And it could be smell of rotting Danish products as a result of the most recently implemented boycotts. Saudi Arabia is turning up the volume on the ante when it comes to the offensive cartoons that depicted the Prophet Mohammad pbuh in a Danish newspaper and more recently in Norway as well.The Saudi government recalled its ambassador and now there are boycotts for Danish products which may impact some 1.3 million Saudi Riyal worth of exports to the country.
What this all comes down to is this: Denmark has greatly underestimated just how bad this situation would turn out…
the Danish ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Hans Klingenberg, said on Thursday that his government underestimated the crisis. “There is a risk that we in Denmark have underestimated the indignation and anger that these cartoons have caused in the Muslim world,” he told Jyllands-Posten. Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen refused in October to meet with 11 ambassadors of Muslim nations to discuss the issue and reluctantly said in a New Year statement that free speech should not taken as a pretext to insult religions. [source]
Arla Foods is Europeâ??s second-largest dairy company and the leading Danish exporter to Saudi Arabia, where it sells an estimated two billion kroner ($328 million) worth of products every year. â??More and more supermarkets are taking our products off their shelves and donâ??t want fresh supplies because consumers no longer want to buy our brand,â? Arla Foods spokesman Louis Honore told AFP. â??The situation is very serious.â? [source]
I’ve already written on this topic this week, specifically in the context of recent moves by the Jordanian parliament to condemn the cartoons officially. I have however yet to see (or hear) any moves on the part of the people in Jordan to do their part. It is highly unlikely that I will see (or hear) that. Specifically for two reasons (and I don’t know which one is more pressing):
1- Jordanians can’t even boycott Israeli or American products and they live next door to two occupations of two Arab nations by both those parties. Case in point, Starbucks is now big in Jordan even though it’s one of the biggest corporate donors to the Israeli war machine. (I hear if you can climb up to the roof on Starbuck in Abdoun you can actually get a good view of Palestine at night while you sip your latte)
2- Jordanians love their NIDO
I just wanted to point a few more things
First the origin of these cartoons stems from a Danish experiment. On October 12, 2005 in the Copenhagen Post, the Editor in Chief of Jyllands-Posten the paper which printed these cartoons, said they encouraged cartoonists to submit these drawings in an attempt to deliberately provoke and insult Muslims while testing the waters of “fundamentalism”.
The newspaper urged cartoonists to send in drawings of the prophet, after an author complained that nobody dared to illustrate his book on Mohammed. The author claimed that illustrators feared that extremist Muslims would find it sacrilegious to break the Islamic ban on depicting Mohammed.
To test fundamentalism? Ah! A lesson in Islamic fundamentals: why is it such a big thing to draw the Prophet pbuh?
Well there is nothing in the Sharia’ (Islamic law) which specifically says we can’t draw the Prophet pbuh (at least to my knowledge) and indeed it has been done in the past by both Muslims and non-Muslims alike, the former usually using a white light or white veil to cover his face.
However in Islam there is the fear that people, as they tend to do, will end up worshiping the Prophet or confusing him or mixing him with God. In Islam there is a strict separation between Prophet and God to the extent that even the Prophet pbuh was never allowed to have sons, out of fear that people would worship him as they worship the relationship of linage, such as King to Prince, as is done today. Art falls along the same line of thought, especially since Islam came at a time when people worshiped false idols such as stone statues. Today we see the same thing when it comes to other religions and pictures which depict Prophets, gods or demi-gods.
This Danish Experiment, which is what I’m going to call it because I feel like having a Danish right now, was done with the intent of being offensive, the cartoons themselves are obviously offensive in nature. The experiment had the purpose to test the waters or fundamentalists but in the process ended up offending all Muslims worldwide who despite any differences, share the same fundamental beliefs of Islam.
And this is why it’s no suprise to see any Muslim stand up to this despite how silly it may seem to non-Muslims.
