E/CN.4/1998/6/Add.2 page 10 39. However, a number of specific problems were brought to the attention of the Special Rapporteur. All the Muslim representatives considered the granting of the status of legal person in public law to be a priority issue, so that the community could enjoy the benefits and rights granted to the dominant religions, the Jewish community and other groups such as the Mormons. The authorities replied that it had not yet been possible to grant this status because of the divisions within the Muslim community and hence the non-existence of a single spokesman for the whole community. They pointed out that the non-granting of that status in no way meant that Muslims could not enjoy the constitutional guarantees in the area of religious freedom. The State Minister for Foreign Affairs said that he favoured the extension of the advantages conferred by legal person in public law status to the Muslim communities and considered that that process was under way. 40. According to the Muslim representatives, legal person in public law status would resolve the current problems relating to the fact that Islam is not taught in State schools. In this connection, attention was drawn to the need for inter-religious education facilitating the integration of Muslims and the dissemination of the values of tolerance within society. In the absence of such education, the Muslim community currently has private Koranic schools and, in particular, Turkish teaching institutions. However, one of the serious problems relating to the Koranic schools was said to be that they had to confine themselves to religious education, sheltered from intolerance and the repercussions of partisan policies. The authorities, including the Federal Minister of Labour, the Minister of Justice and the State Minister for Foreign Affairs, said that the teaching of Islam in State schools represented the best solution. They added that the prevailing view in Germany was that the practice of Islam should be encouraged through German Muslim institutions not accountable to foreign entities. 41. The granting of legal person in public law status would also enable Muslims to benefit from public financing, notably for the purposes of religious instruction and places of worship, and would limit any dependence on foreign financing, which, according to certain spokesmen, was currently provided by Saudi Arabia and Libya in particular. 42. Lastly, such legal status would permit the more effective integration of Muslims within German society. 43. The Muslim representatives mentioned other recurrent problems, which, according to the Länder, occurred sporadically and took the form of general public opposition to plans for the building of mosques, calls to prayer, the slaughter of animals, the wearing of head scarves and the non-participation of girls in mixed sporting activities, notably swimming. It was nevertheless stressed that, in the face of these situations, the authorities often demonstrated genuine pragmatism and acted on a case-by-case basis. In order to prevent these problems, greater acceptance of Islam within German society was needed. The authorities and the Muslim representatives themselves said it was also the responsibility of the Muslim community to make Islam better known, despite the inherent difficulties of Muslims in Germany, who at the outset had been mainly migrant workers and not highly educated. Initiatives aimed at the better understanding and recognition of Islam are to be welcomed, in particular the establishment, by the Office of the Commissioner for