Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Born	November 13, 1969 (1969-11-13) (age 37) Mogadishu, Somalia
Known for	Submission The Caged Virgin Infidel
Occupation	politician, writer
Political party	People's Party for Freedom and Democracy[1]

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, MA (pronunciation (help· info); Somali: Ayaan Xirsi Cali; born Ayaan Hirsi Magan 13 November 1969^[2] in Mogadishu, Somalia) is a Dutch feminist and political writer, daughter of the Somali scholar, politician, and revolutionary opposition leader Hirsi Magan Isse. When she was six, her family left Somalia for Saudi Arabia, then Ethiopia, and eventually settled in Kenya. She sought and obtained political asylum in the Netherlands in 1992, under circumstances that later became the centre of a political controversy. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1200x1600, 225 KB) Op deze afbeelding staat een (voormalig) lid van de van VVD afgebeeld. ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... Mogadishu (Somali: Muqdisho, popularly Xamar; Arabic: ; Italian: ), is the largest city in Somalia, and its capital. ... Submission is a 10-minute film in English directed by Theo van Gogh and written by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a former Liberal party member of the Lower House of the Netherlands Parliament. ... The Caged Virgin : An Emancipation Proclamation for Women and Islam is a book by Dutch human rights leader and outspoken critic of Islamism Ayaan Hirsi Ali . ... Infidel is Ayaan Hirsi Alis latest book. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A politician is an individual who is a formally recognized and active member of a government, or a person who influences the way a society is governed through an understanding of political power and group dynamics. ... A writer is anyone who creates a written work, although the word more usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, or those who have written in many different forms. ... The Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) (Dutch: Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie) is a Dutch liberal political party. ... Image File history File links Nl-Ayaan_Hirsi_Ali. ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... Mogadishu (Somali: Muqdisho, popularly Xamar; Arabic: ; Italian: ), is the largest city in Somalia, and its capital. ... Feminism is a social theory and political movement primarily informed and motivated by the experience of women. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

She is a prominent and controversial author, film maker, and critic of Islam. She was a member of the Tweede Kamer (the Lower House of the States-General of the Netherlands) for the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) from January 30, 2003 until May 16, 2006. A political crisis surrounding the potential stripping of her Dutch citizenship led to her resignation from the parliament, and indirectly to the fall of the second Balkenende cabinet. Criticism of Islam has existed since Islams formative stages on philosophical, scientific, ethical, political and theological grounds. ... The Tweede Kamer (second chamber) is the lower house of the Staten-Generaal, the parliament in the Netherlands. ... A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. ... The States-General (Staten-Generaal) is the parliament of the Netherlands. ... The Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) (Dutch: Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie) is a Dutch liberal political party. ... is the 30th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 16 is the 136th day of the year (137th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The second cabinet of Jan Peter Balkenende of the Netherlands formed on May 27, 2003. ...

She has received numerous awards for her human rights work, and in 2005, was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. She is currently a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank. Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ... Time (whose trademark is capitalized TIME) is a weekly American newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles accessible from a disambiguation page. ... The American Enterprise Institutes Logo The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) is a conservative to right-wing[1] think tank, founded in 1943. ... Conservatism in the United States comprises a constellation of political ideologies including fiscal conservatism, free market or economic liberalism, social conservatism,[1] bioconservatism and religious conservatism,[2][3] as well as support for a strong military,[4] small government and promotion of states rights. ... This article is about the institution. ...

As of October 2007 she has been doing this work from a secret address in the Netherlands, after the Dutch government refused to continue to pay the costs of her protection in the United States.^[3]

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Hirsi Ali back in the Netherlands

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Biography

Youth

Ayaan Hirsi Ali was born in Somalia into the Majeerteen sub-clan of the Darod clan.^[4] Her first name, Ayaan, means "lucky person" or "luck" in Somali. Her father, Hirsi Magan Isse, was a prominent member of the Somali Salvation Democratic Front and a leading figure in the Somalian Revolution. He had studied abroad and was opposed to female genital cutting, but her grandmother had the traditional procedure performed on five-year-old Hirsi Ali while he was a political prisoner of the Siad Barré.^[5] The Majeerteen, Majerteen or Macherten (Muhammad bin Harti bin Amaleh bin Abdi bin Muhammad bin Abdirahman al-Jaberti. ... The Darod (Somali language: Darood, or Daarood) is a Somali clan. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF) (in Somali: Jabhadda Diimuqraadiga Badbaadinta Soomaaliyeed, and initially known as the Democratic Front for Salvation of Somalia), has been one of the major political and paramilitary umbrella organizations in Somalia since its founding in 1981 by several officers opposed to the regime of Siad Barre. ... Combatants Somali National Army (SNA) under Siad Barre; after Barres exile and return forces later known as Somali National Front (SNF) Revolutionary groups: Somali National Movement image_flag = Flag of Somaliland. ... Female genital cutting (FGC), female genital mutilation (FGM), or female circumcision (FC), is the excision or tissue removal of any part of the female genitalia for cultural, religious or other non-medical reasons. ... Mohamed Siad Barre (Somali: Maxamed Siyaad Barre) (1919 – January 2, 1995) was the Head of State of Somalia from 1969 to 1991. ...

