Muslims across Asia vented their anger yesterday over satirical cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed as a leading politician blamed Western nations for a "huge chasm" between the West and Islam.
The protests over the drawings first published in a Danish newspaper showed no sign of easing, but there was no repeat of the deadly violence that has so far left 13 people dead worldwide in rallies against the cartoons.
In Malaysia, where Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was hosting an international conference on Islam, between 2,000 and 3,000 protesters marched on the Danish embassy chanting "God is great!"
PHOTO: AP
"There is definitely something rotten in the state of Denmark," said Hatta Ramli from the opposition Pan-Malaysia Islamic party.
Abdullah told Muslim leaders and academics that Western nations wanted to control the world's oil and gas, and blamed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the establishment of Israel, for a rift with the West.
"They think Osama bin Laden speaks for the religion and its followers. Islam and Muslims are linked to all that is negative and backward," Abdullah said.
"The demonization of Islam and the vilification of Muslims, there is no denying, is widespread within mainstream Western society," he said, adding that there was a "huge chasm that has emerged between the West and Islam."
Meanwhile nearly 20,000 people took to the streets to protest the cartoons in Bangladesh, where Prime Minister Khaleda Zia called for an apology for the "extremely arrogant" drawings.
"We have firm faith in freedom of speech ... but all should remain conscious about their responsibility so this freedom does not hurt anyone's sentiment, faith [and] dignity," she said.
Some 4,000 demonstrators took to the streets of the Pakistani capital Islamabad, marching from a mosque in the center of the city to the main Abpara commercial center under heavy police surveillance.
"Crush Denmark, crush America," the protesters chanted as they torched an effigy of US President George W. Bush.
One protester was injured in another demonstration in the northwestern city of Peshawar when he was hit by a teargas shell, and smaller rallies were held in the cities of Karachi, Lahore, Quetta and Multan.
In neighboring India, thousands of Muslims shouting "Denmark Die, Die!" burnt Danish flags in the streets of New Delhi after prayers at the country's largest mosque. Protesters spat on giant Danish flags which were spread on the ground.
Meanwhile, the Jyllands-Posten editor who commissioned cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed has been sent on holiday after suggesting he would print Iranian cartoons of the Holocaust.
"The editors have told Flemming Rose to take a vacation because no one can understand the kind of pressure he has been under," Jyllands-Posten editor Carsten Juste told the Berlingske Tidende newspaper.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS