International threat to free speech
Hot on the heels of the welcome defeat for the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill in Parliament last night comes a fresh international threat by the forces of religious censorship.
Arab News reports that the Muslim world’s two largest political bodies, the OIC and the Arab League, are seeking a UN resolution to protect religious beliefs from attack.
Ahmad Ben Helli of the Arab League:
Consultations are currently taking place at the highest level between Arab countries and the OIC in order to ask the UN to adopt a binding resolution banning contempt for religious beliefs and providing for sanctions to be imposed on contravening countries or institutions.
The Mecca-based Muslim World League has also written to Kofi Annan:
The MWL, which represents Muslim minorities and Islamic organizations around the world, hereby conveys to you, the United Nations and other international organizations the indignation and outrage of Muslims over the smear campaigns being launched by a section of the Western media against Islam and Prophet Muhammad
The same report suggests that Jyllands-Posten editor Carsten Juste’s apology hasn’t been particularly well received:
Instead of apologizing, Juste reiterated the paper’s stand that the cartoons were published within the context of Danish dialogue about freedom of expression and were not meant to attack anybody’s religion.
Portrayals of the prophet Mohammed, some flattering others not so, have been in existence for centuries. A collection can be seen here. So why suddenly the big fuss? Egyptian journalist Mona Eltahawy writes an interesting analysis in the Lebanese Daily Star:
What should have remained a local issue turned into a diplomatic uproar that Muslims otherwise rarely provoke when fighting for their rights around the world. Perhaps the Muslim governments who spearheaded the campaign – led by Egypt – felt this was an easy way to burnish their Islamic credentials at a time when domestic Islamists are stronger than they have been in many years.
The whole thing is well worth a read.
Would that apply to middle eastern countries that slander judism? Televised version of the protocols of the elders of zion anyone?
Oh wait, sorry, thats a ligitimate criticism of Israel, it wasn’t intended to slander all Jews or their faith unlike the so-called testing of Danish free speech which is part of a wider western conspiracy.
Hate to be flippant – well, I love it actually – but, if you look at the Arab League’s URL you’ll see that there’s fever in the very land they grow their crops on (crossword enthusiasts will notice it): http://www.arableagueoneline.org. Got it yet?
nice one andy. one could even note, as a crossword fan, specifically from the URL and not just their name, that the fever is possible through conflict (with a spot of dodgy grammar, at any rate)
Dubai sacks US prof for distributing Mohammed cartoons
08-02-2006 10:20 G.M.T. DUBAI, Feb 8, 2006 (AFP)
An American professor at Dubai’s Zayed University was fired after she distributed cartoons depicting Prophet Mohammed out of “respect” for freedom of expression, the local press reported Wednesday.
The United Arab Emirates minister of education, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al-Nahyan, also chancellor of the university, sacked Claudi Keepoz, saying her behaviour “has nothing to do with the freedom of expression.”
Keepoz had reportedly told her female students on Saturday that “we should respect this freedom,” as she distributed the cartoons, which have caused an uproar among world’s Muslims.
A text message spread the news of her act.
“She accused Muslims of being narrow-minded and intolerant of others’ opinions,” it said. “Could you believe this to be happening the United Arab Emirates?”
“How long are we going to continue to glorify expatriates?” the message asked, referring to the hundreds of thousands of foreign workers who have provided the backbone for economic development in the Gulf state.
One studen’ts mother expressed satisfaction over the sacking.
“I was about to go to the university myself to punish her … It is halal (permitted in Islam) to kill her,” she told AFP, requesting anonymity.
Every incident like this exposes the true nature of the religious dogma practiced in these parts of the world. And how Dubai talks about allowing freedom of the press is laughable. In reality, it is just a lawless 5 star sand pit fooling the world to invest in real estate made out of sand. The core business is real estate. The day they can stop being so religious, there will be real progress. But that can never happen as religion is a great weapon to control the masses. Note the comment about the anon woman who threatens to kill the professor for distributing the cartoons…and calls it “hallal”. That is lawlessness.