As a good person i have never had the urge to make fun of anyone’s religion, belief, conviction..etc. it is not a laughing matter. Respect for human beings means respect for all beliefs, and RACES. What they have done is violate Muslim human rights by ridiculing them. This is not freedom of speech. I support the Saudi reaction. but wish they had been more ‘democratic’ about it.. i.e. giving a warning and explaining to the others why this is not acceptable and asking for a retraction. if that hadnt worked then they are 100 percent in the right.
This is why Arabs need to engage the West in a direct dialogue. Many Europeans and Americans do not know that Muslims revere all prophets. They do not know that I, as a Muslim, would never allow any one to defame and defile Prophet Jesus or Moses (PBUT) in any way. You all can be part of the dialogue. Denmark needs to know that Arabs and Muslims can react in a very civil way against any one who defames their culture and faith. Boycotting products made in the Denmark can be one simple way. The whole world is defaming Arabs and Muslims and if you keep waiting for governments to react, then better move to outer space.
check out the following ALERT. Send an e-mail and see for yourselves if activism pays off or not.
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
CAIR ACTION ALERT #485
CA MUSLIMS SEEK REPRIMAND FOR RADIO HOST WHO MOCKED HAJJ DEATHS
Host jokes about ‘annual stampede report,’ calls Islam a ‘strange religion’
(ANAHEIM, CA, 1/26/2006) – The Southern California office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA) today called on a local radio station to reprimand one of its talk show hosts for mocking the recent deaths of hundreds of Muslims taking part in the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca.
CAIR-LA is also calling on Muslims and other people of conscience to contact KFI AM 640 to request both the reprimand and a formal apology.
On January 12, morning host Bill Handel said:
Handel: “And what happens every year when you have a zillion Muslims…ah, you get stampedes, as I said earlier. You get, you know, hundreds of thousands of people pouring across and all you need is one…one little word: ‘Mohammad up there is a Jew.’ (Imitates people screaming) Ahhhh! And they start screaming, right? Or, I think there’s a fire here. Or…mouse on the floor, and everybody goes crazy…”
Handel: “…What they need is sort of ‘Mahmoud Nolan in the Sky’ to control all this.” (Note: Mike Nolan does the traffic report for KFI from his helicopter.)
Man with heavy accent: “This is Mahmoud Nolan. Hajj in the Sky. There is an accident…Ali lost his sandal on the on-ramp to the Martin Luther King, Jr. freeway…”
Handel: “. . .that’s our annual stampede report from the Hajj, which we do every single year right here on KFI, and thank you to Mahmoud in the Sky.”
Handel also referred to Islam as a “strange religion.”
To listen to Handel’s remarks, go to: http://www.cair-net.org/audio/handel.mp3
Muslims says Handel has a history of making Islamophobic remarks. In March 2004, he aired a skit that claimed Muslims have sex with animals, avoid bathing and are obsessed with killing Jews. KFI was forced to apologize after many Muslims responded to a CAIR alert about the incident.
SEE: California Radio Station Apologizes for Islamophobic Skit
“The deaths of hundreds of people engaged in religious observances is no laughing matter,” said CAIR-LA Communications Director Sabiha Khan. “KFI needs to distance itself from Mr. Handel’s unbelievable insensitivity by issuing a formal apology and a reprimand.”
Hajj is one of the “five pillars” of the Islamic faith. (The other pillars include a declaration of faith, daily prayers, offering regular charity, and fasting during the month of Ramadan.) Pilgrimage is a once-in-a-lifetime obligation for those who have the physical and financial ability to undertake the journey.
