Religion
Italy: Muslim prayer area risks closure at northern tennis club
Treviso, 21 Dec. (AKI) - Muslims in the northeastern Italian city of Treviso, risk losing a prayer area rented them by the owner of a tennis club in the city's suburbs, La Stampa daily reports.
Bepi Zambon, former tennis champion and owner of the exclusive Tennis Club Zambon has allocated two courts for local Muslims to worship on - one for men and the other for women.
But on Wednesday, the Muslim festival of sacrifice Eid al-Adha, shortly after 300 Muslims had arrived at the tennis club for prayers, local traffic wardens and firemen showed up, as well as an anti-terror police officer.
They began rigorously inspecting parked cars and fire exits at the club and asking for documents, on strict instructions to write up any infractions and issue fines mercilessly.
The traffic wardens had been sent to the tennis club by anti-immigrant Northern League politician and deputy mayor of Treviso, Giancarlo Gentilini. Three years ago he invoked a 1975 public order law and ordered police to arrest women wearing the Islamic burqa in Treviso.
"I am studying the traffic wardens' reports, and if any offence has been committed, I will close the thing down," said Gentilini, quoted by La Stampa.
"And if I don't find anything irregular, I will ponder a stratagem," Gentilini added.
Zambon's tennis courts are the only space currently available for Muslims to pray in Treviso, and Wednesday's tennis club 'blitz' sparked an angry reaction from local imam, Youssef Tadil. "It is offensive. We were disrupted during an important Muslim festival," he said, cited by La Stampa.
"We have always been respectful and would have liked to receive the same respect. What happened goes against the welcoming spirit shown us by Mr Zambon," Tadil added.
The tennis courts are currently the only prayer area for Muslims in Treviso. They last month lost a prayer space allocated them inside a local church in the Ponzano district of Treviso after this sparked controversy, and were evicted from their mosque in Villorba in the province of Treviso.
Treviso is a stronghold of the Northern League party, and the Veneto region has one of the largest immigrant populations in Italy. A growing backlash against Muslim and immigrants in the country, fed in large part by fears of terrorism and other crimes is especially intense in Veneto.
Bepi Zambon, former tennis champion and owner of the exclusive Tennis Club Zambon has allocated two courts for local Muslims to worship on - one for men and the other for women.
But on Wednesday, the Muslim festival of sacrifice Eid al-Adha, shortly after 300 Muslims had arrived at the tennis club for prayers, local traffic wardens and firemen showed up, as well as an anti-terror police officer.
They began rigorously inspecting parked cars and fire exits at the club and asking for documents, on strict instructions to write up any infractions and issue fines mercilessly.
The traffic wardens had been sent to the tennis club by anti-immigrant Northern League politician and deputy mayor of Treviso, Giancarlo Gentilini. Three years ago he invoked a 1975 public order law and ordered police to arrest women wearing the Islamic burqa in Treviso.
"I am studying the traffic wardens' reports, and if any offence has been committed, I will close the thing down," said Gentilini, quoted by La Stampa.
"And if I don't find anything irregular, I will ponder a stratagem," Gentilini added.
Zambon's tennis courts are the only space currently available for Muslims to pray in Treviso, and Wednesday's tennis club 'blitz' sparked an angry reaction from local imam, Youssef Tadil. "It is offensive. We were disrupted during an important Muslim festival," he said, cited by La Stampa.
"We have always been respectful and would have liked to receive the same respect. What happened goes against the welcoming spirit shown us by Mr Zambon," Tadil added.
The tennis courts are currently the only prayer area for Muslims in Treviso. They last month lost a prayer space allocated them inside a local church in the Ponzano district of Treviso after this sparked controversy, and were evicted from their mosque in Villorba in the province of Treviso.
Treviso is a stronghold of the Northern League party, and the Veneto region has one of the largest immigrant populations in Italy. A growing backlash against Muslim and immigrants in the country, fed in large part by fears of terrorism and other crimes is especially intense in Veneto.
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