BERLIN (Reuters) – Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans on Wednesday not to bow to fears of Islamic violence after a Berlin opera house canceled a Mozart work over concerns some scenes could enrage Muslims and pose a security risk.

“I think the cancellation was a mistake. I think self-censorship does not help us against people who want to practice violence in the name of Islam,” she told reporters. “It makes no sense to retreat.”

Merkel’s comments, which echoed those of other senior German politicians, fueled a row over the cancellation of Mozart’s “Idomeneo” which overshadowed a government-sponsored conference to promote dialogue with the country’s 3.2 million Muslims.

Berlin’s Deutsche Oper said on Monday it had pulled performances of the opera, which shows the severed heads of the Prophet Mohammad, Buddha and Jesus, after police warned that it could pose an “incalculable” security risk.

The row comes two weeks after Pope Benedict enraged some Muslims by quoting from a medieval text linking the spread of the Islamic faith to violence. Last year’s publication of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in a Danish newspaper triggered violent Muslim protests.

Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told reporters after the conference the participants were united in their call for the opera to restart performances of “Idomeneo”.

“I am glad that we all agreed we would like the production to resume,” Schaeuble, who has no authority over the opera house, told reporters after the conference. “To send a signal, we could all go to the performance together,” he said.

The meeting, which had 15 central and local government officials and an equal number of Muslim representatives, discussed issues such as equal rights, the building of mosques, Islam lessons and imam training.

“There was an open exchange of views but it was a harmonious debate,” said Schaeuble. He added that working groups had been set up to look at specific questions and he expected concrete results in two to three years.

“This is a historic moment for us, it is a milestone and we will work hard in the next two years to achieve results,” said Bekir Alboga of the Turkish Islamic Union, DITIP.

Integration has become a priority for the government as concern grows about the emergence of an underclass of disillusioned young Muslims, mainly Turks, in Germany and about fears of Islamic radicalization across Europe.

A recent outbreak of violence at a Berlin school where the bulk of pupils are immigrant children and last year’s “honor killing” of a Turkish woman have highlighted the challenges faced by the government and Muslim communities.

Germany brought over unskilled laborers from Turkey after World War Two to help drive its economic boom. There are now about 1.8 million Turks in the country.