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OpinionReligion, terrorism and psychiatryThursday 30 July 2009 Religion, terrorism and psychiatry have all been hitting the headlines this week. Mix them up and you have a nasty brew, says Abi Daruvalla.Religion, terrorism and psychiatry have all been hitting the headlines this week. Mix them up and you have a nasty brew, says Abi Daruvalla. The national statistics office, the CBS, has published a new report saying that the number of Catholics and Muslims attending church or a mosque is falling. This seemingly innocent statistical survey was seized upon with the usual frenzy by some of the Dutch media. Several newspapers used the opportunity to indulge in tiresome and patronising sermonising about how not going to a mosque is a sign that Muslims are integrating into Dutch society. But there was no patting on the head for the Catholics – they are just left to feel guilty. But can the Dutch media ever get it right? The arrest in Kenya of four Dutchmen (or officially three Dutchmen and a Moroccan with a Dutch residency permit) on suspicion of terrorism led to the usual media muddle over the ethnic background of those involved. Do they or do they not have Moroccan or Somali (read ‘Muslim’) backgrounds? And does it matter? To muddy the issue further, the website of public broadcaster Nos kindly pointed out that the arrested men belong to a group of Muslims which has been banned from a mosque in The Hague because of their radical beliefs. Just in case you hadn’t made the link between Muslims and potential terrorists yourself. Then of course there was the case of Saïda H who appeared in court on Wednesday suspected of being the woman who made a false tip-off to police about a terrorist attack in Amsterdam in March. The NRC enjoyed telling us that she was ‘a small woman shrouded in a long white shawl’ who told the court ‘in broken Dutch’ that she was innocent. Much was made in the media about the mental state of the woman, leaving us with the distinct impression that Muslims (not that she was directly identified as such, that was left to our own imagination) are either dangerous terrorists or insane. Or perhaps both. Abi Daruvalla is one of the founders of DutchNews.nl The news media seem to have forgotten about their social responsibilities. They are more concerned about falling sales figures at the moment. By Q | August 5, 2009 9:24 AM Are you suggesting that journalists should have withheld this information? Wouldn't that have been discriminatory? And do you think people are really that stupid? The papers are filled daily with stories of white, Christian, Dutch men who have murdered or raped or stolen or sold illegal drugs - or are mentally unstable. I find it hard to believe that the response of the average reader is that "Christian men and Dutch men are all rapists, drug addicts, murderers, or insane - or perhaps all of the above."
By Abigail | August 5, 2009 4:52 PM Does anybody believe the dutch/state media in the Netherlands these days? I sincerely hope not. The (state) media in this country seems to have sunk to little more than right wing propaganda. By Andy | August 6, 2009 9:29 PM |
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Well, of course mentioning the facts and letting to connect the dots to reveal the obvious hurts especially when it is true. So why hide it then?
On the other hand, i've read some news on mentioned Saida's mental health, mental condition of Karst Tates, and some vegan freaks - I dont think there is this hidden painful association with some race, gender or religion! it's just facts, and they belong to analytical and descriptive journalism.
By Jaijai | August 3, 2009 10:19 AM