Merkel's ally wants a mosque registry in Germany

Merkel's ally wants a mosque registry in Germany
Jens Spahn has called for more rules to govern Muslims in Germany, including a registry of all mosques and German-only sermons.
2 min read
30 March, 2017
Spahn warned preachers come to Germany from aboard and receive payments from other countries [AFP]
German politician Jens Spahn called on Thursday for an "Islam law" to regulate mosques in Germany and ensure sermons are transparent, German broadcaster Deutsche Welle reported.

Spahn, who is a member of the executive committee of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats [CDU], said German authorities "had to know what happens in mosques," in comments to Funke Media Group.

He called for language tests for imams, adding it is important for preachers at mosques to deliver sermons in German to help diminish prejudice against Muslims.

Spahn, who was first elected in 2002 when he was just 22 years old, warned many preachers come to Germany from aboard and receive payments from other countries.

"Such imported imams lead to social disintegration," he said.

Spahn also called for a mosque registry because authorities "did not know how many mosques there are in Germany, where they are or who finances them".

Earlier this year, Germany's Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel called for a blanket closure of all mosques connected to the Salafi branch of Islam, considered fundamentalist by many.

Gabriel said there should be a "zero tolerance" attitude towards combating Islamist terrorism, adding that those who preach violence should forgo protections created under religious freedom laws.

"Salafist mosques must be banned, the communities dissolved and the preachers should be expelled, as soon as possible," he said in an interview with German weekly, Der Spiegel.

There are around 4.5 million Muslims in Germany, accounting for approximately 5 percent of the country’s population.

Only 9,700 of them identify as Salafi Muslims according to national statistics.