We Are All Danes Now. Is Dutch Cartoonist Next?

Today almost all the European newspapers are reporting on the Danish cartoon case. The first and best source still remains The Brussels Journal: you will find no copy/paste of international press agency articles but original insights:

"What most papers do not mention is that the whole affair escalated after a group of radical Danish Muslims and imams visited the Arab countries early in January with the deliberate intent to provoke a consumer boycott of Denmark. These people wanted to punish the Danish government for its refusal to introduce press censorship. They even added three false cartoons to the twelve drawings of Muhammad that the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published last September."

All across the Western world papers have begun to show the Danish cartoons.

Norway

Three Norwegian papers had already published the cartoons: Magazinet, Aftenposten and Dagbladet. While the Norwegian government was quick to apologize, even before apologies were demanded, this has not prevented Muslims from boycotting Norwegian products. Magazinet journalist Vebjørn Selbekk has already received a lot of death threats. Mr Selbekk and his family are now under police protection. Read the whole article here.

France

The French newspaper France-Soir, which republished all twelve cartoons today, wrote on its front page today: “Oui, on a le droit de caricaturiser Dieu” ( "Yes, we have the right to caricature God." )

Germany

The German paper Die Welt has also published one of the cartoons.
The Berliner Zeitung also reprinted two cartoons as part of its coverage of the controversy.

Italy

Italy’s Corriere della Serra and La Stampa also published some or all of the cartoons.

Spain

Also Spain’s Catalan daily El Periodico published some or all of them. (source: The Times UK)

Belgium

In Belgium the newspaper De Standaard published one, as did De Morgen.


Is Dutch Cartoonist Next ?

Next month a book will be out in the Netherlands which contains a cartoon by Gregorius Nekschot (a pseudonym) of the prophet “in a compromising pose” with his child-wife Aisha. The Dutch cartoonist wants to stay anonymous and has already made other cartoons related to religion.


Tony Blair: close, but no cigar

Fortunately, the House of Commons defeated a bill proposed by Tony Blair’s government to prohibit the right to ridicule religion. Apparently it was a very close call. Comic Rowan Atkinson (a.k.a. Mr Bean or Blackadder) was among the first to welcome the Government's defeat on its Bill today. He previously had launched a comedians' campaign against the Bill.


We are all Danes now

We already said that "we are all Jews now". Now we can add: we are all Danes now.