Shortly after she was born, her father was imprisoned due to his opposition to Somalia's Siad Barre government. When she was six, her father escaped from prison and her family subsequently fled the country as political refugees. Initially they moved to Saudi Arabia, but after three years the Saudis expelled them, again due to her father's political activities. They then moved to Ethiopia, which, as the center of opposition to Siad Barre, welcomed them. But it was also somewhat dangerous for the family, so they immigrated to the much more stable and safe Kenya, where they obtained political asylum. Power lines leading to a trash dump hover just overhead in El Carpio, a Nicaraguan refugee camp in Costa Rica Under international law, a refugee is a person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her...

They settled in the capital, Nairobi, where Hirsi Ali attended the English-language Muslim Girls' Secondary School. By the time she reached her teens, Saudi-funded religious education was becoming more influential among Muslims in other countries, and a charismatic religious teacher who had been trained under this aegis joined Hirsi Ali's school. She inspired the teenaged Ayaan, as well as some fellow students, to adopt the more rigorous Saudi Arabian interpretations of Islam, as opposed to the more relaxed versions then current in Somalia and Kenya. Hirsi Ali had been impressed by the Qur'an before she could even read, and had lived "by the Book, for the Book" throughout her childhood. ^[6]. She sympathized with the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, and wore a hijab together with her school uniform, which was unusual at the time but gradually became more common. She agreed with the fatwa against British writer Salman Rushdie that was declared in reaction to the publication of his controversial novel The Satanic Verses.^[7] After completing secondary school, she attended a secretarial course at Valley Secretarial College in Nairobi for one year. Throughout their teenage years, she and her sister turned to reading as a pastime, as every weekend and evening they were locked inside by their mother. It was in these books that Ayaan would be exposed to Western culture and values for the first time, the most influential being the Nancy Drew series which portrayed a fictional female character who solved mysteries and operated freely as an equal to her male counterparts. According to Hirsi Ali, these stories would play a pivotal role in her redefining what it meant to be a Westerner. Nairobi (pronounced ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. ... For the religion of Islam, see Islam. ... The Muslim Brothers (Arabic: الإخوان المسلمون al-ikhwān al-muslimūn, full title The Society of the Muslim Brothers, often simply الإخوان al-ikhwān, the Brotherhood or MB) is a world-wide Sunni Islamist movement and the worlds largest, most influential Islamist group[1]. The MB is the largest political... “Higab” redirects here. ... A fatwā (Arabic: ; plural fatāwā Arabic: ), is a considered opinion in Islam made by a mufti, a scholar capable of issuing judgments on Sharia (Islamic law). ... Ahmed Salman Rushdie KBE (Hindi: Urdu: سلمان رشدی; born 19 June 1947) is a British-Indian novelist and essayist. ... For the verses known as Satanic Verses, see Satanic Verses. ... For the film, see Nancy Drew (2007 film). ...

Early career

Hirsi Ali arrived in the Netherlands in 1992. There is some lack of clarity about the events leading up to her arrival, and she has admitted to making certain false statements in her application for asylum.^[1] Hirsi Ali maintains that in 1992 her father arranged to marry her to a distant cousin, and she dreaded being forced to submit to a stranger, someone who could force himself on her sexually with "the Holy Book on his side" ^[8]. It is not disputed that in 1992 she travelled from Kenya to visit family in Düsseldorf and Bonn, Germany. It was planned that she would join her husband in Canada after obtaining a visa while in Germany. Members of her family have disputed the story of her forced marriage^[9]. According to Hirsi Ali, she spent her time in Germany frantically trying to devise a way to escape her unwanted marriage. Ultimately, she decided that she would claim to want to visit a relative in the Netherlands, but, once she had arrived, seek help from that relative and claim asylum.^[10] Marriage à-la-mode by William Hogarth: a satire on arranged marriages and prediction of ensuing disaster An arranged marriage is a marriage that is established before involving oneself in a lengthy courtship, and often involves the arrangement of someone other than the persons getting married. ... A cousin couple is a pair of cousins with a romantic or sexual relationship. ... The title of this article contains the character ü. Where it is unavailable or not desired, the name may be represented as Duesseldorf. ... Historic Town Hall of Bonn (view from the market square). ... Forced marriage is a term used in the Occident to describe traditional arranged marriages in which one or more of the parties (usually the woman) is married without his/her consent or against his/her will. ...

