I take this from a letter a reader in Denmark sent Juan Cole, which seems to parallel the story as I have been piecing it together. Two important points stand out. Basically, what happened was a couple of radical imams went on a "tour" of the Middle East last autumn with the original cartoons as well as a series of considerably more offensive ones, which led to the whipping up of hysteria in the Middle East, largely on the false notion that some of the cartoons included things like Mohammed sodomizing someone and the like. Also, the cartoons
were published in a climate of anti-immigrant and anti-Islam sentiment that has existed and been building in Denmark over the past several years, although Jyllens-Posten has not been involved in this campaign.
Anyway, here are some of the reader's comments:
Your point that the Saudi gov't or parts of it have not been responsible for the inflammation is correct. However, the source you draw on is ignorant or ignoring the local political and social situation in Denmark. That and the activity of a few Imams here who represent a very small percentage of the Muslim population of 180,000 are essential to understanding what the Danes are now experiencing as practically a 911 event.
The Venstre party of Mr. Fogh-Rasmussen is about as far right as you can get in Danish politics. The only party to the right of them represented in the Folketing is the Danske Folkeparti, run by Pia Kjærsgaard. The DF has quite a few seats and although not in the gov't it's support is absolutely necessary for Fogh's gov't. The DF is a right-wing populist party, which split off from the even more right Fremskridts (Progress) party some 10-15 years. Pia is a damn talented politician, sort of a Maggie Thatcher type. She and her party have been hammering away in particular using (and increasing) the tensions between the "Danes", the "new-Danes" and "second-generation immigrants" (these are of course all code words -- if I refer to myself as a "new-Dane" or my sin as a "second-generation", people find it funny -- has something to do with the fact that I don't have brownish or dark skin, I guess... ).
The Jyllandsposten is a right-wing paper -- but it's the two tabloids, BT and Ekstra Bladet, who along with the help of Pia K's DF who been stoking the fires of racial/ethnic tension. There among the Danes a perceived anxiety and mistrust because of murders, "honor" murders, general criminality, gang rapes, arranged marriages, female circumcision, sending youngsters to madrasses and so on. The fact is, of course is that entire Muslim community, to a certain degree, is getting tarred with the same brush because of a few.
So indeed, the cartoons were published and could easily have been interpreted by Denmark's minority Muslim population as racist, given this climate, even if Jyllens-Posten's decision was not meant in this way. Given the climate, however, it is not surprising that many took the cartoons to be racist. However, this is not what caused the recent global "uprising." The reader continues.
There are approx. 180,000 Muslims in Denmark. A very small number, from congregations composing 2-3% have been very visible the past couple of years -- in particular a handful of imams, two of which I should name, Abu Laban and Mohammad Fouad Albarazi have been very visible. What can I say of them? Sort of Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell wannabes, I guess. Anyway they sent delegations to the Middleeast -- and misrepresented the character of the drawings. Supposedly, Mohammed was shown in sexual encounters of some sort, and was shown with a pigs nose, among other things. Also, people in the M.E. were told that the Koran was being burned. (To be fair, there was some talk of it when the Danebrog (the Danish flag) was burned -- but nothing came of it.
The Danebrog differs from most flags in that it was not designed -- it fell down from heaven in Estland in 1219!
Also, to be fair, the Imams I mention don't know Danish, some of this group, not even English. On the other hand, this is also a source of irritation and tension -- how are they supposed to guide people on how to live as good Muslims in Denmark when they know little of our culture here?
Denmark should consider trying these imams for a criminal offense if they are citizens. And if they arae not citizens, they should be deported. This "tour" seems to be in-line with some of the things that have been occuring in Britain, with radical imams preaching in favor of terrorism and in favor of subverting British society. However, there are important non-radical Muslim voices who have unfortunately been drowned out:
One of the parliament members here, Nasar Kharder, has made quite a stink about Abu Laban saying one thing to the Danish media and the complete opposite to Arab media. A concrete case is that he thought the boycott wrong (to the Danish media) but to the Arab press, that it was good and that he was very happy about it . . .
Nasar Kharder is from the "Radikal Venstre" (Venstre means "Left", but it is usually translated as "Liberal"). The RV party is one that pretty much defines the center in Danish politics and has been in many governments over the years -- both to the right and to the left of center. They are not in the government at the moment, which for the past 5 years has been Konservativ / Venstre (with the support of the DF, as I mentioned before. The RV has made a point of attracting "people of other ethnic background" (code for people with Arab/Muslim/ origins into their party work -- both on the national as well as the local level.
Nasar Kharder was born in Damascus of Palestinian parents. The tabloids are making a big deal over threats being made against him and the fact that he is (again) under police protection. He's long made a lot of effort to activate the moderate Muslims in Denmark. '
If there is a good guy in this story, it strikes me that Kharder is the one. I think it is incumbent upon us to provide any support we can to voices such as his who all to easily get drowned out when issue polarizes like this one.