http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2003/sep/06/september11.iraq
Like majority of Muslims around the world I am not concerned that some nincompoops in the western world, Danes to be precise, think they are exponents of ‘freedom of expression’ when they go around with their cultural sadism publishing sketches of a man they choose to call the Prophet of Islam, not knowing most Muslims like me care two hoots about what they call it because Islam and its adherents have not, do not, and will never, depict any religious figure, let alone any Prophet, Jesus Christ included, or God.

However I am very much concerned about two things related to this episode. One, the foolish propensity of some Muslims, not a very small number though, to protest in full public glare, often times violently, when they know very well the sketches are not that of the Holy Prophet by any stretch of imagination. By their full glare public protests they only give publicity to those who drew and published them, because, for all anyone might care, the nincompoops might not have been known, in erstwhile sense, to their own family members prior to the protests.

But, I view the actions of the Danes as an unsurprising attempt at assault on Faith by a civilization which pretends to be comfortable with its own faith when all they do is use it as a mere backdrop which can be changed as and when they deem it necessary or even discard it temporarily if it does not match the passing show they like to call the Times.

One cannot fail to discern a tinge of jealousy in the act either. That this should have happened in a country of that portion of humanity which cannot boast of having given birth to any faith whatsoever known to mankind, is another unsurprising factor.

Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Zoroastrianism; name any faith, not one was founded in the West, or in the land of the nincompoops who drew and published those sketches.

The other thing about this pains me no end. In that same land where those nincompoops reside you can be booked or taken to task if you so much as invoke your right to freedom of expression by speaking out in support of Hitler, or deny the Holocaust, or perhaps even if you simply attend a party dressed as Hitler just for the heck of it. Now, I wish to categorically state, I am no supporter of Hitler, nor do I deny the Holocaust, or wish to demean the memories of all those who died under the Nazi rule in Europe, especially the millions of Jews.

Only the other day, in Canberra, Australia, a guy was immediately arrested when local Jews complained to the police about his Hitler dress at a party. The guy was only using it as a jest; he said to show how much he held the Nazi leader in contempt. If those who drew and published those sketches are not wrong, then how come those who talk in praise of Hitler or deny the Holocaust are?

I think they are both wrong. The sooner those who hail from places which did not see births of Faiths realize this, the better. Otherwise, the so-called rift between Muslims and Christians or those who use Christian names might only grow unnecessarily.

Khwaja massoud