(German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle speaks during the 14th Kronberg Talks Open Forum in Istanbul May 15, 2012. REUTERS/Osman Orsal )
Germany’s foreign minister has added his voice to a chorus of criticism of a court decision to ban the circumcision of young boys for religious reasons, arguing that such traditions must be permitted in a tolerant society.
“Germany is an open-minded, tolerant country where religious freedom is firmly established and religious traditions like circumcision are considered an expression of religious pluralism,” Guido Westerwelle told the daily Bild in an interview published in its Friday edition (here in German).
A court in Cologne ruled on Tuesday that involuntary religious circumcision should be illegal as it could inflict serious bodily harm on people who had not consented to it.
The ruling, which applies only to the area around the western city of Cologne but sparked fears among Muslims and Jews in particular that other German states could copy the ban, said boys can consciously decide to be circumcised later in life.
