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Italy

A newly arrived Moroccan immigrant in the Italian village of Valaperta di Casatenovo, near Lecco, could not stand the statue of the Virgin Mary in a niche opposite the house which had been assigned to him. The immigrant’s Muslim faith forbids the depiction of humans. Every morning the poor man was confronted with the statue of the Madonna – an intolerable affront to his deeply-felt religious convictions. Consequently, yesterday morning the immigrant filled up the niche with concrete. Two elderly ladies were able to save the statue of the Holy Virgin, but two statues of little angels surrounding the Madonna were walled in by the zealous Moroccan.

The Madonna of Valaperta di Casatenovo had been in the niche since the 1850s. The statue was a popular place where the villagers came to pray. One wonders why the Italians do not do this sensitive immigrant a favour and send him back to Morocco or to a place where he will not be offended by statues of the Virgin Mary. Saudi Arabia, for instance.

Flanders

Badia Miri, a municipal civil servant and trade union representative in Antwerp, Flanders, is angry because she is not allowed to wear a headscarf when working behind a desk serving citizens. The city council, which adheres to principles of “religious neutrality,â€