OPINION:Ireland has an opportunity to lead the headscarf debate and set an example for the rest of Europe, writes Jakob de Roover
IRELAND IS exceptional among the EU member states because for centuries it experienced colonialism from the perspective of the colonised. While this history remains tragic, today it gives the country a unique position in Europe. Not only could this experience help Ireland to accommodate the growing cultural diversity in its own society; it also enables the country to play a leading role in redefining the European stance towards other cultures.
In spite of its principles of liberalism and democracy, the European culture has always had great difficulties in coping with cultural diversity. It has approached other cultures as deviations from an ideal; the ideal being Europe itself.
This can be seen in the current debates on Islam. We complain that Islam is wrong in uniting politics with religion, or that Muslims oppress women through practices like purdah. This sounds convincing to us, because we presuppose that modern Europe embodies gender equality and the separation of church and state. Thus, Europe represents the ideal and Islam becomes its negation. The inevitable consequence is that one begins to feel that there is an intrinsic conflict between the European culture and Islam.
The same approach was also dominant when Europe colonised other parts of the world. It assumed that the modern West represented the pursuit of liberty and equality; while the colonised cultures were characterised in terms of despotism, tyranny and exploitation. Indian society was described as a tyranny of caste and superstition; Asian politics as Oriental despotism, and, of course, women were oppressed and human rights were violated everywhere except in Europe.
The only hope for other cultures was to try and become more like the ideal of the European civilisation.
This is where Ireland comes in. For centuries, the Irish were subject to the oppression of colonial rule, its atrocities towards a people, and its derogatory descriptions of a society. They experienced first-hand what cruelties a European state can inflict when it convinces itself that it faces "an inferior civilisation".
As a consequence, Ireland is in a unique position to initiate a process of transformation in the European stance towards other cultures. But to do so, it will need the courage to leave the beaten path. In the case of its own society, this would mean exploring new ways of coping with cultural diversity.
Instead of banning headscarves, turbans and other practices in the name of liberal secularism, it could simply accept these as the traditions of communities. As long as such traditions do not violate criminal law, there is no point in banning them.
Instead of invoking high moral principles in order to discriminate against certain religious groups, Irish society could provide space for them in its public sphere.
Only if Ireland shows to the world that it will treat immigrant communities differently than the dominant EU member states do, will it be able to attract the highly-educated labour force that it needs to retain its current economic welfare. A more accommodating approach to cultural diversity could make Ireland a society where a variety of human communities flourishes. As history has taught us, this usually has very positive impact on the social, cultural and economic prosperity of a country. Ireland could also take a leading role at another level. The European sense of civilisational superiority is beginning to create problems in the collaboration between the EU and countries like India and China. Asian politicians, diplomats and businessmen often express disgust when they are reprimanded by European colleagues for the "human rights violations" in their countries. Africans react in much the same way. To them, this evokes the preaching of the colonial civilising mission.
While it is unthinkable to us that India or China would reprimand the EU for the socio-economic wrongs in its society, it is still obvious that European countries can do the reverse. Like any people that has experienced colonial oppression, the Irish are sensitive to such asymmetries. They know what it feels like to have been told for centuries that one's culture is inferior and one's society unjust.
This sensitivity could give the Irish a great advantage when it comes to improving the way in which the EU approaches the representatives of Asian and African countries. At a time when the global relations between the West and Asia are undergoing revolutionary change, this is perhaps one of the central contributions that Ireland can make to the European project.
There is nothing wrong in being proud to be European, since our culture has indeed contributed much to humanity.
But the only way to become truly proud is by learning from the mistakes that Europe has made in the past. Given Ireland's first-hand experience of colonialism, it can take a leading role in the much-needed process of reflection that will change the European stance towards other cultures.
Dr Jakob De Roover is a post-doctoral fellow at the research foundation of Ghent University in Belgium