The Arab European League (AEL), a marginal emigrant organisation in Belgium, headed by Dyab Abou Jahjah, confronted police for several hours on the streets of Antwerp on November 26 during riots that followed the murder of a young 27-year-old Moroccan schoolteacher.

A 66-year-old Belgian man has been charged with murder, which the AEL claims was racially motivated.

"We are the 21st century Jews," said Ahmed Azzuz, the local leader of the League.

His statement summarizes the AEL's political position. The League, which has in the past organized demonstrations to support the Palestinian cause, wants to make Arabic the fourth official language of Belgium after French, Flemish, and German and is calling for the creation of an Islamic political party.

About 30,000 people of Arab origin live in Antwerp, a city of 450,000 where the far-right opposition Vlaams Blok party makes up one third of the electorate and is conscious that these events will serve its interests and boost its votes for the coming legislative and municipal elections in 2006.

Between these two political groups lies a governing municipal coalition that is united only by the fear of a far-right advance. Antwerp politics is a delicately balanced seesaw that on one side tries to contain the Vlaams Block and on the other to integrate immigrants into society. The AEL's emergence as an ideological and social agitator jeopardizes this balance by giving some justification to the far-right while at the same time polarizing young Arab and Muslim Antwerpians.

The AEL raises the valid question of Arab and Muslims political representation in European democracies. Despite substantial Arab, Turkish and Pakistani minorities, it is all too rare to see these communities represented in European municipalities, parliaments, governments and institutions. But unfortunately, the Arab European League reverts to use of a militant and reactionary ideology rather than addressing minority rights, social integration and welfare.

On the other hand, the Huntington hues of some western politicians such as Silvio Berlusconi, George W. Bush or Valery Giscard d'Estaing do not appease the militancy of more extreme members of the League. Moreover, the ongoing debate on the Christian heritage of Europe within the European Convention, tends to increase the threat of marginalizing European Arabs and Muslims.

Europe's Islamic heritage is unquestionable: One can see it and feel it from Istanbul to Albania and Bosnia, and from Sicily to Malta and Andalusia. It clearly appears in the architecture, the language and the way of life. It is undeniable. But to be tolerant, open, democratic, and hence viable, Europe has to be secular. To use Valery Giscard d'Estaing's formula, the introduction of any kind of religious reference in the European constitution, be it Christian, Jewish or Islamic, would mean the "end of Europe."

Why should the European Constitution refer to so narrow and exclusionist a concept as religion while the real heritage of the modern European society is much more universal? Plato, Aristotle, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Darwin, Hegel, Marx, Freud, and hundreds of others shaped what are today's European values and society. This universal philosophical heritage -- and not Christianity -- assured the global success of Europe for centuries. When Europe stressed Christianity, she failed to export her culture. The crusades were a huge fiasco. But during the Greek and Roman empires before, and the industrial revolution and colonial empires afterward, Europe succeeded in exporting her culture, values and way of life all over the world.

To avoid the marginalisation and polarization of some groups and communities, and the emergence of a reactionary ideology within these groups, to contain the progression of the far-right ideas, Europe has to be open and secular. She has to represent every European citizen in her democratic institutions and constitution. Finally, to remain a model of universal values and diversity she must stick to the U.N. millennium summit values: freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, environmental respect, and the sharing of responsibilities.

Should the European Convention yield to the temptation of exclusivism, she would sow the seeds of her own failure. In this case, far from exporting her universal values, Europe will import exclusion and instability. We must hope that the Convention is aware of this crise existentielle that is looming over Europe. Let us hope also that European Arabs will participate fully and peacefully in the European democratic life.