VZCZCXRO7548
PP RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHMZ #0646/01 3521118
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 181118Z DEC 07
FM AMCONSUL MUNICH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4193
INFO RUCNMEU/EU INTEREST COLLECTIVE
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0024
RUEHDE/AMCONSUL DUBAI 0014

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MUNICH 000646 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/17/2022 
TAGS: GE KCRM KISL PGOV PREL PTER SOCI
SUBJECT: PROPOSED BAVARIAN ISLAMIC ACADEMY HIGHLIGHTS 
CHALLENGES OF MUSLIM INTEGRATION 
 
REF: MUNICH 218 
 
MUNICH 00000646  001.4 OF 003 
 
 
Classified By: Consul General Eric G. Nelson.  Reasons: 1.4(b) and (d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1.  (C) A controversial proposal for an Islamic academy in 
Munich illustrates some of the challenges of balancing 
integration and security concerns in a conservative German 
state.  The academy, to be funded by the UAE, would be a 
first-of-its-kind proposal by IVLP grantee Imam Benjamin 
Idriz of the Penzberg Islamic Community to educate imams in 
Munich in the German language.  The academy, says Idriz, 
would help integrate Muslims into German society.  Bavarian 
Ministry of Interior (MOI) officials, however, have raised 
misgivings, arguing that the Penzberg Community has been 
associated with the Turkish Islamic organization Milli Gorus 
(MG), which is under observation by the Federal and Bavarian 
Offices for the Protection of the Constitution as a threat to 
the constitutional order.  Some local officials and clergy 
have rushed to support the Penzberg Congregation, and various 
opposition state legislators have alleged a smear campaign by 
some Bavarian politicians.  Although the MOI is not formally 
able to block the project, the future of the academy remains 
unclear, in part because the UAE funding may not be 
forthcoming if Bavarian officials remain politically opposed. 
 End Summary. 
 
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AN ISLAMIC ACADEMY IN CATHOLIC BAVARIA? 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (U) Benjamin Idriz, Imam of the rural Islamic 
Congregation of Penzberg (south of Munich) and IVLP grantee 
in 2007, has proposed an academy called the "Center for Islam 
in Europe, Munich" (ZIEM) aimed at educating imams in 
Germany, in the German language.  At present, the Turkish 
umbrella organization in Germany, "DITIB" (Turkish Islamic 
Union for Religious Affairs), in cooperation with "DIYANET," 
the office for religious affairs in Turkey, brings in imams 
from abroad, mainly from Turkey or Morocco, to serve in 
Germany.  Most speak little or no German and often depart the 
country after four years.  While it is estimated that there 
are currently 3.3 million Muslims who visit some 2,600 
mosques and prayer rooms throughout Germany, there is 
virtually no indigenous education of Islamic clerics in 
German universities. 
 
¶3.  (U) Advocates for Muslim integration, including the 
Protestant Church of Bavaria, have welcomed the ZIEM project, 
asserting the education of imams born and raised in Germany 
would be an ideal tool for better integration, as these imams 
would understand German society and the needs of the German 
Islamic community.  Idriz presented a paper outlining his 
ideas, including Bachelor and Masters level courses designed 
to give students a solid religious education in cooperation 
with the Bavarian Ministry of Culture.  Idriz stated the idea 
was to train tolerant, open-minded, highly-qualified and 
engaged imams who would "naturally" preach in German.  The 
Emir of Sharjah in the UAE, already a benefactor of the 
Penzberg Community, reportedly has promised financial support 
to the new Islamic center, provided authorities approve the 
project. 
 
------------------------------ 
BAVARIAN AUTHORITIES CONCERNED 
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¶4.  (U) Former Bavarian MOI State Secretary Georg Schmid (he 
has recently taken a new post) had publicly called into 
question the claimed integration aims of the Academy.  Schmid 
referred to alleged MG membership not by Idriz, but by 
leading Penzberg Community members, including Community 
Chairman Bayram Yerli and his wife and Vice Director of the 
Forum, Goenuel Yerli.  MG is under observation by the Federal 
and Bavarian Offices for the Protection of the Constitution 
(OPC) as an extremist organization that represents a threat 
to the constitutional order.  Schmid also pointed to an 
internal concept paper for the Academy that appeared to 
propose a more fundamentalist goal than the one announced 
publicly.  The paper reportedly referred to the need for 
children to be educated in "pure Islam," and criticized the 
way European Muslims were being "to a certain extent 
compelled" to co-exist with a non-Muslim majority in society. 
 Idriz acknowledged the concept paper existed, but dismissed 
it as one of various concept papers submitted by European 
 
MUNICH 00000646  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
counterparts and not adopted for the ZIEM academy. 
 
