The carefully worded apology,
many pointed out, does not convey the admission of wrongdoing and a withdrawal
of the same, and as such is insincere. The use of freedom of expression as a
justification to hurt the religious sentiments of hundreds of millions of
Muslims the world over, is indicative of double standards, respondents told
Khaleej Times.
They say that the whole
episode smacks of an insensitive and dirty publicity stunt by a newspaper.
'Freedom
of expression is a very convenient cliché for many Western nations. Everyone
knows what happened to freedom of expression in the US and the UK following the
debacle in the war on Iraq and Afghanistan,' said Majid Ali, a Dubai
resident.
He pointed out that many
individuals and organisations have benefited immensely in terms of publicity,
even if negative, by writing and speaking ill about Islam and Islamic figures.
'I don't know about people of other faiths, but Muslims
are very sensitive when it comes to religious issues, and this is what allows
provocateurs to fan sentiments and become 'popular' internationally. How many of
us knew the newspaper's name, and am not going to mention it, before this ugly
episode happened?' he asked.
Mohammed Nakhira Al Dhahiri,
Minister of Justice and Islamic Affairs and Auqaf, told Khaleej Times that the
ministry was preparing to counter the offence, which had been condemned by
Muslims as well as non-Muslims. He called upon Denmark and all countries in the
world to respect religions. Islam is a religion of peace, love and mercy.
Consultant Ali Al Hoseini,
Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Justice and Islamic Affairs and Auqaf and
Assistant Under-Secretary of Fatwa and Legislations Affairs, said: 'There is no
doubt we are angry with these countries who claim to be advanced and civilised,
but commit such offensive acts.'
Dr Muhammad Mahmoud Al Kamaly,
General Manager of the Judicial Institute, called for a unified Arab Islamic
confederation to confront those who vilify their religion. Those who attack
their religion care for nothing but money. We should boycott their products
permanently, he said.
Muhammad Ahmed Al Kaitoub,
Assistant Under-Secretary for Technical Affairs of the Ministry of Justice,
said: 'Muslims have called upon all Islamic countries and
the world to socially boycott Denmark and all other countries who offend our
religion.'
Ordinary Arab Muslim young men
and women from different Arab countries have recently discussed the issue on the
Internet. The subject is a hot topic on international chat sites as well, with
heated sessions from participants who claimed they did not represent any
government or organisation, but were speaking for themselves.
Wa'el, one such participant,
stressed the need to send polite letters to Danish embassies asking them to
investigate the case and apologise officially to the Muslim nations via
appropriate international channels.
A list of web site addresses
of Denmark embassies around the world was provided to each of the attendants who
also recommended the need to boycott Danish products.
Muslims should not keep silent
even if Arab leaders continue to pretend nothing has happened, said Israa Magdi,
from Egypt. He called upon the Vatican to issue an official apology to the
Muslim nations based on respect for all religions.
'Even if
the Danish government or the newspaper apologised, it will not lessen the harm
done by them,' said Nawarah Al Maghribiya, a 20-year-old from Morocco.
'If
Muslims keep silent, it means that they are weak and that would only open the
doors for others to abuse our religion,' she argued.
She, however, called upon
Muslims to refrain from responding violently in keeping with the teachings of
the prophet.
'But
even if the government of Denmark apologises, Muslims should continue to boycott
their products. This will be a lesson for all, not to dare abuse Islam,'
she opined. Mohammed Shafiq Alvi, a Pakistani expatriate, called for diplomatic
and economic sanctions on Denmark. 'If we take this
blasphemous act lightly, such people will continue to offend our religious
sentiments,' he added.
Apology or
plain regret?
An anonymous post on
islamineurope.blogspot.com had this to say about the apology posted by the
newspaper:
Watch out for your translation
of the word "apologised"!! In Danish it is
"beklaget" which means to
"regret" or "be sorry for" but it is not the
same as "undskyld": "I am
sorry or I apologise" or "I beg your pardon"
"Apologise" would mean to admit wrongdoing and withdrawing. That is not
what Mr Juste (newspaper editor) is doing and he has at all times refrained from
doing so. It is the reaction he is sorry about, not that they published the
drawings.
The correct sentence would be
something like: "It was not our intention to offend
anyone's beliefs. That it has happened anyway was therefore unintentional. We
have regretted that many times during these last months..."
As Western nationals here
see it
WESTERN nationals based in the
UAE also spoke against the cartoons, with some terming the act unwise,
disrespectful, and something that characterised lack of understanding of Islam
on the part of some Western nations.
"I think
the Danish people were unwise, and lacking in wisdom. They probably didn't
realise it would have provoked the reaction it did. But, the newspaper should
have considered the sensitivity of the subject, and taken greater care,"
Ken Jackson, Educational Consultant, Magrudy's Educational Resource Centre,
said.
"I think
it's wrong to be disrespectful of anyone's religion. I believe we should all be
sensitive to people's feelings," opined Donal Kilalea, Partner,
Promoseven.
Martin Seward-Case, Senior
Construction Professional and a homeowner in Dubai, said:
"After fifteen years of exposure to the Middle East, I think the reaction that's
happened is understandable. A public apology is in order. I think it typifies
the lack of understanding about other cultures in the West, particularly about
Islam and the seriousness Muslims attach to their faith. It should never have
happened."