Once in the Netherlands, she requested political asylum and received a residence permit. It is not known on what grounds she received political asylum, though she has admitted that she had lied by devising a false story about having to flee Mogadishu and spending time in refugee camps on the border between Somalia and Kenya. In reality, she did spend time in those camps, but in order to help relatives who were trapped there; she was already safely settled in Kenya at the time open warfare erupted in the Somali capital. She gave a false name and date of birth to the Dutch immigration authorities, something she says was necessary in order to escape retaliation by her clan.^[11] She is known in the West by her assumed name, Hirsi Ali, instead of her original name, Hirsi Magan. Since forced marriage is not grounds for refugee status, on the advice of an aunt, she told the immigration authorities that she had come straight from Somalia, instead of Kenya, where she had been living for at least twelve years.^[12] Hirsi Ali received a residence permit within three weeks of her arrival in the Netherlands. Power lines leading to a trash dump hover just overhead in El Carpio, a Nicaraguan refugee camp in Costa Rica Under international law, a refugee is a person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her... Mogadishu (Somali: Muqdisho, popularly Xamar; Arabic: ; Italian: ), is the largest city in Somalia, and its capital. ...

After receiving asylum, she held various short-term jobs, ranging from cleaning to mail sorting. She had been an avid reader from childhood, and now access to new books and ways of thought stretched her imagination and frightened her at the same time; Freud's work, for example, placed her in contact with an alternative moral system, one that was not based on religion. ^[13] During this time, she took courses in Dutch and a one-year course in social work. She was impressed with how well Dutch society seemed to function ^[14] and, in an effort to better understand how this system had developed, studied political science at the Leiden University until 2000. Between 1995 and 2001, she also worked as an independent Somali-Dutch interpreter and translator, frequently coming in contact with Somali women in asylum centres, hostels for battered women (an experience that marked her deeply—she was dismayed by the extent and persistence of wife abuse, and the helplessness felt by the women), and the National Migration Service (NMS). She saw firsthand the way certain practices (e.g. wife beating, female genital mutilation, honour killings) she thought she had left behind in Africa continued in the West.^{[citation needed]} While working for the NMS, she saw inside the workings of the Dutch immigration system and became critical of the way it handled asylum seekers. ^{[citation needed]}. Sigmund Freud His famous couch Sigmund Freud (May 6, 1856 - September 23, 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of the psychoanalytic school of psychology, a movement that popularized the theory that unconscious motives control much behavior. ... Professional social workers are concerned with social problems, their causes, their solutions and their human impacts. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Political Science is the field concerning the theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political systems and political behaviour. ... Leiden University, located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands[1]. It is a member of the Coimbra Group, the Europaeum and the League of European Research Universities. ... “Domestic disturbance” redirects here. ... Honour killings are often perpetrated in Muslim-majority areas, especially in countries of the Middle East. ...

Political career

After earning a master's degree in political science from Leiden University, Hirsi Ali became a fellow at the Wiardi Beckman Foundation, a scientific institute linked to the left-wing Social Democratic Party (PvdA), of which Leiden University Professor Ruud Koole was steward. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Leiden University, located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands[1]. It is a member of the Coimbra Group, the Europaeum and the League of European Research Universities. ... The Wiardi Beckman Stichting (The Wiardi Beckman Foundation) is a scientific institute linked to the left-wing Social Democratic Party PvdA. The foundation is named after Herman Bernard Wiardi Beckman, a member of the Upper House, who during the Second World War was summoned by Queen Wilhelmina to become a... Social democracy is a political ideology emerging in the late 19th and early 20th centuries from supporters of Marxism who believed that the transition to a socialist society could be achieved through democratic evolutionary rather than revolutionary means. ... For the Belgian political party of the same name, see Partij van de Arbeid (Belgium). ...

During her studies, she was becoming increasingly disenchanted with Islam. Her identification as a Muslim suffered a strong blow after 9/11. On that day she looked for, and found, Osama bin Laden's "words of justification" in the Qu'ran, which led her to regard it as relative, a historical record and "just another book." ^[15]The final blow was her reading of The Atheist Manifesto (Atheistisch Manifest) of Leiden philosopher Herman Philipse. She renounced Islam and became an atheist in 2002. During this period, she began to formulate her critique of Islam and Islamic culture, published many news articles, and became a frequent speaker on television news programs and public debate forums. She wrote up her ideas in a book entitled De Zoontjesfabriek (The Son Factory). It was at this time that she first began to receive death threats.^{[citation needed]} The date that commonly refers to the attacks on United States citizens on September 11, 2001 (see the September 11, 2001 Attacks). ... Osama bin Muhammad bin Awad bin Laden (Arabic: ‎; born March 10, 1957[1]), most often mentioned as Osama bin Laden or Usama bin Laden, is a Saudi Arabian militant Islamist and is widely believed to be one of the founders of the organization called al-Qaeda. ... Herman Philipse (b. ... Apostasy (Greek απο, apo, away, apart, στασις, stasis, standing) is the formal renunciation of ones religion. ... “Atheist” redirects here. ... Islam â–¶(?) (Arabic: الإسلام al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, the worlds second-largest religion, and said by some sources to be the fastest growing religion in some parts of the world. ...

