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TAMPA, Fl (Feb. 7, 2006)
- The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) condemned today a collection
of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed that were first
published by a Danish newspaper.
Twelve cartoons, including one that depicted
the Prophet Mohammed hiding a bomb under his turban, were
first printed on September 30, 2005 in the Danish newspaper
Jyllands-Posten and have since appeared in various
newspapers in Europe, the United States, New Zealand and Jordan.
Muslims around the world have been outraged by these illustrations.
Several Muslim groups held boycotts and protests, some that
were violent and led to several fatalities. Cartoonists and
newspaper editors have received multiple death threats.
"Though as Americans we are committed
to freedom of speech and expression, cartoonists and their
editors demonstrated a monumental lapse in judgment at best,
and outright bigotry at worst," said Mihir Meghani, President
of the Hindu American Foundation. "As a Hindu, having
experienced painful depictions of my faith in this country,
I can relate to the protests by the Muslim world, but violence
is simply not an acceptable solution."
HAF has previously engaged several media
outlets in the United States and Europe for inflammatory and
vulgar depictions of Hindu symbols and sacred beliefs. Recent
accounts in the American press depicted Hindus as cannibals,
believers in "capricious gods" and adherents of
mythical religious texts.
Aseem Shukla, Member of the HAF Board of
Directors, added, "In the age of globalization, it is
especially important that mainstream media, rather than being
the cause of undue provocation, works with religious minorities
to promote tolerance and mutual understanding of cultural
sensitivities."
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