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Cartoon controversy -- The right to provoke?by Bertus Hendriks 06-02-2006The strong protests in the Islamic world against the cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad printed in Denmark and republished elsewhere in Europe, show no signs of abating just yet. The ransacking of the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus and the burning of the Danish consulate in Beirut over the weekend, have led to appeals for calm from, among others, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference. However, on Monday there were fresh demonstrations including in Gaza, Iraq and several Asian countries. More than 15 years after the Salman Rushdie affair, and with the murder of Dutch film-maker Theo van Gogh still fresh in the mind, the West got another reminder that hurting the religious sentiments of Muslims can easily spark a fire that can set more than a single embassy ablaze. On both sides of the cultural divide, between a highly secularised Western culture and an Islamic culture, which is heavily based on religion, there are conflicting but deeply held values, growing anxieties and a number of long-standing or recent grievances, all of which add fuel to the fire so that it quickly gets out of control. Vast influx In many European countries, the vast influx of immigrants, many from Islamic countries, has led to problems of integration, and created a platform for right-wing anti-immigrant parties who play on fears that fundamentalist Islam is on the rise and trying to impose its world view on the host countries. Though these fears may be overstated, they nevertheless provide an atmosphere in which extremists on both sides will seize any opportunity to make their point. When fundamentalist imams started a campaign to lobby Arab governments to put pressure on Denmark, the matter struck on a key issue in Western countries: freedom of expression. It wasn't just right-wing anti-immigration politicians who were defending that value, because for Western democracies, the issue is universal and should be defended in all circumstances. From then on it became a matter of prestige and a battle of wills. Islamic perspective From the Islamic perspective, many Muslims obviously feel their religious beliefs have been deeply hurt, even if only a minority have resorted to violent protests. But this also comes during the era of the "war on terror" which many Muslims perceive as a war on Islam, given the bloody and highly unpopular war in Iraq and long held views of unfair Western bias in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. So anti-Western sentiment is as rife in the Muslim world, as Islamophobia is in the West. Add to this the precarious economic situation of many Muslim immigrants and continuing poverty in their home countries (often the reason for migration in the first place) and you have a mix of anger and frustration that only needs a few sparks before it explodes. Voltaire Finally, when the philosopher of the Enlightment, Voltaire, fought for the freedom of expression he did so in fighting the mighty and the powerful and paid for it by being imprisoned and exiled. But this time, the perceived insult is coming from the Western world, which at present is clearly more powerful than the Islamic world. It's easier to shrug off mocking and satire from somebody weaker than you. This current situation seems like adding insult to injury. However, that is no reason to give up on the principle of freedom of expression, which is a principle that also stands to benefit the citizens of the Muslim world. The attempted murder a few years ago of Egyptian Nobel prize winner Naguib Mahfuz by Muslim fundamentalists for allegedly insulting Islam should serve as a sober reminder that freedom of expression is not a Western luxury. But while freedom of expression no doubt includes the right to provoke, is it necessary to deliberately provoke and hurt? The principle still needs to be upheld when attacked, but it will gain greater acceptance worldwide if exercised with wisdom and sensitivity. See previous articles: Salman Rushdie Three hour courtroom rant Reader emails on the cartoons issue London cartoon protest - why no arrests? Ridicule won't lead to dialogue Virgin bans free speech Cartoons - offensive or defensive? Cartoon row continues Depicting Muhammed at Edinburgh University |
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