In November 2002, after some disagreements with the PvdA about her security measures, she sought advice from Cisca Dresselhuys, the editor of the feminist magazine Opzij how to raise funds for protection from the governement. Her party having recently lost the election, Hirsi Ali would soon be unable to receive government-funded protection. Dresselhuis introduced Hirsi Ali to Gerrit Zalm, the parliamentary leader of the conservative Liberal Party (VVD), and party member Neelie-Smit Kroes, European Commissioner for Competition. At their urging, Hirsi Ali agreed to switch to the VVD and stood for election to Parliament. Between November 2002 and January 2003, she lived abroad and was put on the payroll as an assistant of the VVD Parliamentary Party. Cisca Dresselhuys (born in Leeuwarden on 21 April 1943) is the head editor of the Dutch feminist monthly magazine Opzij. ... ISSN 0166-2007 Opzij (Aside) is a mainstream Dutch feminist monthly magazine. ... Gerrit Zalm (born May 6, 1952) is Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the Netherlands. ... Neelie Kroes Neelie Kroes (born 19 July 1941 in Rotterdam) is a Dutch politician, currently serving as European Commissioner for Competition. ...

During her tenure in Parliament, Hirsi Ali made a number of controversial statements about Islam. In a Trouw interview, she said that by Western standards, Muhammad would be considered a pedophile. A discrimination complaint was filed against her on April 24, 2003. The Prosecutor's office decided not to initiate a case, because her critique did "not put forth any conclusions in respect to Muslims and their worth as a group is not denied".^[16] is the 114th day of the year (115th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Following a TV news program exposé on her that revealed she had lied about her name, birthdate, and reason for asylum when she sought political asylum, Rita Verdonk (also VVD) announced that her Dutch nationality had to be considered invalid. She was therefore forced to step down as an MP.^[17]

Going into hiding

Hirsi Ali wrote the script and provided the voice-over for Submission,^[18] a film directed by Theo van Gogh, which criticized the treatment of women in Islamic society. Juxtaposed with passages from the Qur'an were images of Muslim women who had been abused by men. One woman was provocatively dressed in a semi-transparent burqa, under which texts from the Qur'an were projected on her skin. The texts referred to the subordinate role of women. Other women in the film showed signs of physical abuse. The film's release sparked much controversy, which became violent when radical Islamist Mohammed Bouyeri, a member of the Hofstad Group, murdered Van Gogh in an Amsterdam street on November 2, 2004. A letter pinned to Van Gogh's body with a knife was primarily a death threat to Hirsi Ali. After this incident, the Dutch secret service raised the level of security that they provided to her.^[19] Hirsi Ali has said that although she deeply regrets the murder of van Gogh, she is proud of the film and does not regret having made it. "To feel otherwise would be to deny everything I stand for."^[20] Submission is a 10-minute film in English directed by Theo van Gogh and written by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a former Liberal party member of the Lower House of the Netherlands Parliament. ... Theo van Gogh (IPA: ) (July 23, 1957–November 2, 2004) was a Dutch film director, television producer, publicist and actor. ... The complex relationship between women and Islam is defined by both Islamic texts and the history and culture of the Muslim world. ... The Qur’ān [1] (Arabic: , literally the recitation; also sometimes transliterated as Quran, Koran, or Al-Quran) is the central religious text of Islam. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Mohammed Bouyeri (Arabic: ) (born March 8, 1978 in Amsterdam), is serving a life sentence without parole for the murder of Dutch film director Theo van Gogh. ... The Hofstad Network (in Dutch: Hofstadnetwerk or Hofstadgroep) is an Islamist terrorist cell of mostly young Dutch Muslims of mainly North African ancestry. ... For other uses, see Amsterdam (disambiguation). ... is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst (AIVD), formerly known as the BVD (Binnenlandse Veiligheidsdienst) is the General Intelligence and Security Office of the Netherlands. ...

Earlier that year, the group The Hague Connection produced a rap song, "Hirsi Ali Dis", and distributed it on the Internet. The lyrics included violent threats against her life. The rappers were prosecuted under Article 121 of the Dutch criminal code, because they hindered the execution of her tasks as politician. In 2005, they were sentenced to community service and a suspended prison sentence.^[21] Hirsi Ali Dis is the name of a rap song produced and distributed by the Dutch group The Hague Connection. ...

After the murder of van Gogh, Hirsi Ali went into hiding in the Netherlands, and even spent some time in New York, until January 18, 2005, when she returned to parliament. On February 18, 2005, she revealed the location of herself and her colleague Geert Wilders, who had also been in hiding. She demanded a normal, secured house, which she was granted one week later. On November 16, 2005, she reported being seriously threatened by Sachemic Faa. This imam, who worked in a mosque in The Hague, announced on the Internet that Hirsi Ali would be "blown away by the wind of changing times" and that she should anticipate "the curse of Allah".^{[citation needed]} This article is about the state. ... is the 18th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 49th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Geert Wilders (born September 6, 1963 in Venlo) is a Dutch right-wing politician who is best known for his views favoring the restriction of immigration, particularly from non-Western countries, and his criticism of Islam. ... is the 320th day of the year (321st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Masjid al-Haram in Mecca as it exists today A mosque is a place of worship for followers of the Islamic faith. ... Coordinates: , Country Netherlands Province South Holland Area (2006)  - Municipality 98. ...