¶5.  (C) Separately, newly-elected Bavarian Minister-President 
Guenther Beckstein, who has not taken a public position on 
the matter, confided to the Consul General (while Beckstein 
was still Bavarian Interior Minister) that he supported 
Schmid's stance on Penzberg and the Academy, while 
acknowledging that Schmid may have also used the controversy 
to bolster his political profile.  The CG noted Idriz's 
advocacy of a moderate form of pro-integration Islam, and 
Beckstein countered that "Idriz plays two different pianos." 
Beckstein also expressed discomfort with funding from the 
Emir of Sharjah. 
 
¶6.  (C) ConGen Munich met November 28 with Schmid's 
successor, Juergen Heike, and Wolfgang Remmele, the OPC 
liaison officer to the MOI, to learn their views on Penzberg. 
 Heike essentially echoed Schmid's and Beckstein's views, 
expressing a general distrust of Idriz and his congregation. 
Heike stressed the alleged MG connection, saying that Idriz 
had delivered a speech in 2005 praising MG's social net for 
its members.  Heike continued that the MOI still considered 
Yerli to be an MG member, since he had yet to submit proof of 
his leaving MG, as he had promised to do. 
 
¶7.  (C) When asked what specific things Idriz could do to 
mitigate the MOI's concerns, Heike said Idriz needed to not 
only make statements distancing himself from terrorism, but 
from Islamic fundamentalism in general.  Additionally, Idriz 
needed to publicly condemn MG and oust its members from his 
community.  Heike told the CG: "They lie to us.  Since they 
are convinced it's totally right to lie, to betray, and even 
kill unbelievers, this does not build confidence."  When 
asked if there were any specific threats emanating from 
Penzberg, Heike said there were none.  Remmele added without 
elaboration, that there were indications of links between the 
Penzberg Congregation and a Bosnian terrorist group which was 
attempting to expand its influence in Bavaria.  We have 
scheduled a follow-on meeting with Remmele for more 
information. 
 
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DISSENTING VIEWS 
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¶8.  (C) Some working-level contacts in the Bavarian law 
enforcement community have confided to the Consulate that 
they view the Penzberg controversy as essentially a 
"political" issue that is being used by Bavarian officials to 
appeal to their conservative, largely Catholic, constituency. 
 Additionally, several Bavarian SPD and Green political 
figures have come to the defense of Idriz, criticizing the 
MOI's role in the controversy.  While politicians from the 
governing CSU party have been largely silent on the issue, 
Bavarian Landtag (state legislature) President and CSU member 
Alois Glueck has warned against general suspicion of Muslims, 
and said that cooperation with the moderate forces of Islam 
is a top priority. 
 
¶9.  (U) Glueck met with Idriz at his Landtag office on 
October 16, and had what he described in a subsequent media 
interview as a "constructive" conversation.  At the end of 
October, Glueck traveled to the UAE, where he met with the 
Emir of Sharjah (Glueck said the trip was planned well before 
the ZIEM controversy).  Glueck told the press he had come 
away from his meeting with a positive impression of the Emir, 
whom he described as open, and as having distanced himself 
from fundamentalist Islam.  Glueck added that he had no 
reason to believe the Emir had intentions that were contrary 
to Bavarian interests.  Glueck, while generally supportive of 
Idriz and the Penzberg Congregation, has stopped short of 
publicly endorsing the ZIEM project, saying too many 
questions, particularly regarding public input, remain open. 
 
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WHAT'S NEXT? 
------------ 
 
¶10.  (U) At this point, the Academy's fate is uncertain -- 
Idriz is planning meetings with Munich officials to seek 
necessary approvals from the city.  He will also need the 
approval from the district government of Upper Bavaria. 
Technically, he does not need permission as such from the MOI 
to move ahead with the academy.  However, the Emir of Sharjah 
reportedly has told him funding is contingent upon the 
support of the Bavarian government -- including the MOI. 
 
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MUNICH 00000646  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
COMMENT 
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¶11.  (C) The Penzberg Congregation has many attributes of a 
moderate Islamic community; however, misgivings persist among 
MOI politicians about whether the community's private 
messages are consistent with their public statements. 
ConGen Munich has engaged Idriz and his congregation since 
2005 with the MOI's clearance, and sent Idriz to the U.S. on 
an IVLP this year.  Our dialogue with the Penzberg community 
has won significant attention from the media and praise from 
opposition political figures.  To expand our understanding of 
the community and the MOI's concerns, we continue to seek 
official information from local authorities at various 
levels.  We suspect that the MOI's reaction reflects the 
conservative Bavarian government's general discomfort with 
any initiatives that, in Heike's own words, could "impact 
German politics and eventually transform German society."  We 
will continue, however, to follow the Penzberg saga closely 
while continuing our cautious engagement with Idriz and his 
congregation for now. 
 
¶12.  (U) This report has been coordinated with Embassy Berlin. 
 
¶13.  (U) Previous reporting from Munich is available on our 
SIPRNET website at www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/munich/ . 
NELSON