Freedom of expression
Wednesday, 26 September 2007
FREEDOM of expression is a fundamental right in a free and democratic society. But where do we draw the line? Suppose I am traveling in a plane and the person sitting next to me has been behaving in a strange way and honestly I hate this kind of awkward behaviour. Do I bluntly tell him I hate him for his way of behaving? Or very politely I request him to consider my presence next to him.
We are all human beings and sometime we do not like a certain person or a group of persons. Do we approach them and tell them that we hate them? A racist or an ethnic remark or joke is considered a criminal act in all civilised societies.
An innocent child has the full right of real freedom of expression. Society can accept honest remarks from an innocent child if he says that he did not like a certain individual. This is acceptable from a child because he or she has not developed a sense of sensitivity and does not mean to hurt people.
Bangladesh is a Muslim majority nation and this is one of the holiest months in the Islamic calendar. At a time like this I do not understand why a religiously offensive cartoon was chosen for publication in a national daily to make fun of the religious sentiments of world's 1.5 billion Muslims.
Not all Muslims would care about what some deranged and bigot cartoonists would print about their religion. But there are some very emotional people in all races and religions who are very reactionary when it comes to their religious and ethnic sensitivity. Let us learn from all the previous examples of the consequences of such religious and ethnic satirists and use our head and wisdom next time we think about earning fame at the expense of hurting the sentiments of people of any race, ethnicity or religion.
M Rafique Uddin
[email protected]
We are all human beings and sometime we do not like a certain person or a group of persons. Do we approach them and tell them that we hate them? A racist or an ethnic remark or joke is considered a criminal act in all civilised societies.
An innocent child has the full right of real freedom of expression. Society can accept honest remarks from an innocent child if he says that he did not like a certain individual. This is acceptable from a child because he or she has not developed a sense of sensitivity and does not mean to hurt people.
Bangladesh is a Muslim majority nation and this is one of the holiest months in the Islamic calendar. At a time like this I do not understand why a religiously offensive cartoon was chosen for publication in a national daily to make fun of the religious sentiments of world's 1.5 billion Muslims.
Not all Muslims would care about what some deranged and bigot cartoonists would print about their religion. But there are some very emotional people in all races and religions who are very reactionary when it comes to their religious and ethnic sensitivity. Let us learn from all the previous examples of the consequences of such religious and ethnic satirists and use our head and wisdom next time we think about earning fame at the expense of hurting the sentiments of people of any race, ethnicity or religion.
M Rafique Uddin
[email protected]