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R FREE SPEECH–LOST IN TRANSLATION Volume 67 I 3 FREE S EECH L ST IN TRANSLATI N Chris Berg on Flemming Rose’s ‘controversial’ stand for free speech CHRIS BERG In 2005 Rose was the culture The Jyllands-Posten editorial team Senior Fellow at the Institute of Public Affairs editor of Jyllands-Posten. He were interested in the fact that a commissioned and published the Danish children’s author, Kåre cartoons in his section of the paper. Bluitgen, had only been able to get en years ago in And it was Rose who, more than an illustrator for his book on the life September 2005, the anyone else, bore the brunt of the of Muhammad if the illustrations Danish newspaper backlash—as well as being the most were done anonymously. In the T Jyllands-Posten published prominent defender of the decision to middle of a Danish debate on self- twelve cartoons and sparked what publish. First published in Denmark censorship, this was an opportunity the Danish prime minister described in 2010, his book was written at first for the paper to take a stand: not as the worst crisis in Danish foreign to justify his actions and respond to a stunt, or an experiment, but a policy since the Second World War. critics. It has just been republished by statement of principles. In his book, The Tyranny of the American free market think tank Most strands of Islam are Silence: How One Cartoon Ignited A the Cato Institute, but developed into aniconic: that is, they oppose the Global Debate on the Future of Free a longer discourse about free speech depiction of images of their god Speech, Danish journalist Flemming and censorship. and their Prophet Muhammad. Yet Rose compellingly outlines what The purpose of the cartoons the question facing Jyllands-Posten happened, and what the events was to take a position in favour of was not whether Islam, as practiced meant for the fight for liberty in free free expression, and to editorialise in by Europe’s muslim migrant and unfree countries. against self-censorship in Denmark. communities or the Islamic world, 18 IPA Review | ipa.org.au Pakistani protests in March 2008 on the republication of controversial cartoons by Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard. Image: AAP/Fayyaz Ahmad THE PURPOSE OF was aniconic. Rather it was whether THE CARTOONS WAS portraits. One showed a cartoonist the prohibition on depicting > TO TAKE A POSITION looking over his shoulder as he IN FAVOUR OF FREE Muhammad was to be applied to nervously drew the Prophet—also EXPRESSION, AND TO non-Muslims in a non-Muslim EDITORIALISE AGAINST a comment on the Jyllands-Posten country. Some potential illustrators SELF-CENSORSHIP commission about free speech. All for Bluitgen’s book had contacted IN DENMARK. the cartoons were printed around a Islamic religious and academic comment piece by Rose discussing authorities in Denmark, who had the cartoons’ publication as a given the project an all clear (at of a school child going by the statement against self-censorship least one of those authorities, name of ‘Mohammed’—implicitly and in defence of freedom of speech. Rose notes, took a lead in the mocking Jyllands-Posten. But In 2015 political backlashes are anti-cartoon reaction). the most provocative cartoons almost instantaneous. The cycle The twelve cartoons were directly connected Muhammad of outrage, counter-outrage and published on 30 September with terrorism. One—possibly resolution can be completed within 2005. Not all of them depicted the most iconic—was a picture of 24 hours. Ten years ago—that is, Muhammad. At least two Muhammad’s face with a lit bomb before social media drowned out caricatured Kåre Bluitgen, in his turban. On the bomb was the the public sphere—political suggesting the whole affair was Islamic creed ‘shahadah’. Others outrage took more time to build up. a publicity stunt. Another was cartoonists offered more neutral Some newspaper sellers declined SEPTEMBER 2015 | IPA Review 19 R FREE SPEECH–LOST IN TRANSLATION Volume 67 I 3 Iranian protestors and policeman at the gates of the Danish embassy in Tehran. Image: AAP/Behrouz Mehri CONTINUED IN DENMARK, ROSE In December 2005, they travelled to sell the issue of Jyllands-Posten AND THE CARTOONIST to Cairo armed with a dossier that on the day. A few days after the > KURT WESTERGAARD included the cartoons. publication, a group of Muslim WERE THE SUBJECT The imam’s dossier—all 43 leaders and activists agreed to take OF NUMEROUS pages of it—was probably the political and legal action against the DEATH THREATS AND most inflammatory part of the paper. Two weeks later 3,500 Danish ASSASSINATION PLOTS. entire affair. It included not just Muslims peacefully protested the the cartoons and translations of cartoons’ publication. And there a diplomatic issue with the Danish Jyllands-Posten’s editorials on Islam the reaction stalled. As the Danish government. In October 2005, a and self-censorship, but other scholar Jytte Klausen writes, ‘there diplomatic protest was lodged by the material as well. There were abusive was no groundswell of support for ambassadors of eleven countries, letters which the imams said had the mosque activists and imams who including Turkey, Saudi Arabia, been sent to Muslims in Denmark. led the charge against the newspaper Iran and Indonesia. Their protest There were clippings from other and the government in Denmark.’ was acknowledged by the Danish papers, images completely It was the international events government. But the Prime Minister unrelated to Denmark and that brought the crisis to a head. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, head of Jyllands-Posten, unsubstantiated As part of their political a centre-right coalition, affirmed and inaccurate claims about the campaign against the paper, the the paper’s right to free expression. relationship between Denmark Danish imams had petitioned the Feeling themselves unsupported, the and its Muslim community, and ambassadors of Muslim countries imams decided to directly appeal a host of other material designed in Denmark to raise the cartoons as to Middle Eastern governments. specifically to rile up Muslim 20 IPA Review | ipa.org.au FREE SPEECH–LOST IN TRANSLATION R Protesters display banners at a demonstration supporting freedom of expression, London, March 2006. Image: AAP/Matt Dunham readers. According to the secretly sentiment contained within. The attempts to attack the offices of recorded statement of one of the Danish embassy in Damascus was Jyllands-Posten—a disturbing Danish clerics, the dossier was stormed. The European Union foreshadowing of the devastating intended to ‘create a climate of offices in Gaza were stormed. Riots Charlie Hebdo attack earlier this year. hate against the newspaper, occurred in Iraq, Afghanistan, and The Danish cartoons crisis God willing’. Pakistan. In Nigeria, protestors has, in light of subsequent events, In this, the dossier was a attacked and burned down local taken on a deeper meaning. But in great success. The result of the Christian churches. Some estimates 2005 the political undercurrents fundamentally political decision suggest that globally 200 people lost of clerical aniconism seemed to to create a dossier that exaggerated their lives in the aftermath of the be at the forefront. The Danish and distorted the actions of Jyllands- cartoons’ publication. imams were playing Danish politics Posten was devastating. Throughout In Denmark, Rose and the when they compiled their dossier February 2006—more than four cartoonist Kurt Westergaard were the of grievances. One cleric had been months after the publication of subject of numerous death threats and particularly incensed with Jyllands- the cartoons—protests and riots assassination plots. One particularly Posten for publishing details of a erupted throughout the Muslim close call occurred when a Somali sermon he had given in which he world. The targets of ire were not man invaded Westergaard’s home described women as the devil’s just symbols of Denmark but with an axe and a knife. Westergaard work. He saw the cartoons as an other countries whose newspapers hid in a panic room until Danish opportunity for some payback. either reprinted the cartoons or police shot and wounded the man, Likewise, the governments of were generally presumed to be who was linked to a radical Islamist Saudi Arabia and Iran had their in league with the anti-Muslim group. Other plots disrupted include domestic audience in mind when SEPTEMBER 2015 | IPA Review 21 R XXXXXXXXXX Volume 67 I 3 Journalist Flemming Rose, author and cultural editor of Jyllands Posten, discusses terror issues at the Danish Publicist Club, March 2015. Image: AAP/Mathias Bojesen CONTINUED PERHAPS WHAT their views on the non-political they lodged their Danish protests. THE WORLD SAW IN scandals of the hour, but the Danish The violence emanated primarily > 2005 AND 2006 WAS imams and the eleven Muslim from within Muslim countries AN INTERNATIONAL governments were after more than and not from Muslim migrants CLASH BETWEEN just a side-comment by Prime in Denmark. Local riots always TWO SOCIETIES—THE Minister Rasmussen. They wanted a have local causes. Attacks on VIRTUES OF FREE legal and political response. Christians in Muslim-majority EXPRESSION WERE The principle of a free press countries were as much driven by LOST IN TRANSLATION. not subject to direct controls by local prejudices as anything else. the government of the day is a In some countries—such as India crisis is the relationship between liberal one. Yet this liberal idea is and Pakistan—extremists used the Jyllands-Posten’s decision to publish not internationally unanimous. existence of the cartoons as a way the cartoons and the blame laid by The countries that protested so to destabilise domestic regimes. critics on the Danish government. vigorously against the cartoons do Other protests were sponsored by How does a feature in an not share the ethos of the free press.
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