For background on other incidents of anti-Muslim hate on talk radio, go to:
MSNBC Apologizes for ‘Imus’ Remarks
DC Radio Host Fired Over Anti-Islam Remarks
Jackie Mason Calls Islam a ‘Murderous Organization’
Muslims Launch ‘Hate Hurts America’ Radio Campaign
Paul Harvey Now Says Islam is a Religion of Peace
CAIR, America’s largest Muslim civil liberties group, has 31 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
– END –
CONTACT: CAIR-LA, Sabiha Khan, 714-776-1847 or 714-390-0334, E-Mail: socal@cair.com
ACTION REQUESTED: (As always, be firm but POLITE. Hostile comments WILL be used to further defame Islam and Muslims.) Contact KFI and Clear Channel Communications, the station’s parent company, to demand that they apologize to the American Muslim community and reprimand Bill Handel for his Islamophobic remarks.
CONTACT:
1) Greg Ashlock, Regional Vice President
Clear Channel Radio
3400 West Olive Ave., Suite #550
Burbank, Ca. 91505
TEL: 818-566-6301
FAX: 818-729-2510
2) Robin Bertolucci, KFI Program Director
TEL: 818-566-6476
FAX: 818-729-2510
3) Mark Mays, President and Chief Executive Officer and Lowry Mays,
Chairman of the Board Clear Channel Radio, 200 Basse Road, San Antonio,
TX 78209
TEL: 210-822-2828
FAX: 210-822-2299
E-MAIL: programming@kfi640.com, robinbertolucci@clearchannel.com, gregashlock@clearchannel.com, bill@kfi640.com, JaniceUngaro@clearchannel.com, justinlevine@clearchannel.com, pr@clearchannel.com, MarkPMays@clearchannel.com, LLowryMays@clearchannel.com, lisacdollinger@clearchannel.com, KFINEWSDIRECTOR@KFI640.COM
COPY ALL CORRESPONDENCE TO: socal@cair.com, cair@cair-net.org
—–
CAIR
Council on American-Islamic Relations
453 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20003
Tel: 202-488-8787, 202-744-7726
Fax: 202-488-0833
E-mail: cair@cair-net.org
URL: http://www.cair-net.org
where can someone get access to those offending cartoons? any links available?
i find it odd that you talk about those cartoons without giving people an idea of those cartoon….
Devil’s Mind, hello, I did not want to post them on my blog because of my own personal convictions however you can see them here if you’d like. thanks.
Hackers got to the web site of the Danish news paper.
http://www.uriasposten.net/
It is never a question of offended pride, or even sacred religious belief. We understand all too well (we being westerners) that you take offense at our irreverence. We don’t ask you to understand; we only ask that you make no attempt to silence another when in our society, no matter what offense you take at his words. It is really very simple, if hard to comprehend. All this talk about how westerners simply don’t realize how it feels is irrelevant. We have the right to live as we do in our countries. We extend these same rights to you when you live here. There is your dialogue, and frankly, I think the generosity is coming from our end.
We don’t revere religious prophets as you do; even our most devout Christians more closely resemble our atheists in their tolerance of all forms of speech. This is how we live, and it suits us. You are welcome to the same rights we enjoy when you live among us. Do Muslim nations offer the same generosity to Christians, Jews, atheists, etc. who live among them?
They do not. They offer dhimmitude, a second class status, or worse.
This commitment to freedom of speech (true freedom of speech and not freedom of speech as long as you don’t hurt my feelings, in which case I will try to shut down your newspaper or ruin your business, or worse) has served us very well. People in the U.S., Canada and Europe thrive under this way of life; atheists, Christians, and, yes, observant Muslims.
The publication of a collection of cartoons in a Danish newspaper in secular, democratic Denmark has led to more physical crimes of retaliation than the attacks of Sept. 11 provoked on the part of angry Americans.
Who fails to understand?
Niiice,boycotting because of a cartoon ,and not boycotting because of people being butchered. Hmmm niiice policies
p.s: not underminding the issue just forming an analogy
Dennis, splendid. When you say that Muslims nations offer only second class citizenship to Christians are you talking about all Muslim nations or did you just decide to look at say, oh, I dont know, Saudi Arabia and figured all Muslim countries are pretty much the same.
