Freedom of Expression versus protection of minorities

In any society, Freedom of Expression is a fundament on which a democratic system is built. It gives the little man, a possibility to raise a voice against tyranny and state oppression, demand the rights and not to be afraid of the power elite. But as it is with every concept, Freedom of Expression can also be used to insult, oppress and create conflicts between various groups. Furthermore, it is sometimes misused to push the unfair opinions of the majority over minorities. And unfortunately, this is exactly, what is happening in Denmark for the last few decades. Seen through today’s practices,the noble concept of Freedom of Expression, , is tantamount to, freedom for the journalists, editors and other powerful racist and Islamophobic groups to ridicule, ethnic minorities, their cultures and their faiths.

Sadly enough, Denmark is also one of the very few countries in the Western World where Freedom of Expression takes precedence over human rights of ethnic minorities. This priority is not only liberally taken advantage of, by the Danish media - often intentionally - but has become an accepted norm in the wider society. The judicial system, the politicians and the intellectuals guard this man made principle with great vigour. The ensuing result is a stream of racist statements from politicians of established parties, anti -Islam rhetoric on web sites, public debates degrading minorities, accusing media discussions and outright blasphemic utterances on daily basis.

The latest example of this sad situation is that the largest newspaper in Denmark- Jyllands Posten - commissioned the Danish cartoonists to draw cartoons of Prophet Mohammed. 12 very derogatory and insulting cartoons, depicting the Prophet as a terrorist and women exploiter were published in the newspaper on 30th September 2005. This uncalled for provocation has poisoned the atmosphere and created a conflict between Denmark and the Islamic World and has even reached the United Nations.

It is frustrating to hear and read the arguments being put forward by the newspaper and its allies. The newspaper in a TV interview admitted that their provocation was meant to help the progressive Muslims against the more militant ones. This is a funny argument, because if J.Posten really wanted to help the so-called moderate Muslims, then the last thing they should have done is to insult the religion of Islam and its Prophet. There is not even a little understanding of, how Muslim communities are hurt.

Since in our media monitoring work for the last many years, we have never come across degrading treatment of any other religion, we wish to ask the Danish media in general and newspaper Jyllands Posten in particular; Why pick on Islam? We know that the Danish or any European media would not dare to make fun of sensitive issues in other religions. Can one imagine, J.Posten asking Danish cartoonists to draw derogatory cartoons of Pope, Dalai Lama, Hindu deities or make fun of the Holocaust horrors?

Freedom of Expression is and should be very important to all of us. It must be protected but it has never been unlimited. It is regulated by the law and most important of all, by the moral responsibility of the majority society that must protect the minorities from attacks - physical, verbal, or written. All we are asking is that the politicians must take a stand against the misuse of Freedom of Expression and refrain from supporting the injustices.

Bashy Quraishy
Chief Editor - Media Watch. Copenhagen. Denmark
www.bashy.dk