Anders Fogh drives a wedge into muslim community in Denmark

A new organisation has come to light in Denmark. The muslim member of Parliament for the Centre-radical party Naser Khader has taken the initiative to form the organisation Democratic Muslims. They are tired of being bunked together with the imams and the more radical elements in the faith based muslim organisations that have been dominant so far. Many Danes, also muslim immigrants, are tired of the imams - not least after their tour of the Mid East where they showed the Prophet drawings, and a few more drawings, provoking a hate wave against Denmark.

This new organisation was hardly formed before it was invited to prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen's residence for at meeting. The prime minister wants to reinforce dialogue with the muslim community in Denmark. The fact that only the moderate muslims were invited led to a barrage of criticism. The Democratic Muslims were not representative of all muslims. Naser Khader is also a believing muslim, but of a more euro-islam oriented kind. The need for reconciliation in the Danish society is so big now that he was mentioned as a possible candidate for the prime minister post in the leading public service channel TV on Friday night. That is perhaps going a bit too far, but the man is immensely popular in broad layers of the Danish population. The Radical Party, he represents, can be compared to the Liberal Democrats in the UK. It's a social liberal party with a progressive policy on immigration problems.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen's invitation to Khader pleases the latter, but it has led to an immense outcry of protest from the imams who feel obviously shortcircuited.