February 10 – February 16 2006

Do as He would do

After listening to the radio interview with Mail & Guardian editor Ferial Haffajee, I understand completely where she is coming from.

However, to avert the kind of outrage that the printing of the cartoon has sparked, it would have been better to omit it. To do so would not have detracted from the article (”Anger as papers reprint cartoons of Muhammad”, February 3) in the least.

My message to my Muslim brethren all over the world is: while I share your anger at those who printed these cartoons to mock the Prophet, our reaction is not in keeping with our claim to love and be devoted to him.

As Muslims we follow a sunnah (his way of life) and this is the ultimate declaration of our love for him. Knowledge of Islamic history would teach us that the Prophet would never repay evil with evil.

The incident in Taif is famous, where the Prophet was stoned yet did not plead for the destruction of his persecutors. Rather he prayed for their guidance.

When God sent angels to crush the persecutors with the two mountains that surrounded their valley, the Prophet prayed for their guidance instead.

Our response at this time of madness, which is closer to the Prophet’s example, should be to educate people on the sublime qualities of the Prophet — who in his entire life never hit a woman, child or servant, and never showed anger except in the way of God. — Imraan Bhamjee

Do we allow people to draw caricatures that insult black or white people, or members of other races? Europe and the media may find this an issue of freedom of speech. Do people have the right to print child pornography? How can Europeans insult my beliefs and customs and think they have a right to do so? What happened to respect?

I have never condoned violence. But does the West expect that when a caged animal is poked it will not fight back?

We already have so many divisions, so much violence, war and death. Well done Europe, for creating one more thing for us to fight about!

Let’s all exercise our freedom of speech; let’s all have our say and be intolerant of other people’s cultures and beliefs. And let’s all fight until we destroy the Earth. — Moe S

I am deeply distressed that a fellow Muslim could allow the publication of cartoons depicting our beloved Prophet as a terrorist, and when questioned about it say South Africa is a free country where there is freedom of expression. Yes, we have freedom of expression, but we also have sanctity of religion, which means other people’s religious beliefs have to be respected. — Rio Khan

Everyone is focusing on the constitutional right of freedom of expression, while seeming to ignore the constitutional rights in respect of religion.

In Islam the imaging of the Prophet is forbidden. The cartoon reproduced in the M&G is derogatory and demeaning. I demand a retraction and public apology for the insult inflicted on Muslims worldwide. — Faldela de Vries, Manenberg

I can understand the anger of the Muslim world when their prophet is made the subject of a cartoon. As a Christian, I have felt anger when Christ was depicted as an armed revolutionary, and his name used as a careless swear word in conversation.

But I do not have the impulse to start a riot or burn down the local cinema. This must be because the ethos of Jesus himself does not allow violence as a reaction in his defence. — Hugh G Wetmore, Pietermaritzburg

I bet very few of the Muslims who are up in arms about the cartoons have seen them. According to them, it does not matter what they say, as just drawing pictures of Muhammad is blasphemous and hurts their sensitivities.

The punishment for blasphemy is death in Islamic sharia, and they demand punishment for the blasphemers and apologies from their superiors.

Yet the Qur’an vilifies Christianity and Judaism and calls these and all other religions false and corrupted. These verses are read on the airwaves and printed in newspapers throughout the world, yet no Muslim is ever punished for this or apologises for it.

Qur’anic verses vilifying other religions include:

• All Gods except Allah are created, dead and false, and they all lead to hell (16:20-21, 25:17-19, 29:41-42,37:22-25).
• Jesus was a Muslim and a slave/servant of Allah, and not his son (3:52, 4:171-172,4:172, 5:115-117, 5:111-112).
• The crucifixion of Jesus is a lie (4:157).
• The doctrine of the Trinity is infidelity; a painful doom awaits disbelievers who believe in it (5:73).
• Christians corrupted the true message (5:14, 15).
• Jews and Christians are evil-doers, some of whom were converted into apes and swine for their disbelief (5:59-60).
• Jews say Ezra is the son of God and Christians say Jesus is son of God; they are liars and perverts. May Allah destroy them (9:30).
• Mohammed was sent by Allah as a gift to Christians to correct their corruption and misunderstanding of the true religion, Islam (57:28,4:47).

Why don’t Muslims care about other people’s religious sensitivities? — Ayesha Ahmed

The violence over the cartoons is counterproductive. The decisions to publish and republish the cartoons were no doubt foolish, but threats and embassy burnings are alienating a sympathetic world.

The rampant hypocrisy is especially disheartening. Worldwide, the Islamic media routinely publish anti-Jewish slander to a warm reception. The silent approval of the Iranian president’s Holocaust denial was deafening.

It is striking that demonstrators have no qualms about defaming one religious symbol, the Danish cross or a Maronite church, to protest against the defaming of another. — Adam Glantz

I feel extremely sad that the enemies of Islam and of the Muslim Ummah have succeeded in using our Muslim sister, Ferial Haffajee, as their vehicle to convey their message of hatred and contempt for the Islamic world and our beloved Prophet.

