Dutch church spokesman urges tolerance after Muslim jailed for life

Published: 2005-07-29

WARSAW, Poland (CNS) -- A Dutch church spokesman has urged citizens to "learn the meaning of tolerance" after a Muslim militant was jailed for life July 26 for brutally killing film director Theo van Gogh. "There's a sense of urgency now about the need for more intense dialogue," said Peter Kohnen, spokesman for the Utrecht-based Dutch bishops' conference. "Religious people know it's wise to look for areas of cooperation, but I don't see any such openness as yet by the wider Dutch society," he added. In a July 27 phone interview with Catholic News Service, Kohnen said van Gogh's murder highlighted the need to understand Islamic principles. He noted that there are a million Muslims in the Netherlands as well as 700,000 foreigners with a Christian background. Catholics make up nearly one-third of the approximately 16 million residents of the Netherlands. Mohammed Bouyeri, a 27-year-old Muslim of Moroccan descent who was born in Amsterdam, was convicted and sentenced for the Nov. 2 killing of van Gogh, whose film, "Submission," criticized the treatment of women in Islamic societies.

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