The MP Open Vld, Patrick Dewael wants the commission of inquiry on the attacks of 22 March to examine the entire procedure for the approval of mosques. According to the chairman of the commission, this is aimed at ensuring that the procedures are more effective, that the number of mosques meeting the conditions for approval is increasing and that the monitoring of compliance with these conditions is improving.
The discussion around the Beringen mosque has shown that the approval procedure is particularly complicated, involving different levels of authority and institutions. Patrick Dewael emphasises that all citizens have the right to exercise their religion freely and that they must be able to do so in recognised places of prayer that are free from political or extremist pressure and respect the Constitution.
For this reason, the leader of the Flemish liberal group will propose to the commission of inquiry on the attacks of 22 March 2016 to examine the procedure for approval.
The commission of inquiry has already examined the Great Mosque and the Islamic Cultural Center in Brussels. The hearings have shown that it has still not been approved, that it has possible links with fighters in Syria, that foreign funding and accounting are not very transparent and that a radical form of Islam is preached there, explained Patrick Dewael.
The Brussels Times
