Mohammed Affair Reveals 'Huge Gap' Between America and Europe
By Sylvie Kauffman
January 20, 2006
Original
Article (French)
One of the Danish Cartoons of the Prophet
Mohammad Which Have Sparked so Much Turmoil
Around the World. (above).
[LATEST PHOTOS: Cartoons Spark Turmoil].
A Parody of the Above Cartoon of Mohammad
From
an Arabic Newspaper. [Alquds Arabi, U.K.](below).
The clash of civilizations? It is certainly taking place, but who is involved? Three
weeks after the outbreak of the troubles that transformed the controversy of
the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad into a spiral of violence across
the globe, the debate has gone beyond the simple theory of a clash between
Islam and the West. In displaying the progression of values in Europe and the
United States, it exposes two other fractures: one in the midst of Western
society and the other between the Muslims of Europe and those of the East,
whether moderate or extremist.
Theo van Gogh
--------------------------------
Like the
debate on the Muslim headscarf in French schools two years ago and the murder
of filmmaker Theo Van Gogh in the Netherlands in November 2004, the cartoons of
the Prophet Muhammad go directly to the heart of questions raised by the
demographic transformations which Europe has experienced over the last twenty
years. Muslims are now a crucial element of our societies: 15 million Muslims
now live in the European Union. France alone is home to nearly five million.
But since September 11, 2001, the rules of this cohabitation face new
constraints.
The
United States has not digested this evolution. From the start, the reactions of
governments and Western media revealed a profound gap between Continental
Europe and the United States, which later actions have not papered over. Motivated
by its neoconservative convictions, the Bush Administration spontaneously and
clearly expressed its religious solidarity with Muslims, offended by the
caricatures and its regret at their publication in Europe. This reaction must be
considered startling, given that the First Amendment permits one to say and write
more or less anything one wants - even more so than in Europe. But the
expression of solidarity comes from a country where religious expression is
increasingly a basic element of public discourse, and where the status of the
Fourth Estate has been seriously eroded over the last five years.
'A Dialog Between Civilizations: Be Civilized By Giving
Me a $100 Million Loan.' [Alittihad, Palestine]. (above).
Danish Prime Minister: 'We're Not Going to Apologize.'
Danish Cow: 'You Stupid Ox''
[Ad Dustour, Jordan] (below).
'Double-Faced, Double-Standard West: Anti-Semitism
is a Crime Punished by Law; Anti-Islamic Cartoons
and Articles are Freedom of Expression.'
[Ad Dustour, Jordan](above).
Western Free Expression A Mask For
Freedom to Hate.' [Ad Dustour, Jordan]. (below).
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London,
where religion is less in decline than in France, reacted in the same way.
Neither the British press nor the authorities wished to jeopardize the fragile
truce which has reigned among its different communities since the bombings of
July 2005. It was only several days later that Condoleezza Rice (who is not a neoconservative),
who, noticing the political exploitation of the scandal on the part Damascus
and Tehran, began to denounce the violent reaction in the streets of several
countries, instead of the publication of the caricatures. But from Bill Clinton
to The Washington Post, the American establishment, including the Democrats,
continued to condemn the publishing of the Danish cartoons.
In
Continental Europe, several newspapers, from the shores of the Atlantic to the
Ukraine, published some or all of the Danish cartoons; governments were clearly
more attuned to the defense of freedom of the press. Influenced by its Voltairean culture and its ancient tradition of freedom of
anti-clerical criticism, France took up the challenge. And despite Danish Prime
Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s bitter assessment of
foot dragging by his counterparts in offering a public expression of
solidarity, on February 16th he received the explicit support of European
Commission President José Manuel Barroso, who
vigorously defended European "values" in an interview with the International
Herald Tribune: We cannot accept fear in our society, he said.
RESPECT
FOR A GOVERNMENT OF LAWS
To the
West, the cartoon scandal raised the question of a government of laws as a
democratic value. Entangled in the effort to strike a balance between freedom
and responsibility, the public authorities, both national and international,
preferred to forget that laws in a democracy are meant to be enforced.
Washington condemned the publication of the cartoons – which were certainly
offensive – but perfectly legal in the country where they were published. But
it didn't say a word about the flagrant violation of international law
constituted by the attacks on diplomatic delegations and the lack of
protection. Anxious to cool things off, Javier Solana, High Representative of
the Common Foreign and Security Policy of the European Union, departed on a
tour of the Arab world and commented favorably on a draft amendment by the 57-member
Organization of Islamic Conferences to be presented to the United Nations,
making "defamation of religions and prophets incompatible with the right to
freedom of expression". But just how many countries respect "the right to
freedom of expression?" And how many journalists are in jail? What is the
significance of existing law within the Western democracies represented in the
United Nations?
On
another front, the debate has excavated a trench between moderate and
fundamentalist Muslims and between European and Eastern Muslims. Researcher
Olivier Roy underscores that major Muslim organizations in Europe have
distanced themselves from the tempest unleashed by the cartoons:
It is in
the disconnect between Islam in Europe and crises in the Middle East, where the
key to the management of inevitable tensions should be sought, he wrote in Le
Monde on February 9th. It is necessary to "treat the Muslims of Europe like
citizens, as we do with Christians and Jews, even if it is necessary to
regularly issue a reminder on the principles of freedom of expression and
secularism."
'European Press Hypocrisy.' [Bendib.com].
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Contrary
to the impression created by the images of radical Islamists demanding the
death of the cartoonists during a demonstration in London, Islam in Europe is
essentially moderate. In Germany, where most Muslims are Turks, in Spain, in
France and in Great Britain, calls for calm have multiplied. The effort of
several European Muslim organizations to bring the matter before a court of law
represents the desire to obey the law in the societies in which they live and
to make use of their lawful institutions. Those who are organizing the violent
protests show that their complaint is not based in respect: what they demand is
to impose Muslim rules (Muhammad may not be drawn) on secular societies. It is
up to the Europeans to encourage Western Muslims and to give them the chance to
integrate themselves fully into European society. By its excess and its violence,
the reaction to the cartoons of Muhammad have at least
helped to illuminate the landscape.
VIDEO FROM QATAR: FRIDAY SERMON ON MOHAMMAD CARTOONS
Qatar TV, Qatar: Friday Sermon With Sheik Yousef Al-Qaradhawi on Muhammad Caricatures, Feb. 3, 2006, 00:05:24 MEMRI
"The governments must be pressured to demand that the U.N. adopt a clear resolution or law that categorically prohibits affronts to prophets – to the prophets of the Lord and His messengers, to His holy books, and the religious holy places."
Qatari Sheik Yousef Al-Qaradhawi