Freedom of expression challenged by the Islamic conference
The World Editors Forum, is worried about the clash of cultures that recently occured in Denmark between Islamic conceptions and European values (see below our opinion). According to the Middle East Times, "The Organisation of the Islamic Conference has placed the issue of the publication of twelve cartoons of Mohammed, by the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, on the agenda of its December 2005 summit. The caricatures have caused uproar among Muslim communities in Denmark and elsewhere since their publication in September because they are considered blasphemous under Islam.
The Danish Prime Minister, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, received a letter in October 2005 from eleven ambassadors of Arab countries and and Pakistan, Iran, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Indonesia expressing the offence caused by the caricatures and demanding an official letter of apology from the newspaper.
Rasmussen replied to these demands on October 21st asserting that he would not intervene in the affair, he said:“The freedom of expression is the very foundation of the Danish democracy … (and) the Danish government has no means of influencing the press.”
According to BBC news, "the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published the series of cartoons, after a writer complained that nobody dared illustrate his book about Muhammad."
"We must quietly point out here that the drawings illustrated an article on the self-censorship which rules large parts of the Western world", the paper said.
"Our right to say, write, photograph and draw what we want to within the framework of the law exists and must endure - unconditionally!"
The Jyllands-Posten also reported that two illustrators who produced the cartoons had received death threats. And unfortunately very few media reported this information (see Reporters without Borders website).
In conclusion, the World Editors Forum (publisher of the Editors Weblog) considers the Danish Prime Minister position balanced: of course, freedom of religious belief and freedom of expression must be defended, and sometimes these two concepts cohabit with difficulty. From one country to another, parliaments – when they exist - need to define how one will prevail on the other and it is obvious that you will not have the same guidelines in Denmark as in Saudi Arabia or Pakistan.
For this reason, the pressure exerted on the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten is not acceptable in two ways:
- in Europe, there is no need to apologize for exercising your freedom of expression
- governments are not responsible for newspapers’ editorial choices.
Sources: Middle East Times through the EJC newsletter. See also the BBC news report.
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