In January 2006, Hirsi Ali used her acceptance speech for the Reader's Digest "European of the Year" award to urge action to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons and to say that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad must be taken at his word in wanting to organize a conference to investigate objective evidence of the Holocaust. "Before I came to Europe, I'd never heard of the Holocaust. That is the case with millions of people in the Middle East. Such a conference should be able to convince many people away from their denial of the genocide against the Jews."^[22] She also said that "so-called Western values" of freedom and justice are universal; that Europe has done far better than most areas of the world at providing justice, because it has guaranteed the freedom of thought and debate that are required for critical self-examination; and that communities cannot reform themselves unless "scrupulous investigation of every former and current doctrine is possible."^[23] This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 kilometers (11 mi) above the hypocenter A nuclear weapon derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions of fusion or fission. ... Mahmoud Ahmadinejad[1] (born October 28, 1956)[2] is the sixth and current President of the Islamic Republic of Iran. ... For other uses, see Holocaust (disambiguation) and Shoah (disambiguation). ...

In March 2006 she co-signed a letter entitled "MANIFESTO: Together facing the new totalitarianism". The most notable of the eleven other signatories was British writer Salman Rushdie, whose fatwa Hirsi Ali had supported as a teen. The letter was published in response to violent and deadly protests in the Islamic world surrounding the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. Ahmed Salman Rushdie KBE (Hindi: Urdu: سلمان رشدی; born 19 June 1947) is a British-Indian novelist and essayist. ... A fatwā (Arabic: ; plural fatāwā Arabic: ), is a considered opinion in Islam made by a mufti, a scholar capable of issuing judgments on Sharia (Islamic law). ... The Islamic world is the world-wide community of those who identify with Islam, known as Muslims, and who number approximately one-and-a-half billion people. ... The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy began after twelve editorial cartoons, most of which depicted the Islamic prophet Muhammad, were published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on 2005-09-30. ...

On April 27, a Dutch judge ruled that Hirsi Ali had to abandon her house—a highly secured secret address in the Netherlands. Her neighbours had complained that living next to her was an unacceptable security risk to them, although the police had testified in court that it was one of the safest places in the country due to the many personnel they had assigned there.^[24] In early 2007, she stated that the Dutch state spent about 3.5 million euros providing armed guards for her, and the threats made her live "in fear and looking over my shoulder", but she was willing to endure this for the sake of speaking her mind.^[25] April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... The Greek name for the rainy, stormy southeast wind. ...

The citizenship controversy

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Ayaan Hirsi Ali leaves Dutch Parliament

In May 2006, the television program Zembla^[26] reported that Hirsi Ali had given false information about her real name, her age and the country she arrived from when originally applying for asylum. The program also presented evidence that she was untruthful about the main reason for her asylum application being forced marriage. Hirsi Ali admitted that she had lied about her full name, her date of birth and the manner in which she had come to the Netherlands. However, several sources, including her first book The Son Factory, which had been published in 2002, stated her real name and date of birth, and she had also publicly stated these in a September 2002 interview published in the political magazine HP/De Tijd.^[27][28][29] and in an interview in the VARA gids (2002).^[30] Accordingly, these details were considered by many to be public knowledge. Furthermore, Hirsi Ali has asserted that she made full disclosure of the matter to VVD officials when she was invited to run for parliament in 2002. ^[31] Image File history File links WikiNews-Logo. ... Wikinews is a free-content news source and a project of the Wikimedia Foundation. ... HP/De Tijd is a Dutch weekly magazine, published by Audax Publishing. ... The Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) (Dutch: Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie) is a Dutch liberal political party. ...

Media speculation arose that she could lose her Dutch citizenship because of this "identity fraud", rendering her ineligible for parliament. At first, Minister Rita Verdonk^[32] said she would not look into the matter, but after Member of Parliament Hilbrand Nawijn officially asked her for her position, she declared that she would investigate Hirsi Ali's naturalisation process. This investigation took three days. The findings were that Hirsi Ali had not legitimately received Dutch citizenship, because she had lied about her name and date of birth. Rita Verdonk moved to outlaw Hirsi Ali by annulling her citizenship, a move that was later overridden on the urging of Parliament. ^[33] Drs. ... Hilbrand Pier Anne Nawijn (Kampen, 8 August 1948) is a Dutch politician,and until the 22nd of June 2005 a member of Lijst Pim Fortuyn. ... For other senses of this word, see outlaw (disambiguation). ...

