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Centro Argentino de Estudios Internacionales / Entelequia. Revista Interdisciplinar do not elect to take confessional courses are obliged to take an alternative course covering general social, cultural, and religious themes. In 2004, the Government set aside funds to pay for 20 Muslim teachers to teach courses on Islam to public school students in Madrid, Catalonia, Andalusia, and Valencia. The Government required that the teachers hold degrees from a Spanish university, have training in Spanish law, and be fluent in Spanish. As of the end of the period covered by this report, courses on Islam were not yet being offered because government officials and members of the Islamic Commission of Spain had not selected Muslim teachers who met the qualifications. There are religious schools for Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, and Jewish students. There are no restrictions placed on parents who want to provide their children religious home school training or enroll them in private religious schools. The Government has taken steps to promote interfaith understanding through the support or sponsorship of programs on interfaith dialogue. Members of all religious faiths serve as members of a government Committee of Advisorson Religious Freedom. On March 25, 2005, the Government participated in an interreligious seminar on "Religious Pluralism and Coexistence" in Madrid. It also sponsors university courses and seminars with representatives of different religious confessions. In 2005, the government held inter-religious roundtables at the University Menendez Pelayo of Santander and the University of Madrid. On June 8-9, 2005, the Government hosted a conference in Cordoba under the auspices of the Organization for European Security Cooperation on Anti-Semitism and Other Forms of Intolerance. The conference included representatives of all religious faiths as well as international experts on the subject of religious freedom. Government officials placed great emphasis specifically on the issue of anti-Semitism in the country and expressed interest in maintaining a regular dialogue with the U.S. Government on anti-Semitic activity in the country. The Government also appointed a special envoy to serve as a liaison between the Jewish community and international organizations dedicated to combating anti-Semitism in Europe, such as the forum for International Cooperation on Holocaust, Education, Remembrance, and Research in Warsaw. Restrictions on Freedom of Religion Government policy and practice contributed to the generally free practice of religion. The Islamic and Protestant Federations continued to report that the building permit process for new mosque construction can be difficult and lengthy, especially for building sites in central urban locations. According to FEERI, new mosque construction sometimes was forced into less-visible suburban areas, primarily because of resistance from neighborhood groups. However, in 2003, the construction of a large and prominent mosque was completed in Granada. FEERI reported that female Muslim students who wear headscarves had not encountered problems with school dress codes. The Government has consistently held that the right to education takes priority over the enforcement of clothing regulations. The Government funds Catholic chaplains for the military, prisons, and hospitals. The 1992 bilateral agreements recognize the right of Protestant and Muslim members of the armed forces to have access to religious services, subject to the needs of the service and authorization by their superiors. According to the agreements, such services are to be provided by ministers and imams approved by the religious federations and authorized by the military command. However, Protestant and Muslim leaders continued to report that there are no military regulations to implement the 1992 agreements. FERDE reported that evangelicalmilitary service personnel must leave their barracks to access chaplains and participate in evangelical religious services. Muslim leaders report that Arno Tausch, Christian Bischof, Tomz Kastrun, Karl Mueller 344
Centro Argentino de Estudios Internacionales / Entelequia. Revista Interdisciplinar prison officials generally provide access for imams to visit Muslim prisoners, but officials have not granted permission for imams to hold religious services on prison grounds. Section III. Societal Attitudes The generally amicable relationships among religions in society contributed to religious freedom. The growth of the country's immigrant population has at times led to social friction, which in isolated instances has had a religious component. Many citizens blame recent Moroccan immigrants for increased crime rates in the country. These beliefs sometimes result in anti-Muslim sentiment. There was no documented increase in violence toward Muslims following the March 2004 terrorist train bombings in Madrid. Muslim leaders have stated that Islamic communities continued to suffer from discrimination, particularly in obtaining employment and rental housing. They were concerned that media reports appeared to link Islam to the terrorist attacks. In February 2005, Sigma Dos, a private polling agency, conducted a national survey of 1000 individuals on attitudes on the Muslim population in the country. The poll revealed that 70 percent of those who responded had had no contact with Muslims, and 48 percent stated they knew almost nothing about Islam or Muslims. Nevertheless, some 43 percent of respondents said the greatest threat of the presence of Muslims in the country was the possibility that fundamentalists would carry out a terrorist attack. As in past years, in 2004 there were some reports of vandalism to Jewish community institutions in Barcelona, Toledo, and in Melilla. Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, has an estimated population of 4,000 Jewish residents. A group of individuals painted anti- Semitic slogans in German on the walls of the ATID (Hebrew for "Future") community center and the Sephardi School in October 2004in Barcelona. Following these incidents, the Catalan regional government temporarily provided additional security for community center and the school. In August 2004, unidentified persons defaced with red swastikas a statue in front of the El Transito Synagogue in Toledo. The local government later removed the graffiti and deployed local police to provide additional protection of Jewish historical sites. On a Jewish holy day in August 2004, local youth attacked a synagogue in Melilla with stones as worshippers celebrated the Prayer of Shabbat. No arrests were made in the incident. The Ministry of Justice expressed its concern about incidents of anti-Semitism, stating that these incidents appear to be isolated events attributed mostly to small groups of youth or immigrants. Jewish community leaders also cited some incidents of anti-Semitic propaganda in the media and in local government institutions. The Catalan newspaper El Periodico de Catalunya published an article in November 2004 that described the deaths of Palestinians in the Middle East as acts of "extermination" by Israeli authorities. During the same month, a Star of David appeared placed side-by-side with swastika on a City Hall webpage in Barcelona. City officials removed the symbols without explaining why they were placed there or apologizing for the incident. Also in November 2004, in the region of Galicia in the northern part of the country, the mayor of the town of Oleiros approved public signs that described the Israeli Prime Minister as an "animal" and labeled members of his government "neo-Nazis." The Government responded by issuing a strong statement condemning the incident. The mayor later agreed to remove the signs. Two Jewish synagogues in Barcelona belonging to the Jewish community of Barcelona and the ATID Jewish community were vandalized at various times in recent years and again in March 2005. The vandalism included anti-Semitic graffiti on the walls of the synagogue. The groups also reported their belief that local extremist groups monitored them. The regional government responded by increasing security at the center. In October 2004, partly in response to attacks against Jewish persons and institutions, the Council of Ministers approved a proposal from the Ministry of Justice calling for a Foundation for Pluralism and Coexistence. Arno Tausch, Christian Bischof, Tomz Kastrun, Karl Mueller 345
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