Is it not the right of a people to defend their religious beliefs when it is provoked? when it is attacked? does freedom of speech not have its legal and/or constitutional limitations derived from acts such as racism, or to put it more simply, using freedom of speech to trespass on the beliefs of others? Would you rather that all people, no matter where they’re from, should remain silent when their beliefs are attacked?
My professor David Noble, is currently being sued by a Pro-Israeli group who claim he is an anti-semite for suggesting that my University policies should be changed to allow students to have a holiday on all their religious holidays and not just cater to the minority of a Jewish student population.
In the west, do groups not stand up and speak out when they feel they are provoked or insulted?
So tell me, why is it so wrong for Muslims to react when provoked?
Ohoud, analogy understood and point well taken. People have grown tired of Palestine. This is something new.
I think it may just be that simple.
Or possibly because this is religious in a more tangible sense.
The Danish cartoonists are protected under Danish law. Love it or hate it, freedom of speech is going to get SOMEBDOY’s feathers ruffled from time to time.
Take it from me, I once nearly got my teeth knocked out for arguing about the Papacy’s nefarious dealings with the Nazis.
As an occasional freelancer, I see no problem with protesting a particular article or image than one might deem offensive. Heck, I had a Muslim once try to argue me out of putting up images of Girgioni’s nude Venus painting on my site, because it was, to him, offensive. I don’t mind that kind of criticism, it usually results in dialogue.
I do have a problem with death-threats though. Following the murder of Theo Van Gogh, Denmark is in a bind over issues of free speech. The Danish need to reassert their rights and test the waters. The cartoons are a normal extension of what happened to Theo Van Gogh.
I think the Saudi boycott is hilarious, considering all the human rights abuses that happen in Saudi on a regular basis, not to mention the 500 Muslim detainees languishing in Camp Gitmo (hey, where’s the Saudi boycott over that). It’s all symbolic, it’s all meaningless. It’s all politics.
Nas,
I refer to most Muslim nations, with the notable exception of Lebanon and, perhaps, Jordan; I am thinking specifically of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Pakistan, Libya, Oman, Yemen, Syria, et al.; in short a significant majority making my generalization entirely appropriate. I mean no offense when I note it, and I don’t believe it’s any of my business how these countries are run (I do not approve of the war in Iraq, and denounce it often on my blog, for what it’s worth), it simply becomes necessary to point out in our present conversation. This is the dialogue you requested.
One has the right to defend one’s beliefs. In our society that means you may speak out, demonstrate peacefully, even organize boycotts. You may even demand apologies; understanding that they may not be coerced. What happened after the Jyllands-Posten controversy; rioting, death threats, physical intimidation, is not allowed. Is this too much to ask? Your boycotts are your business, but you should understand that the nation of Denmark and its people are not one and the same as a newspaper or individual there enjoying its precious freedoms (which, by the way, we will defend against the violence and intimidation of radicals, whatever their cause).
No one is saying be silent. We (one hopes) are refusing to bow to threats and histrionics. Who is telling you to be silent? Point them out to me and I will denounce them with you.
I’m not sure what you mean here:
does freedom of speech not have its legal and/or constitutional limitations derived from acts such as racism, or to put it more simply, using freedom of speech to trespass on the beliefs of others?
If you mean that our freedom of speech does not include the right to offend religious belief, in America it does. In Europe, there are laws against “hate speech” and they are deplorable, often used to harrass people such as the cartoonists we are talking about. These laws are often used against people who are seen as offending a particular minority group, such as European Muslims; rarely, if ever, have they been used to defend Christianity. Their uneven application belies their nefarious and unworkable nature.
This is what freedom of speech looks like. We rather like it. How do you like it?
Nas, thanks for the wonderful post and for taking the time to reach out to the whole world!
