Reform at least

Yesterday, BBC News said the Dutch government has received a report from the Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR) contradicting the perception that Islam necessarily conflicts with human rights or 'Western values,' an idea that has gained increasing currency there since the brutal murder of filmmaker Theo van Gogh in 2004.

Though an English translation of Dynamism In Islamic Activism is not yet available, an executive summary is. From that:

In the past, the EU, in its advocacy of democratization and the improvement of human rights in neighboring Muslim countries, primarily put its hopes on non-religious movements and parties, even if these groups had little political support within the local population. It becomes increasingly apparent, however, that ignoring the political and juridical agendas of religious activism offers no solution and may even be counterproductive. Not only does such a stance discourage Islamic groups with substantial followings who are prepared to pursue gradual political liberalization from within the existing system, but it also fuels the widely-held view amongst ordinary citizens in the Muslim world that secularism and (Western) democracy, by definition, serve anti-religious interests. This will only fan the demand for Islamization, either because radicals will receive more support from the population for their religious views, or because political rulers themselves will play the conservative ‘Islamization card’ in order to maintain political legitimacy."

Another recent WRR publication, produced within the framework of the same research, is also worth a read: Reformation of Islamic Thought (pdf 1.1Mb). It gives a useful historical perspective absent from many discussions of Islam, and begins:

The rise of Islamic activism since the 1970s and, more recently, Muslim terrorist attacks in the West, have pushed Islamic exclusivism and (violent) fundamentalism once again squarely into the public limelight. As a result, for many non-Muslims across the world, Islamic culture and religion are now closely associated with authoritarian rule, cruel traditions and human suffering. Sadly, these non-Muslims actually share Muslim fundamentalists’ convictions that the ‘real Islam’ is simply incompatible with modernity, democracy and respect for human rights."

I suppose that, if religionists of whatever flavour find themselves unable to get over their delusions, it would be nice if they could at least reform themselves into less anti-humanistic forms.