On May 15, 2006, after the broadcast of the Zembla documentary, news stories erupted saying that Hirsi Ali was likely to move to the United States in September, and was expected to write a book entitled Shortcut to Enlightenment and work for a conservative think tank, the American Enterprise Institute.^[34] is the 135th day of the year (136th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Conservatism in the United States comprises a constellation of political ideologies including fiscal conservatism, free market or economic liberalism, social conservatism,[1] bioconservatism and religious conservatism,[2][3] as well as support for a strong military,[4] small government and promotion of states rights. ... This article is about the institution. ... The American Enterprise Institutes Logo The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) is a conservative to right-wing[1] think tank, founded in 1943. ...

On May 16, Hirsi Ali resigned from Parliament after admitting that she had lied on her asylum application. On that day, she gave a press conference,^[35] in which she restated that, although she felt it was wrong to be granted asylum under false pretences, the facts had been publicly known since 2002 when they had been reported in the media and in one of her publications. In the press conference, she also restated that she had spoken the truth about the reason for seeking asylum, which had been the threat of a forced marriage, despite a claim to the contrary on the Zembla program by some of her relatives. Her stated reason for resigning immediately was not the continuous threats, making her job as a parliamentarian "difficult" but "not impossible", but the news that the Minister would strip her of her Dutch citizenship. May 16 is the 136th day of the year (137th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

After a long and emotional debate in the Dutch Parliament, all major parties supported a motion, requesting the Minister to explore the possibility of special circumstances in Hirsi Ali's case. Although Verdonk remained convinced that the applicable law did not leave her any room to consider such circumstances, she decided to accept the motion. During the debate, she astonished MPs by claiming that Hirsi Ali still had Dutch citizenship during the period of reexamination. Apparently the "decision" she had made public had been merely a report of the current position of the Dutch government. Hirsi Ali at that point had six weeks to react to the report before any final decision about her citizenship was taken. Verdonk was heavily criticized for not acting more prudently in a case that had so many political implications.^{[citation needed]} A motion is a formal step to introduce a matter for consideration by a group. ...

Apart from a Dutch passport, Hirsi Ali retained a Dutch residency permit (similar to a Permanent Resident Card) on the grounds that she was a political refugee. According to the Minister, this permit could not be taken away from her since it was granted more than 12 years ago, in 1992. Permanent Resident Card may refer to: United States Permanent Resident Card Canada Permanent Resident Card This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ...

In a reaction to the announced move, former VVD leader Hans Wiegel stated that her departure "would not be a loss to the VVD and not be a loss to the Tweede Kamer".^[36] He said that Hirsi Ali was a brave woman, but that her opinions were polarizing. Former parliamentary leader of the VVD, Jozias van Aartsen, was more positive about Hirsi Ali, saying that it is "painful for Dutch society and politics that she is leaving the Tweede Kamer".^[37] Another VVD MP, Bibi de Vries, claimed that if something were to happen to Hirsi Ali, some people in her party would have "blood on their hands." Hans Wiegel (born July 16, 1941) is a Dutch politician and member of the liberal Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy. ... The Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie (VVD), literally Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy, is a free market liberal party in the Netherlands. ... The Tweede Kamer (second chamber) is the lower house of the Staten-Generaal, the parliament in the Netherlands. ... Jozias Johannes van Aartsen (born December 25, 1947 in The Hague) is a Dutch politician and member of the liberal Peoples Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). ... Bibi de Vries is a liberal member of the centrist VVD (Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie] party in the Tweede Kamer, or lower chamber, of the Dutch Parliament with a national reputation. ...

Christopher DeMuth, President of the AEI, confirmed that this controversy would not affect the appointment. On May 16, he stated that he was still looking forward to "welcoming her to AEI, and to America." United States Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick later stated that "we recognise that she is a very courageous and impressive woman and she is welcome in the US."^[38] This article does not cite any references or sources. ... May 16 is the 136th day of the year (137th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Deputy Secretary of State of the United States is the chief assistant to the Secretary of State who is responsible for foreign affairs. ... Robert B. Zoellick Robert Bruce Zoellick (IPA: ) (born July 25, 1953) is an American politician and (effective July 1, 2007) the eleventh president of the World Bank. ...

On May 23, 2006, Ayaan Hirsi made available to the The New York Times^[39][40] some letters she believed would provide insight into her 1992 asylum application. In one letter, her sister, Haweya, warned her that the entire extended family was searching for her (after she had fled to the Netherlands), and in another letter her father denounced her. is the 143rd day of the year (144th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed internationally. ...

