Coexistence means fighting cultural frictions

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Sep. 18, 2010)
Coexistence means fighting cultural frictions
排外主義の台頭　異文化とどう共生していくか（9月17日付・読売社説）

The burqa, an enveloping outer garment, and the niqab, a veil covering the face, are worn by devout Muslim women.
　敬虔(けいけん)なイスラム教徒女性が身に着ける衣装に、顔も体も覆い隠すブルカやニカブがある。

The French legislature has passed a bill banning women from wearing this type of clothing in public places.
これを公共の場で着用するのを禁止する法律が、フランスで成立した。

The law, prepared by the French government, will take effect in six months unless objections are raised by the Constitutional Council, an organ tasked with examining the constitutionality of laws.
　違憲立法審査機関が異議を唱えなければ半年後に施行される。

Protagonists of the burqa-niqab ban have said wearing these garments runs counter to the principle of separation of church and state, and to the emancipation of women.
　禁止の理由は、ブルカが厳格な政教分離や女性解放の理念に反するからだという。

President Nicolas Sarkozy's government has continued to send Roma back to such countries as Romania since summer. His administration is also considering revoking French nationality for immigrants found guilty of committing major crimes.
　法案を準備したサルコジ政権は今夏以来、ルーマニアなどからやって来たロマ人を強制送還しているほか、重罪を犯した移民の国籍剥奪(はくだつ)も検討している。

Sarkozy's strong measures, including his crackdown on Roma communities, are a response to street disturbances by groups of young Roma and immigrants. However, the president continues to be accused of trying to resurrect his slumping popularity through these harsh measures, with a view to being reelected president in 2012.
　ロマ人や移民の若者グループが暴動を起こしたためだが、２０１２年の大統領選を見据えた人気回復策だ、との批判は絶えない。

Violation of EU rules

France's expulsion of Roma, also known as Gypsies, has drawn fire from other European Union nations on the grounds that it violates the rule of freedom of movement within the bloc. However, a majority of French people support the Roma expulsion and burqa ban.
　かつてジプシーと呼ばれたロマ人の追放には、欧州連合（ＥＵ）内でも、ＥＵの基本原則「域内の移動の自由」の侵害だ、と批判が起きている。しかし、仏国民の大半は、追放にもブルカ禁止にも賛成している。

If Sarkozy is merely trying to please the public through his antiforeigner policy, it is a sad commentary on France's national motto of liberty, equality and fraternity.
　そんな世論に迎合した排外政策だとしたら、フランスが掲げる「自由・平等・友愛」の理念が泣くのではないか。

France is not the only country that apparently has become intolerant of immigrants and other minorities.
　移民や少数派に非寛容になったのはフランスだけではない。

The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States have led many Americans and Europeans to view Muslims with fear and suspicion.
　欧米諸国では、９年前の米同時テロ事件で、イスラム教徒を見る目に恐怖と猜疑(さいぎ)心が加わった。

Recent fiscal crises gripping some European countries, combined with a rise in unemployment, have triggered an even stronger antipathy toward immigrants. This is exemplified by ultrarightist parties making major gains in Dutch and Hungarian elections earlier this year after calling for restrictions on Muslim immigrants and a crackdown on Roma.
　欧州では最近の財政危機や失業率の増加で、移民に対する風当たりはさらに強くなった。オランダやハンガリーで今年前半、イスラム教徒排斥やロマ人の取り締まり強化を叫ぶ極右政党が選挙で大躍進したのは、その一例である。

Rise in xenophobia

The anti-burqa movement is also gathering momentum in Belgium and Spain. Italy has also has set its sights on expelling Roma.
　ブルカ禁止の動きはベルギーやスペインでも進む。ロマ人追放にはイタリアも乗り出した。

In early September, a board member of Germany's federal bank was dismissed for repeating racist remarks about Muslim immigrants and Jews. According to a survey, only about 30 percent of Germans thought the banker should be fired.
　ドイツでは、イスラム教徒移民やユダヤ人に対する差別的発言を繰り返した連邦銀行理事が今月初めに解任されたが、解任を支持する声は約３割にとどまった。

The rise in xenophobic sentiment also is noticeable in the United States, a melting pot for immigrants. Divisions have deepened among Americans over a plan to build a mosque and Islamic center near New York's Ground Zero. Several days ago, a Florida pastor opposing the mosque construction plan stirred up an international furor when he vowed to burn copies of the Koran.
　移民大国の米国でも、米同時テロ跡地近くにイスラム教礼拝堂を建設する計画をめぐって、賛成派と反対派の亀裂が深まっている。反対派の牧師がイスラム教の聖典コーランを焼却すると宣言して、世界を騒然とさせた。

The ongoing process of globalization obliges people to live with those who adhere to different religious faiths, manners and customs. Japan is no exception.
　グローバル化が進む今、信仰や習俗の異なる人々との共生は避けて通れない。それは、日本も例外ではない。

The coexistence of different cultures also requires efforts by immigrants and other minorities to assimilate into the communities they live in. A society that accepts such minorities must fight cultural frictions that give rise to antiforeigner sentiments.
　異文化との共生には、移民など少数派が既存社会に溶け込む努力も欠かせない。受け入れる側には文化摩擦の中で起きる排外主義と闘う責任があろう。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 17, 2010)
（2010年9月17日01時34分 読売新聞）