Cartoons: A Contrived Provocation ?
By Dr Imdad Hussain, February 18, 2006, DAWN
THE protest storm over the caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) which were initially published on September 30, 2005, in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten is now spreading across the Muslim world with growing intensity.
It is estimated that this material has already been published in nearly 75 newspapers and also telecast as news features by more than 200 television stations around the world. A section of the media has done so as a gesture of solidarity with the Danish newspaper. The key phrase being intransigently emphasized in this whole episode is �freedom of expression� which the western media proudly claims it has won after a long and hard struggle. Therefore, the argument goes, this freedom is sacred and cannot be compromised for reasons of moral or other constraints.
Nevertheless, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, feeling disturbed over the crisis caused by the controversial cartoons, has observed that freedom of the press should always be exercised in such a way that no religious group feels offended and humiliated. He also appealed to the Muslims to show tolerance and restraint. But former US president Bill Clinton was quite unambiguous in expressing his revulsion over the caricatures by comparing them with the anti-Semitic stuff used by the Nazis in Germany during the 1930s. This is, in a way, one of the worst allegations one could level against someone in Europe. His statement strongly reflects the gravity and sensitivity of the issue.
For many, on both sides, however, the cartoon issue has a grim echo of the ancient Crusades and the symptoms of the much-feared conflict between oriental Islam and western Christianity, also described as the �clash of civilisations�. Muslims settled in Europe have, in general, preferred to stay away from this controversy as the authorities there already view them with mistrust, although the Islamic clerics in Denmark did take up the matter at various levels.
Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen remained stuck to his policy standpoint that since the press in Denmark was free his government could not take any measure against the newspaper in question. He was quite arrogant in his behaviour until last week when some Muslim diplomatic missions in Copenhagen started pulling out a section of their staff from the country. Notably, Libya decided to close its embassy in Denmark altogether.
However, fierce protests, flag-burnings, a boycott of Danish goods, threats to Danish assets and personnel in some Muslim countries forced the Danish government to have a second look at the imbroglio and it initially agreed to offer some explanation of the matter. This process of reflection ended with an ambiguous expression of apology from the editor of the newspaper and the prime minister ultimately agreed to meet diplomats from some Muslim countries for a dialogue.
In an interview with Al-Arabiya, Mr Rasmussen said: �I have a great message for you: the Danish people have defended the freedom of expression through many generations. We have deep respect for all religions, including Islam, and it is important for me to tell you that the Danish people have no intention to humiliate Muslims�. Not surprisingly, this didn�t help much to abate the stirred Muslim sentiments. Peaceful demonstrations turned into violent riots and even led to attacks on Scandinavian diplomatic missions in some countries.
The question arises: how can such acts of humiliation and offence against Islam and its believers by the western media ever come to a definite end? It is difficult to believe that the western media�s present attitude is going to change and that it would draw a lesson from the current crisis.
There is a wrong impression that the western media is always free or inclined to publish or reproduce everything perceivable under all circumstances since there exists the so-called freedom of expression. In fact, there are several examples when western governments have chosen to ban or prevent the publication of books, articles and other materials on the grounds that these were either against national interests or intended to insult a particular group or community.
Muslims are apparently not considered as one such group of people or community. Their faith in God and respect for Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) are often viewed in a different light and labelled as fundamentalism by most westerners. They want and expect the Muslims living there to act and behave vis-a-vis Islam in a similar fashion as do the secularized Europeans as far as Christianity is concerned.
There was a time when the West considered Jews and Catholics as enemies. Jews were accepted in Europe after they suffered the holocaust and Catholics found a place in society because of the Cold War and also through the good offices of the Vatican. Muslims are generally disliked, rather hated, in Europe and have remained so since the Middle Ages. They cannot be trusted or accommodated as equals in western society. They fall in the category of �Others�. In order to keep them in check, some Europeans believe, it is necessary to occasionally test the strength of their faith in their religion by creating a contrived provocation and then by monitoring their reaction to that. The publication of the humiliating cartoons is, it seems, such an exercise.
The Scandinavian states have a reputation of being a model of tolerance and having an excellent human-rights record. The Danes, in particular, have until recently been known for being tolerant, carefree and �happy people� of northern Europe. But during the past few years ever since the extreme right-wing conservatives came into power in Denmark, a rather hostile policy towards immigrants in general, and the Muslims in particular, is being pursued. The Danish People�s Party, a coalition partner in the present government, has made itself overtly known for its anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim bias. This policy has drawn strong criticism from many leading politicians in neighbouring Scandinavian countries.
In the light of these realities, one may ask what could have been the motive behind the idea to publish the offending cartoons? Has democracy in Denmark and Norway been strengthened by this act? Is the publication of certain items which are painful and humiliating to one-fourth of the human population on this planet so imperative to keep freedom of the press vibrant and strong? If the motive was to deliberately provoke Muslims to achieve some political ends, then such a freedom cannot be considered sacred. If it just happened by accident and was a mere mistake � in fact, a fatal mistake � then, it must be strongly repented and condemned. Such happenings need to be avoided in future.
It means that freedom of expression is a relative thing � a means to achieve some ends � and hence it must not become an end by itself. We need this freedom to achieve more important objectives of democracy, social justice, mutual respect, tolerance and peaceful co-existence. Therefore, this freedom must necessarily be combined with some moral considerations and restraints.
Democracy and freedom of expression have no doubt played an important role in the political, economic and cultural advancement of western societies. These are equally necessary for Muslim societies if they have to progress. Incidentally, most of them are governed either by military dictatorships or authoritarian regimes which deny to their people these freedoms, democracy and human rights. By shifting their focus to the true spirit of Islam and Divine principles of unity, mutual respect, discipline, social justice, honesty, forgiveness and sincerity of purpose, Muslims as a nation can once again regain their lost glory and a place of pride in the comity of nations.
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The writer is an associate professor of economics at the University of Gavle, Sweden.