Meloni also criticized Saudi Arabia and its Sharia-based legislation.
New Delhi:
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said that Islamic culture and the values and rights of European civilization have a “compatibility problem”. Meloni's controversial comment came at an event organized by her right-wing, ultra-conservative Brothers of Italy party, which was attended by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and billionaire Elon Musk.
“I believe there is a problem of compatibility between Islamic culture or a particular interpretation of Islamic culture and the rights and values of our civilization,” she said. “It is not lost on me that most Islamic cultural centers in Italy are financed by Saudi Arabia.”
Meloni also criticized Saudi Arabia's rigid Sharia law, which makes apostasy and homosexuality criminal offenses. Sharia, commonly referred to as Islamic law, comprises a set of principles and precepts rooted in the Qur'an and Hadith and representing the fundamental religious texts of Islam.
🚨View: #GiorgiaMeloni: “I believe… that there is a problem of compatibility between Islamic culture and the values and rights of our civilization… Will not allow Sharia law to be implemented in Italy…. values of our civilization are different! pic.twitter.com/VGWNix7936
— Geopolitical kid (@Geopoliticalkid) December 18, 2023
“Sharia means stoning for adultery and the death penalty for apostasy and homosexuality. I believe that these should be increased, which does not mean that we generalize Islam. It means that we raise the problem that there is a process of Islamization going on in Europe that is very far removed from Islam. the values of our civilization,” she said.
During his visit to Rome, Sunak backed Meloni's approach to migration. Sunak's controversial plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda has been met with a barrage of legal challenges and accusations of inhumane treatment. Meloni, on the other hand, has been criticized for her attempts to restrict the activities of charity rescue ships operating in the Mediterranean.
“If we don't tackle this problem, the numbers will only increase. It will overwhelm our countries and our ability to help those who need our help most,” he said. “To make that deterrent credible, we have to do things differently and break the consensus. And both Giorgia and I are willing to do that.”
The two leaders also met with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to discuss migration.
