SWEDISH GOVERNMENT PROPOSES IMAM TRAINING

C O N F I D E N T I A L STOCKHOLM 000213 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE PASS TO FARAH PANDITH, EUR/FO E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/14/2018 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR PREL ECON OIIP KISL KPAO SUBJECT: SWEDISH GOVERNMENT PROPOSES IMAM TRAINING Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission RSilverman for reason 1.4(c). ¶1. (C) Minister for Higher Education and Research Lars Leijonborg told EUR Senior Advisor Farah Pandith at a March 6 meeting that his controversial proposal for the Swedish state to establish and fund an imam training program was in response to concerns about radicalization in Sweden's Muslim community. "The reality is that Muslims in Sweden are forced to accept imams educated and financed by Saudi Arabia, and that is part of the radicalization problem in Sweden," Leijonborg said. He also said the proposal is a matter of fairness, citing Sweden's tradition of government funding for training Christian religious leaders. Leijonborg told Pandith that the issue was first raised with the Swedish government by Muslim leaders concerned about the lack of a training program to sensitize foreign imams to Swedish culture. Leijonborg said an independent expert will be appointed by April 2008 to initiate a study of the issue and provide recommendations to the government. ¶2. (C) Senior Advisor Pandith said imam training is a pressing issue across Europe because foreign imams lack the skills to deal effectively with local needs and the gap is being filled by extremists. She told Leijonborg that momentum is building among European leaders to come together on this issue. Pandith offered to help Swedish authorities to connect with U.S. institutions addressing similar issues, including Zaytuna Institute and the Hartford Seminary. Linking local institutions with credible centers of Islamic scholarship is vital. Centers such as Al Azhar have that kind of credibility and gravitas. Countries in Europe need to find a way to create places like that -- that have the proper pedigree in terms of scholarship and faculty, Pandith said. Muslim leaders have told EmbOffs that there are no imam training centers in Sweden and that 90 percent of imams in Sweden are from other countries. They are generally sponsored by the sending country, where they may have received some training, and once in Sweden often serve in mosques catering to immigrant communities from the same country. Most lack any formal training as Islamic scholars and have no training to familiarize them with Swedish culture and language. Asked about support from Muslim leaders for his proposal, Leijonborg said the reaction has been "mostly positive." ¶3. (C) COMMENT: The success of the government's imam training proposal will depend on how the government addresses concerns from local Muslim leaders. Our Swedish Muslim interlocutors have expressed strong reservations about the proposal. END COMMENT. ¶4. (U) Senior Advisor Pandith cleared on this message. WOOD