected outside the home as well. For many Muslims, being visible as a believer in society is not a matter of personal expression, but a religious duty and sometimes even of da'wa - doing missionary work. This clashes with the secular idea that public space is a neutral meeting place, where one should not impose a dominant belief on the other."
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Celebration on Dam Square at the same time as Palestine demonstration: 'We call for peace, they call for violence' When he saw militants burning the Israeli flag and chanting 'Death to Israel!' around the public iftar in Amsterdam, Amiri was terrified. 'That is not an innocent act of protest. It is organised hatred, disguised as popular anger. I fled this culture. And I speak out against it because I know what happens if we silently allow it here. Freedom requires boundaries, not everything that cries out deserves space.'
'Pure intimidation' Machteld Allan considers it a missed opportunity that the Public Prosecution Service interprets the excesses in Amsterdam as 'legitimate criticism of Israel' and refuses to take action. "Everyone knows that 'death to Israel' means 'death to the Jews'. These activists have found a vacuum between the articles of law 'group insult' and 'calls to violence', which they cleverly abuse. But come on, act in the spirit of the law and don't allow this; what we see is pure intimidation. The rule of law must dare to set boundaries, because the way things are going now, we are not only throwing the Jews, but also other non-Muslims to the lions. It is just like raising a child: if you don't set boundaries, they will walk all over you."