Dennis, First I agree with you on some points but let me get to the ones I dont:
perfect! this is all I’m asking for. I am totally against rioting, death threats, physical intimidation or anything else of that nature. It is against my personal convictions and against my religion, not to mention it serves no purpose. But I’m glad you can acknowledge that Muslims have the right to defend their beliefs. I believe up until now, based on what I’ve seen thusfar, things have been peaceful. There have been demonstrations, condemnations, and a call for boycotts. If a few loonies call up the editor and say they’re going to kill him, well those people are obviously demented.
Also, in my quote I was saying simply that one person’s freedom ends where another begins. We can talk about the glories of free speech but we have to draw a line when it mutates into hate speech and these cartoons are being confused with the former when really, by the newspapers own admission of baiting muslims, they are a case of the latter
Now when it comes to Muslim nations. I do agree with you, there are nations that are applying absurd laws to supress Christians and Jews, etc. But look at some of these nations more closely. There are actually more laws there supressing Muslims then there are for any other religion. Which should say to everyone, hey, this may be a Muslim nation in the sense that it is made up of a majority of Muslims, but the state is not ruling Islamically. Under Islamic law there is a protection of Christian citizens, not a rejection of them. So something is rotten in the state of Iran and Saudi Arabia as well.
Natalia, thank you for your comment and welcome to my blog. Allow me to respond to what you’ve said:
So there are no laws in Denmark that protect against hate speech such as what is reflected in these cartoons?
What happened to Theo Van Gogh was a disaster. Islam does not condone such a thing and it is the act of independent mad men, in the same arena shared by the likes of Bin Laden.
When you test the waters there is a number of ways to do it. Coming out and being straight up offensive and insulting towards Muslims all around the world is not one of those ways. Unless the paper can plead ignorance on the issue. They simply didn’t know that Muslims don’t like the Prophet pbuh being drawn by anyone, let alone in an offensive context.
I have my own reservations about the Saudi boycotts and like I said previously perhaps there are more pressing issues to deal with that governments have been avoiding. Nonetheless, this remains an issue that concerns all Muslims and it should be addressed. As for their human rights abuses, I think every country nowadays is living in a house of glass. The U.S. for example dictates to the rest of us about how to be civil when it tops UN lists of human rights violations worldwide.
Hi Nas!
I’m not familiar with Danish law, but I’m sure that these cartoons are not strictly illegal. I think that in a lot of places in Europe today there seems to be a gray area over what is acceptable and what is unacceptable, especially where religion is concerned. There still seems to be the general spirit of allowing people to say what they want to say, but that often depends on the situation. I’m sure that the cartoonists were not aware of breaking any law when they drew their cartoons, but anything can be twisted. It’s all political, like I said.
The Theo Van Gogh thing was horrible for many reasons, not the least of which being the violent death of a man, but what’s also horrible when something like this happens is the inevitable backlash. Theo Van Gogh was insulting to many people, Muslims, Jews, Christians; pretty much any group of people he could pick on, he picked on. He could be exasperating at times, but most people in Denmark certainly didn’t think that he deserved death.
After his death, artists and other people who express themselves publicly were both angered and confused. I think it’s only natural that one of them would end up drawing the Prophet with a turban shaped like a bomb, or brandishing a knife with two terrified veiled women in the background. It doesn’t make it right, but it’s an extension of what has been happening in Denmark and other parts of Europe for some time. The Age of Anxiety is melting into an Age of Hysteria, nearly everyone is angry, upset, and terrified of something or someone. And the people who profit from the Age of Hysteria are not the most likeable characters on earth.
I just don’t think people should buy into it. We’re being manipulated. From all sides. And I’m tired of it.
I’m commenting here with a little trepidation; I’d originally come here to look up reaction to Jill Carroll’s video.
The discussion of the Danish boycott is interesting, though.
Here’s the problem I have with it — the Saudi boycott is designed to pressure the Danish government into pressuring the newspaper for an apology. While I may or may not agree with what the Jyllands-Posten published, I feel strongly that it is wrong to call for a government to be involved with free speech.
