Readers' corner
Red lines
Sir-- There are many taboos even in countries that claim to have free speech. Nobody would dare suggest that violence against women was funny or justified, that women were inferior to men, less worthy than men, or more stupid, or that people of different races were inferior, for example.
Bruce Terry
Hobart
Australia
Collective punishment
Sir-- Yesterday I was walking in Zamalek and was amazed to find a notice on a shop door "Danish people are not welcome here". I can understand that the shop owner may have his/her opinions regarding the issue of the cartoons. However, another issue is to collectively punish the Danish people or Danish companies for something which they were not responsible for. The cartoons were published by a Danish newspaper that doesn't necessarily represent the collective opinion of the Danish people.
Sherifa Shafie
Cairo
Egypt
Not so nice
Sir-- The laws and regulations this government has brought in Denmark remind me of the southern states of America before the 1960s and the White Australia Policy in Australia that I grew up with. The racism that is growing here in Scandinavia is worrying, but what has been taking place in Denmark has been frightening. Mr Nice Guy [Danish Prime Minister Andres Rasmussen] in the interview 'No laughing matter' ( Al-Ahram Weekly 9-15 February) is not the man I have seen on TV here in Sweden. According to him, Sweden is too soft on immigrants. We also have a party in Sweden who is jumping on to the racist bandwagon. I had grown to love this country I adopted 25 years ago. Now I am watching it disintegrate before my eyes. It makes me very sad.
Johanna Moren
Karlstad
Sweden
Free to be stupid
Sir-- A lot of people in Europe can understand that the drawings are offensive. The difference is that we know that a democracy must allow people to do stupid things.
Pelle Svensson
Rudsj
Sweden
Pleasing everybody
Sir-- I wish someone would explain to us, non- Muslims, why it is so wrong to publish an image of Mohamed. I can see that it would be wrong for people to do so if they are Muslim, but where is the wrong if a non-Muslim publishes his image? There are so many religions in the world. Can we follow the rules of all religions in such a way that would make everyone happy?
Elise Marchand
Ontario
Canada
Need to offend
Sir-- Each of us censor ourselves daily, but we call it something else: courtesy, respect, good taste. To show these images was needlessly insulting. Yes, I am free to speak, and as a non- Muslim, I am not compelled to follow Islamic proscriptions, but neither do I feel the need to flaunt this fact, least of all in a manner calculated to offend.
Peter Suozzo
New York
USA
Warm people
Sir-- I am an American who had the opportunity to live in Denmark for three years. The Danes are about the warmest and most tolerant of the Western Europeans; far more than the British, German or French. All cultures are tolerant of each other, and generally get along well. I further think it's foolish to protest against the usage of Danish goods such as butter and dairy products. It's foolish and irresponsible because a good majority of the workers for these companies are Danish Muslims. The protest of these products only hurts a large majority of other Muslims. I also think it reckless to hold the Danish people at large responsible for the actions of Jyllands-Posten.
John Rossitter
Louisiana
USA
Difficult to persuade
Sir-- It's very hard for me to try and assure my friends that Islam is a religion of peace when every minute of the news shows another raging mob screaming for the death of the infidel. Until the violence stops and cooler heads prevail, the false reputation of Islam so crudely depicted in the cartoons will continue to be confirmed in Western eyes.
Sara Hossein
California
USA
No joke
Sir-- With all the bombings and terrorism on this planet at this day in age, it should be obvious to anyone not to make matters worse by stupidity and ignorance. While I too have a great sense of humour, I find nothing funny about a cartoon that depicts a holy prophet in the eyes of the Muslim people and many others, with a bomb. Do we really think death and destruction is something to crack jokes about? People are dying in order to prove their faith.
Dana MacCallum
Nelson
Canada
The same
Sir-- It is difficult to understand why these cartoons are causing such a response when cartoons insulting Jews or Christians appear in the Arab press with much frequency, drawing no similar response or protest from the same people protesting now.
Scott DeAngelis
Massachusetts
USA
Blatant disrespect
Sir-- I strongly condemn the insensitive use of cartoons of the revered Prophet Mohamed. Whilst I note people's freedom of expression, I abhor instances were blatant disrespect for others' religious beliefs is ridiculed.
Sharmla Dharamalingam
Johannesburg
South Africa
Starting to question
Sir-- The violent reactions to the publishing of these cartoons may be more damaging than you realise. There are many of us in the West that have long stood in solidarity with Islam but now find ourselves questioning that commitment. It is hard for me to view Muslims as victims in this scenario when an attack of mere words is responded to with horrific violence. There are many reasonable and peaceful responses to this situation.
Alan Roberts
California
USA
One paper
Sir-- Where is the justice in punishing the general Danish population for the actions of one independent newspaper?
Bill Lewis
Massachusetts
USA
You first
Sir-- I was pleasantly surprised by your willingness to offer even mild criticism of Arab reaction to the Danish cartoons in your article 'From Damascus to Kandahar' ( Al-Ahram Weekly 9-15 February). However, in pointing out the hypocrisies of the Western press, you neglected to point out the extraordinarily serious ones in your own. If you would protest against the treatment of Muslims in these cartoons, perhaps you should first eliminate the vitriolic treatment that Jews regularly receive in the cartoons published throughout the Muslim world. Then, at least, your protests might have a greater ring of sincerity and integrity.
Richard Shapiro
California
USA
Can be criticised
Sir-- It is not illegal to criticise Zionism, Israel and Jewish leaders in the US media, 'Criminalising religious slurs' ( Al-Ahram Weekly 9-15 February). One can easily find caricatures of Ariel Sharon, Senator Joseph Lieberman, Henry Kissinger, (and even Moses), by syndicated cartoonists.
Sammi M'barek
California
USA
Small time
Sir-- I am a Norwegian woman who is following this unfortunate crisis. I just want to say that the Norwegian newspaper who published these cartoons is a really small Christian newspaper that does not speak on behalf of the Norwegian population (it has just about 5,000 readers). I believe that the majority of Norwegians believe that freedom of speech is not the same as insulting other religions or other nations.
Anne Hansen
Oslo
Norway
Due to the huge number of letters on the Danish cartoon controversy, Al-Ahram Weekly has been able to publish only a few of them. However, we continue to welcome your contributions and input.
The Editor
Al-Ahram Weekly reserves the right to edit letters submitted to Readers' Corner for brevity and clarity. Readers are advised to limit their letters to a maximum of 300 words.
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/782/letters.htm