Minister’s briefs Parliament on issue of mosque construction

Education Affairs Minister Anna Diamantopoulou on Thursday briefed Parliament over the government’s positions regarding the construction of a mosque in Athens, as well as other related issues.

“Presently, there is no plan to build a mosque in Thessaloniki or a second one in Athens,” the minister said, responding to a tabled question by opposition Popular Orthodox Rally (LA.OS) MP Kyriakos Velopoulos.

Moreover, Diamantopoulou said a mosque to be built in Athens — the first in the capital of the modern Greek state — will be smaller in size than initially planned and will be located in a green space. She added that construction design will “respect the national framework and culture”, while adding that it will be under the jurisdiction of the ministry of education, which will be the only entity to set the terms for its operation.

“This is a significant political decision because we would not want such a place of worship to be in the jurisdiction or under the responsibility of any other centre or country outside Greece,” she stressed.

On his part, Velopoulos retorted: “Acting humanely is very important but it should not be primped. We have to be careful, because Islam has 117 sects. They (sects) cannot share the same mosque, they cannot co-exist. Could you tolerate the burqa, the stoning for adultery, the (ritual) slaughtering of animals outside the mosques?”

In reply, Diamantopoulou said: “certain actions are unpleasant and appalling but we cannot reject one of the major religions in the world. Every religion has positive elements and we can use them to create conditions of smooth co-existence.”

“The government decision is constitutional, based on the principles of religious tolerance and the need for the implementation of international treaties on places of worship for the Muslim community,” she stressed, adding that “political or religious hate talk has no use when there is no counter-proposal on where those people will exercise their religious duties.”