Pakistani, Danish diplomatic ties collapse over cartoons

[bemildred]

Pakistan's ambassador to Denmark has been called back to Islamabad "for consultations" amid a continuing row over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, the foreign office said on Friday.

The move comes shortly after officials said that Denmark, where the drawings were first published in September, had temporarily closed its embassy in Islamabad.

"Pakistan's ambassador in Copenhagen, Mr Javed A Qureshi, has been called to Islamabad for consultations over the cartoon controversy," foreign ministry spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said.

Government sources said the decision was made during a meeting between top Pakistani foreign ministry officials and the Danish ambassador in Islamabad, Bent Wigotski, at the ministry on Friday.

Mail & Guardian

[Cassandra]

1. The neocons certainly are doing their part...

to bring about the collapse of civilization.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. Apparently at the beginning of the controversy

Muslims living in Denmark approached the Danish government about the matter, and nothing was done. I realize that many don't understand the controversy; I would again state that what is important is seeing what organizations and governments are gaining something by keeping this controversy alive.

Check out the latest op-ed piece in the NY Times about the controversy if you are interested:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/17/opinion/17Wright.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

[Cassandra]

3. Daniel Pipes apparently had a hand...

in pushing not just the cartoons in the Danish paper but others that were taken from racist web sites.

[Igel]

5. The Pipe interview has now

become active involvement.

I haven't seen any evidence that he was behind the cartoons. He just gave an interview to the one of "a certain persuasion" that later solicited the cartoons in response to a children's book writer's complaints.

[megatherium]

9. What is the Danish government supposed to do?

Are the Danes prepared to have government censorship of their news media? The Danish government made it clear that they do not have the right to prevent such cartoons from being published, nor are they going to apologize for something they have no control over. Muslims do not have the right to call criticism of their religion hate speech, nor do they have the right to force non-Muslim Danes to follow their religious taboo against portrayals of their Prophet.

It may be that the publishers of the cartoons were trying to instigate trouble, or at least a national debate. (They claim they were trying to establish that a minority group could not stifle freedom of expression.) It is also true that some Islamists have been propogating the controversy for their own purposes, going so far as to circulate extremely repulsive cartoons along with the ones the Danes actually published. As a freedom of speech absolutist, I think it's a really bad idea to allow a majority or a minority to tell a newspaper to not publish offensive material. Freedom of speech doesn't mean a hell of a lot if only inoffensive speech is protected. We do not have blasphemy laws in the West (or at least ones that are enforced) -- for a reason.

[DemExpat]

10. There was nothing to be done except to point the way to the courts

for grievances.

No state imposed respect of religious or ideological beliefs please or the slippery slope will be the result.

I believe that most European governments are very aware of this and reject any proposition to further curtail categories of offensive speech.



DemEx

[NoPasaran]

4. I have to say that is the most ridiculous headline I have ever read

Nothing more to be seen on this planet. One to beam up.

[KDLarsen]

8. Please!

Won't someone think of the ties?!

[Jim Sagle]

6. An appropriate song:

Batman

Batman!
Dada dada
Batman!
Dada dada
Batman!
Dada dada
Batman!
Dada dada
Batman!
Dada dada
Dada dada
Batman!
Dada dada
Dada dada
Batman!

[Thorandmjolnir]

7. Regarding the approach in the beginning.

The people approaching the danish government wanted the government to take punitive action against the paper. The Danish Prime minister said that under the law and the Danish Constitution, he could do no such thing (which is true).

Later, that was used as a excuse, saying that the government refused to meet and hear the complaint.

Danish law does contain what is called the "Racism paragraph", in which it is a crime to intentionally and willfully make disparaging comments about a group of people. However, when it comes to the press and the context of the statements, there is great leeway.

Also the European Court of Human Rights have held that the Press has greater freedom than ordinary citizens.

[fujiyama]

11. Fuck Pakistan

and Saudi Arabia. Any country that will actully recall an ambassador over this is fucking stupid beyond belief. These two countries are conveniently at the heart of the Wahhabi terrorist movement and both are "allies" in Bush's "war on terror".