If Muslims object to the content of the cartoons, fine. Don’t buy the paper. Denounce the editor. Launch your own campaign. But — don’t try to get the government to interfere. (and I agree the Saudi’s are wacked)
Do you Muslims think that this guy need to fear for his life because the poster make fun of Christianity? (link below) After all he lives in a country where majority of the people are Christians. I really do not understand why you are so offended because some stupid cartoon characters. I think you just like to feel offended. You just love to imagine yourselves as victims, even when there is absolutely no reason for that. I do not know if you see it yourself but you get offended far more easily than people in general. At least compared to other people in Europe. Is it totally impossible for you to not to take yourselves so damn seriously and react this kind of stuff with humour or disinterest like the others would have done in similar situation.
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/287
Pekka, thank you for your comment and I respect your point of view however the offense or rather the reaction is based on the teachings of our own religion hence you cannot possibly draw an analogy with another religion such as Christianity for example. They are two different religions, with different teachings.
It’s not a matter of taking ourselves so damn seriously, it’s more a matter of taking our religion very seriously.
thanks
p.s. in the link you provided the first image is just as offensive to Muslims as the second if not more, specifically since Mary the mother of Jesus is revered in Islam and there is a whole chapter on her in the Quran.
Caren, I wholeheartedly agree with you
You know Muslims are not the only people taking their religion very seriously. Althought people on average are maybe less religious in Europe, there are lots of devout Christians. It is that we are used to ignore mockery against us and spread the word for those who are eager to hear. That is exactly what Jesus did, Jesus did not declare war against his oppressors or mockers. It even would have been very problematic for them also being created by God and offer of our religion to regret ones sins and make amendment. I meant that if you really want to get offended you will find reasons for that. There are loads of anti-islamic stuff in western media (not to mention internet) if you want to find some, though major newspapers usually tend to be more polite and respectful. Most of our medias in Europe are not in control of state officials and are free to publish whatever they want excluding promotion of racial hatred and insults of individual privacy. There really is not much the Danish officials can do about this kind of offences. This was not the act of Danish government or Danish people, it was the act of individual newspaper with its own motives. And yet I do not believe it is very hard to find anti-christianity or anti-semitism in some Arabic medias. I think that for the good relations between the Western and Muslim cultures it is better that ordinary people ignore the messages sent by the people whose objectives is to harm them.
Or maybe I just never be able to understand how extreme a crime it is to draw a mocking picture of Prophet Mohammad in Islam religion. It sounds quite superficial to me. Compare for example The Ten Commandments. Furthermore we do not insist followers of other religions to obey them, though we are ordered to spread the message of our religion for other people to hear. It is the voluntary decision for every Christian to live by these rules as good as they can. We are not to judge people for breaking rules of our religion but God is. Why it is not the same with you and these cartoons. Does Allah really require you to commit the earthly punishment of these “artists”.
Pekka, thank you for the reply
like i said, we cannot possibly compare the two religions and expect the same results.
far from it, there is in fact nothing that says that drawing the prophet pbuh is in fact forbidden in the quran. it is merely interpretation which has lead to religious measures that intend to avoid the negative elements which arise upon doing so. in terms of punishments and death threats, this i assure you is stupidity on the part of individuals who are as ignorant of their own religion as Europeans are of theirs.
while I have personally never seen an Arabic newspaper print an anti-christian cartoon im sure such exist. as for anti-semitism, i’m sure thats out there too although most of it is confused with being anti-israeli, needless to say that Arabs are of semite origin themselves. Either way, both things are forbidden in Islam.
as for the Danish people and the government please read the following post:
http://www.black-iris.com/?p=470
thank you
Hi
I stumbled over your blog and as I am very interested in a balanced, Muslim view of this bizarre story, I have a few comments and questions.
First of all a little disclaimer: Iâ??m Danish, a-religious, liberal.
