Brussels, 28/09/2001 (Agence Europe) - Silvio Berlusconi's comments on the "superiority of the West" (see EUROPE of 28 September, p.5) have been called "racist" by the Arab League and have deeply embarrassed the European Union, forcing the Belgian Presidency to use strong language during the pursuit of the delicate mission by the Troika (led by the Belgian Foreign Minister, Louis Michel) in the Middle East to attempt to rally the countries in the region to the international cause of fighting terrorism. The Arab League General Secretary, Amr Moussa, demanded that the Italian government either issue a formal denial or an apology be offered to the Muslim community for more than a billion people around the world. Mr Moussa said, "I consider his remarks racist, and by such remarks he has crossed the limits of reason and decency". Dispatches suggest that Mr Berlusconi has been supported by his Ministers, some of whom even going as far as saying that he had simply "voiced out loud what everyone is thinking inside" (Mr Martino's comments), and that he has no intention of apologising. He will, however, be meeting Arab diplomats on Tuesday. Leaving a Cabinet meeting on Friday, he said no more than that his comments had been misinterpreted.
Mr Berlusconi's comments continued to give rise to a string of reactions on Friday, including that of Raymond Forni, President of the French Assemblée nationale, who issued a statement whereby as President of the Assemblée nationale, a Republican who respected democratic principles and a European citizen from an Italian background, he felt particularly worried by Silvio Berlusconi's statements which he found shocking, scandalous and aggressive. Mr Forni noted that following a request of the President of the Italian Senate, Marcello Pera, he had arranged to meet this gentleman on 9 October but as a sign that he rejected the Italian Prime Minister's unacceptable remarks, he would be cancelling the meeting. At the European Commission, only one other Commissioner has reacted (along with Chris Patten). Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou issued the following statement, "Civilisations do not all have the same values but the precondition for peaceful coexistence is respect of others' values and their diversity. Any notion of superiority or downgrading of others' collective identity, society, people or religion leads to discrimination. Such discrimination in turn frustrates constructive co-operation at global level". Worth noting too that, according to a poll commissioned by the daily "La Repubblica", a majority of Italians (53%) regard Berlusconi's words as "insulting", whereas 33% say he is right and 17% of the 1000 people questioned say they "don't know".
The party of the EPP adopts a resolution pleading in favour of dialogue and mutual respect
The President of the Party of the EPP, Wilfried Martens made the following statement: "While we reject negotiating with terrorists, we will and must ensure a rational dialogue with the Muslim and Arab world. This can only be on the basis of mutual respect, and of genuine equality". Referring to the words of Mr. Berlusconi, he said that the EPP rejected the idea of a war of civilisations, and added: "President Bush himself has had the delicacy to withdraw the word 'crusade'. This is a time for determination (….) but also for a decent attitude towards the vast majority of humanity trying to live their lives in peace together. We should not forget there were numerous Muslims killed in the Twin Towers (World Trade Centre: Ed) as well. None of the great world religions believes in wanton murder, and that includes Islam". In a resolution adopted by its Bureau, the Party of the EPP calls for a dialogue with the Arab and Muslim world and , notably, calls for: - greater operational co-operation for Europol, with an increased budget next year already; - the introduction of a European arrest warrant; - better surveillance of the financial markets; - acceleration in setting up Eurojust; - increased military spending and better integration of forces, equipment and intelligence services of the Member States; - isolation of countries that tolerate, encourage or actively support terrorist activities.