To call publication of the cartoon ”freedom of speech” baffles me. It was a despicable slander that should be condemned by everyone, including yourselves. If republishing the cartoon was a way of upping your newspaper sales, it was a very cheap ploy.

I commend those who are taking the necessary measures to protest against your actions. We are entitled to freedom of speech, but this does not include the deliberate provocation of Muslims.

We have lived side by side in peace and harmony in South Africa, tolerating each other’s religions and diverse cultures. Now you are destroying that peaceful coexistence. — Nadima Mahomed, Proud to be Muslim

It is astounding that a premier publication like yours should irresponsibly reprint a cartoon that has justifiably enraged Muslims the world over. The M&G is complicit in perpetuating the blasphemy.

I find it hard to accept that this happened merely in the course of reportage, since your standards surpass such irresponsibility.

As a Muslim I am enraged at the sight of the cartoon, and your paper should apologise to Muslims for publishing it. — Aslam Ismail, Briardene

While I sympathise with the Muslim community, I must remind them of the vicious anti-Semitic programmes on Arab TV that demonise Jews. Maybe now you will understand how Jews feel. — Gill Katz, Johannesburg

I cannot believe the M&G published a cartoon depicting the Holy Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist. You have lost the support of the Muslim community. — Mohamed Ubaid Raza Hameedi

God needs no defence

Muhammad would probably have laughed at the humour that was attempted by the cartoonist and would probably have granted the cartoonist the right to freedom of speech. Bigots gag newspapers because they doubt the truth of their own religion and its ability to stand its ground. In African tradition, we believe that truth needs no defence.

By using violence and gagging newspapers, the Muslim community, at least those involved in this gagging, have created conflict and attempted to defend the truth of their belief.

I believe in the right of individuals to believe what they want to believe, but I am completely against those who attempt to force others to believe in their truth.

God needs no defence; there is no conflict in God because His is the truth. And belief is a private matter. It is an idea that only one person can hold. — Biki Pitso

Even CNN did not show those cartoons, and South African newspapers like the Sunday Times decided not to print them even before the court interdict.

These media do not have Muslim editors, but weighed the situation and showed respect.

Editor Ferial Haffajee has the damned cheek to say: ”I believe we live in a liberal democracy with an advanced constitution and one which places freedom of expression as a key right.” She bases her decision on the Constitution rather than on the teaching of the Qur’an and sharia! Since she behaves like the other newspaper editors who printed these cartoons, maybe she should receive the same treatment. I’m talking about editors who were fired in France and Germany. — Lailah

With this matter being so terribly explosive over the past week in several countries, how could Haffajee not have foreseen a similar reaction in South Africa?

When local Muslims see on television what is happening elsewhere, their feelings of solidarity run high.

The issue goes beyond matters of freedom of speech and expression. It comes against the background of massive Islamophobia, led by the United States, and stereotype-driven attacks on Palestinians, Muslims and Arabs in the streets, schools and all over, by the US and its European allies since 9/11.

It must also be seen in the context of the growing right-wing and outright fascist tendencies in Denmark, and other Scandinavian and European countries, of which the cartoons are a manifestation. They arise out of an environment of racist vitriol.

To redeem itself, the US came out in support of those opposed to the cartoons and described them as blasphemous late last week.

Then your paper published one of the cartoons! If you wanted to carry it as information, you should also have carried an editorial dealing with the balance between freedom of expression and the calculated intent of such cartoons: to denigrate Islam and Muslims. The M&G would then have been the first paper to place this matter in its proper perspective.

Freedom of Expression Institute director Jane Duncan’s statement that the court order violates freedom of expression is highly simplistic. The cartoons have to be seen as part of an imperialist and racist move against Islam and Muslims because of their rightful defensive militancy. — Ebrahim Harvey, Cape Town

Haffajee did the right thing. It was an awkward decision to make, but once the story became news, you had no choice. I think you chose the least offensive cartoon, and used it discreetly. Other newspapers adopting the high ground for not publishing are just cowards.

I am very angry and sorry Haffajee and her family have been threatened. We live in very volatile times, but the independent press is our only hope of maintaining some kind of sanity. — Hilary Venables, Cape Town

If the rioting mobs were capable of calm reflection instead of hysteria they would understand how preposterous it is to believe that God and His great servants — Christ, the Buddha, Muhammad and other masters down the ages — need defending against mere cartoonists. If you are secure in your version of the truth, satirical attacks can never be more than a passing irritant.

Some Muslim leaders and their inflammable followers still seem centuries behind in terms of an ability to handle hostile opinion with dignity and forbearance. — Nigel Bell, Grahamstown

Censorship applies not only to material that depicts nudity, violence and bad language, but includes any material that is harmful to society in general. These cartoons are hurtful to Muslims and clearly qualify as material that must be censored. — Riazal H Khan

It was apparently okay for the Muslim Taliban to blow up the two ancient Buddhas — holy symbols of the Buddhist religion — in an unprovoked attack that injured Buddhists and robbed the world of ancient art. Now they are shocked about someone making a mockery of their religious symbols.

Also, they apparently object to the cartoons’ portrayal of Islam as a violent religion. How do they express this? In violent protests! — Jay Kaye, Cape Town