I think the drawings in Jylland Posten were more than juvenile hate speech. Satire plays and has played for many years an important role in our democracy. Satire against totalitarian and oppressive ideologies is especially important â?? and is often provoking very strong reactions.
Iâ??m not saying that Islam is a totalitarian nor oppressive ideology as such. Itâ??s a religion. But some Muslims are using Islam as an ideology. It is an ideology that in Denmark manifests itself through declared anti-democratic movements and many other manifestations throughout the world.
I am not saying that all Muslims are buying into this – far from it. I respect Muslims who have a personal belief. But the ideology is there. And it is a direct threat too our society.
So satire is in order. Iâ??m very sorry for all those Muslims who feel offended by this, but I think the value of the anti-ideology satire is more important.
I have a â?? perhaps â?? controversial analogy. In the thirties the Danish media published satire that makes the drawings in question look like innocent illustrations for children. The satire was directed at Germany and many of it mocked the German people in general, and things the Germans held in high esteem, e.g. das Kaiser. Far from all Germans in the thirties was sympathetic to the Nazis, probably only a small minority. But the satire was in order. It was important. Even though it offended innocent Germans.
Finally satire is an all-together different story than hate speech or racism. Satire includes the â??victimâ?Â. It is saying â?? we understand you well enough to make fun of you. We respect you enough to point out elements in your culture, in your way of life, that we disagree with.
With respect,
Thomas
Thomas, thank you for your insightful comment and welcome to my blog.
I would like to think the world has come a long way since the 1930’s with regards to defining hate speech and protecting against it. In the 1930’s it was also the norm for Jews to be mocked in Germany (to say the least), but what would happen if the same elements arose today in Germany? Would no Jew speak out against it? Would it not be defined as a hate crime or hate speech?
Satire is a veneer for something that would have been clearly seen as offensive had it not been dressed up so nicely. I do not believe this is the case here. If as you say “we understand you well enough to make fun of you” then it would have been obvious that such cartoons would not have been greeted with open arms from Muslims.
However, It’s now become a two sided battle where Muslims want laws changed and punishments carried out and the Danes want Muslims to shut up and be insulted.
I humbly request all the people who are posting there comments on this page not to insult one another religion but rather discuss the matter in a civilize manner.
Since I am infavor of muslims I will try to prove with reasons why Denmark should apologize to the muslims.
First of all there are more than 1 billion muslims in the world, majority of whom feel disgraced and rebuked because of Denmark’s editor follies and mistakes, who ignored media ethic and went over the top by trying to antagonize the Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) character in the cartoons. This was the most severe mistake in Denmark editor’s part, since he portraied the Prophet who he had no knowledge of, and whose greatnest he does not understand.
The second mistake that the editor has made is that rather than accepting and apologizng the muslim people, whom he has morally harmed, he denied his erratum and took advantage of the phrase ‘freedom of speech’ and word ‘democracy’ which although are very powerful, but yet not suitable to justify his wrongful act.
The third mistake the editor has made is by picturizing Prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H) in a photo medium. Muslims have never dared to do such an act, since they consider it disrepectful and humiliating to their religion. They also don’t picture Prophet Jesus (P.B.U.H), Prophet Moses (P.B.U.H), and all other prophets they believe in, in any form of photo medium. Therefore the editor by picturing Prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H) in a photo medium inflicts great harm to muslim’s religion.
I understand that we can not assume that editor was aware of such informations before he made cartoons on Prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H). But since this matter is very controversial and of severe importance I am hoping that editor will realize his mistake and reconcile with muslims by apologizing to them.
It is said in Quran:
No vision can grasp Him (Allah)
But His grasp is over
All vision: He is
Above all comprehension,
Yet is acquainted with all things.
“Now have come to you,
From your Lord, proofs
(To open your eyes):
If any will see,
It will be for (the good
Of) his own soul;
If any will be blind,
It will be to his own
(Harm): I am not (here)
To watch over your doings.”
Sura six, 103-106.