Rita Verdonk

On June 27, 2006, the Dutch government announced that Hirsi Ali would keep her Dutch citizenship.^[41] On the same day a letter was disclosed in which Hirsi Ali expressed regret that she had misinformed Minister Verdonk. Hirsi Ali was allowed to retain her name because the Dutch government believes that Somalis are allowed to carry the name of their grandfather according to Somali family law, and her grandfather had used the last name Ali until his thirties and only then switched to Magan. The fact that this grandfather was born in 1845 complicated the investigation (her grandfather was a powerful warlord, and Hirsi Ali's father was the youngest of his children, born when he was close to 70). ^[42] Also, the issue of the false date of birth was not that important, according to the Minister. Image File history File links RVerdonk. ... Image File history File links RVerdonk. ... Drs. ... is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Later the same day, Hirsi Ali, through her lawyer and in television interviews, made a statement declaring that she had signed the letter that was drafted by the Justice Department under duress.^[43] She felt she was pressured into signing the statement in exchange for the passport, but that she agreed to do it, swallowing her pride, in order not to complicate her pending visa application for the U.S. Currently, she still carries her Dutch passport. A close friend of Hirsi Ali, Leon de Winter, presented in his weblog^[44] a detailed account of events taking place on June 27 leading to Hirsi Ali signing the statement confirming, in his view, the involuntary nature of her action. Leon de Winter (February 24, 1954) is a Dutch writer and columnist. ... is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

In a special parliamentary session on June 28, questions were raised concerning the alleged coercion of the Hirsi Ali statement by minister Verdonk, the dismissal by the minister of the false date of birth as a relevant issue, and whether Somali law prevails over Dutch law.^{[citation needed]} The ensuing political upheaval on June 29 ultimately led to the fall of the Second Balkenende cabinet.^{[citation needed]} is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The second cabinet of Jan Peter Balkenende of the Netherlands formed on May 27, 2003. ...

American Enterprise Institute

Hirsi Ali subsequently took up a position at the American Enterprise Institute,^[45], published her autobiography, Infidel, and is currently working on another book, Shortcut to Enlightenment, a philosophical fantasy about a visit by Muhammad to the New York Public Library, in which he examines the ideas of various Enlightenment philosophers, compares them to the state of Islam today, and then comes to a number of important conclusions.^[46] Since her arrival in Washington, D.C., her security has had to be upgraded once again due to death threats from Muslim extremists in the United States.^[47] The American Enterprise Institutes Logo The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) is a conservative to right-wing[1] think tank, founded in 1943. ... Infidel is Ayaan Hirsi Alis latest book. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... 18th century philosophy redirects here. ... For other uses, see Washington, D.C. (disambiguation). ...

On September 25, 2007, she received her green card (Alien Registration Card) ^[48].

Since October 2007, she has continued her work for AEI from a secret address in the Netherlands. Her move back to the Netherlands is a result of the ruling of the Dutch minister of Justice, Hirsch Ballin; as of October 1, 2007, the Dutch government will no longer pay for her security while she is abroad. The Building in the Hague The Ministry of Justice (Ministerie van Justitie; Jus) is the Dutch ministry of justice. ... Ernst Maurits Henricus Hirsch Ballin (born Amsterdam, December 15, 1950) is a Dutch politician, Minister of Justice during the third Lubbers cabinet (1989-1994), and successor of Piet Hein Donner as justice minister in the third Balkenende cabinet (2006). ...

Social and political views

This article or section needs to be wikified to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please help improve this article with relevant internal links. (March 2007)

Hirsi Ali is a member of the VVD, a Dutch political party that combines conservative views on the economy, foreign policy, crime and immigration with a liberal stance on drugs, abortion and homosexuality. She states that she is a great admirer of one of the party's ideological leaders, Frits Bolkestein, a former Euro-commissioner. Ali received substantial criticism as a result of her defection from the Dutch Labour Party (PvdA) to the VVD. By way of response she asserted that she would show greater loyalty to the VVD.^{[citation needed]} Image File history File links Wikitext. ... Frits Bolkestein Frederik Bolkestein (born 4 April 1933 in Amsterdam; usually known as  ) is a Dutch politician and former EU Commissioner. ... Berlaymont, the Commissions seat The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive branch of the European Union. ...

She claims that her personal views are for the most part inspired by her change from Islam to atheism. Hirsi Ali is very critical of Islam, especially of its prophet Muhammad and the position of women.

Islam

Hirsi Ali is very critical of the position of women in Islamic societies and the punishments demanded by Islamic scholars for homosexuality and adultery. She considered herself a Muslim until 28 May 2002, when she became an atheist.^[49] In an interview with the Swiss magazine Das Magazin in September 2006, she said she lost her faith while sitting in an Italian restaurant in May 2002, drinking a glass of wine: "...I asked myself: Why should I burn in hell just because I'm drinking this? But what prompted me even more was the fact that the killers of 9/11 all believed in the same God I believed in."^[50] Despite that, in the television program Rondom Tien of 12 September 2002 she called it "my religion". She has described Islam as a "backward religion", incompatible with democracy. In one segment on the Dutch current affairs program Nova, she challenged pupils of an Islamic primary school to choose between the Qu'ran and the Dutch constitution.^{[citation needed]} The complex relationship between women and Islam is defined by both Islamic texts and the history and culture of the Muslim world. ... Islamic scholars are Muslim and non-Muslim scholars who work in one or more fields of Islamic studies. ... May 28 is the 148th day of the year (149th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Nova / Den Haag vandaag is a late-evening current affairs programme broadcast daily except Sundays on the Dutch public-broadcasting channel Nederland 2. ... Ulugh Beg Madrasa, Samarkand, ca. ... The Quran ( Arabic al-qurʾān أَلْقُرآن; its literal meaning is the recitation and is often called Al Quran Al Karim: The Noble Quran, also transliterated as Quran, Koran, and less commonly Alcoran) is the holy book... The present constitution of the Netherlands dates back to 1815. ...

In a "no-holds-barred polemic" interview in the London Evening Standard,^[51] Hirsi Ali characterises Islam as "the new fascism". "Just like Nazism started with Hitler's vision, the Islamic vision is a caliphate—a society ruled by Sharia law—in which women who have sex before marriage are stoned to death, homosexuals are beaten, and apostates like me are killed. Sharia law is as inimical to liberal democracy as Nazism." In this interview, she also made it clear that in her opinion it is not "a fringe group of radical Muslims who've hijacked Islam and that the majority of Muslims are moderate. [...] Violence is inherent in Islam—it's a destructive, nihilistic cult of death. It legitimates murder." Headlines of the Evening Standard on the day of London bombing on July 7, 2005, in Waterloo Station The Evening Standard is a British tabloid newspaper published and sold in London and surrounding areas of southeast England. ... Nazism, or National Socialism (German: Nationalsozialismus), refers primarily to the totalitarian ideology and practices of the Nazi Party (National Socialist German Workers Party, German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP) under Adolf Hitler. ... Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945, standard German pronunciation in the IPA) was the Führer (leader) of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) and of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. ... A caliphate (from the Arabic خلافة or khilāfah), is the Islamic form of government representing the political unity and leadership of the Muslim world. ... Sharia (Arabic: transliteration: ) is the dynamic body of Islamic religious law. ... Zina (Arabic: الزناء) is extramarital sex in Islam. ... Rajm is an Arabic term that means to stone. ... For age-structured homosexuality, see Pederasty in the Middle East Islamic views on homosexuality are as varied as those of most other major religions and have changed throughout history. ... Apostasy in Islam (Arabic: ارتداد, irtidād or ridda) is commonly defined as the rejection of Islam in word or deed by a person who has been a Muslim. ... Sharia (Arabic: transliteration: ) is the dynamic body of Islamic religious law. ... Liberal democracy is a form of government. ... The phrase Islamic fundamentalism is primarily used in the West to describe Islamist groups. ...

At the Sydney Writers' Festival in June 2007, she balanced her arguments, saying "I am a Muslim" because she understood why Muslims were silent when the Qur'an was "invoked to behead captured aid workers, journalists and other Western wanderers," as silence is "better than an argument with the author of the Holy Book who has given the command to behead infidels." Hirsi Ali stated that she was also "not a Muslim" as she had lost the fear of the Qur'an and of Hell and lost respect for "its author" and messenger; and that she felt a "common humanity" with those she once "shunned", such as Jews, Christians, atheists, gays, and sinners "of all stripes and colours."^[52] The Sydney Writers Festival is an annual literary festival held in the Australian city of Sydney. ...

Muhammad

Hirsi Ali criticises the central Islamic prophet on the grounds of both his morality and personality. In January 2003 she told the Dutch paper Trouw, "Muhammad is, seen by our Western standards, a pervert". She claims he married, at the age of 52, Aisha who was six years old, and the time of consummation, nine. Some Muslim commentators, Dutch and other, have denounced her insulting of Muhammad.^{[citation needed]} The civil court in The Hague acquitted Hirsi Ali of any charges, but warned her against insulting Muhammad.^[53] Prophets of Islam are human beings who are regarded by Muslims to be prophets chosen by God. ... Trouw is a Dutch newspaper. ... Muhammad in a new genre of Islamic calligraphy started in the 17th century by Hafiz Osman. ... For other uses, see Aisha (disambiguation). ...

She also has stated her opinions about his personality. When Trouw asked her about him,^[54] she answered, "Measured by our western standards, Muhammad is... a tyrant. He is against freedom of expression. If you don't do as he says, you will be punished. It makes me think of all those megalomaniacs in the Middle East: Bin Laden, Khomeini, Saddam. Do you think it strange that there is a Saddam Hussein? Muhammad is his example. Muhammad is an example for all Muslim men. Do you think it strange that so many Muslim men are violent?" In a 2003 interview with the Danish magazine Sappho, she explains parallels she sees between the personality of Yasser Arafat and that of Muhammad.^[55] A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... The name bin Laden may refer to: the bin Laden family Osama bin Laden This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Ayatollah Khomeini founded the first modern Islamic republic Ayatollah Seyyed Ruhollah Khomeini (آیت‌الله روح‌الله خمینی in Persian) (May 17, 1900 – June 3, 1989) was an Iranian Shia cleric and the political... Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was the fifth President of Iraq and Chairman of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council from 1979 until his overthrow by US forces in 2003. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Not to be confus