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Livingstone Leads Thousands in Cartoon Protest
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"I
am supporting this event because it will allow the views of the
mainstream Muslim community to be properly heard," said
Livingstone.
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click
here for more photos
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LONDON, February 11, 2006 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – Several
thousands of demonstrators converged on Trafalgar Square
in central London
on Saturday, February 11, joined by London Mayor Ken Livingstone to
protest Danish cartoons that mocked Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings be upon him).
"I
am supporting this event because, unlike some of the BBC's coverage, it
will allow the views of the mainstream Muslim community to be properly
heard," Reuters quoted Livingstone as telling reporters.
He
was referring to the British broadcaster’s devoting too much coverage
to a rally by a "tiny minority" -- as he put it -- of Muslim
hardliners who had taken part in the highly publicized protest at the
Danish embassy last week.
Livingstone
also criticized the BBC for briefly showing the cartoons on some of its
news bulletins.
"There
is no excuse for breaking the law and anyone who does so should and will
face prosecution, but there is no getting away from the fact that this
whole episode has allowed much of
Europe
's media to engage in an orgy of Islamophobia," Livingstone said.
The
drawings were first published in a Danish newspaper, but have since
appeared in a number of other publications in Europe.
The
Danish newspaper that first published the cartoons has apologized for
offending Muslims, although not for printing the drawings.
“Legitimate
Voice”
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The
London
rally expresses the "legitimate voice" of the Muslim
minority in Britain. (Reuters)
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The
London
rally’s organizers, including the Muslim Council of Britain and the
Muslim Association of Britain, said in a statement the march expresses
the "legitimate voice" of the Muslim minority in Britain.
"The
first message we want to send to the country is that of the legitimate
voice of the Muslim community as opposed to those that hijacked last
week's demonstration outside the Danish embassy," the organizers
said in a statement carried by Reuters.
Last
week, about 400 angry protesters gathered outside the Danish embassy in
London
carrying placards with slogans such as "Massacre those who insult
Islam."
One
man was dressed as a suicide bomber and has since been arrested for
breaching his prison parole order. He apologized to the British people,
especially the families of the 7/7 victims for hurting their feelings.
Appealing
to Muslims to remain peaceful, the organizers said: "It may appear
to them that there is a great Western conspiracy against their faith,
but there are a large number of people who are on the side of
reconciliation, and we hope that comes out loud and clear on
Saturday."
Muslim
scholars from
Cairo
to Copenhagen
have urged Muslims protesting against the Danish cartoons to stop
violent rallies and display restraint.
European
Rallies
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Muslims
demonstrate in central Paris
also complained of rising Islamophobia. (Reuters)
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Thousands
of people marched peacefully in several European cities Saturday to
protest the blasphemous drawings.
In
Germany, about 2,000 people marched on the Danish consulate in Duesseldorf,
while about 1,200 people protested in
Berlin
and about
130 in
the northern city of Leer.
In
France, about 7,000 people demonstrated in
Paris
and more than 2,200 marched in the eastern city of
Strasbourg.
"We
want to show by demonstrating peacefully and legally that we have been
deeply hurt by the publication of these caricatures," Union of
Muslim Associations spokesman Faycal Menia told AFP in Paris.
An
estimated 100 took part in
Amsterdam
in an unauthorized but peaceful demonstration, about 1,000 marched in
Berne, in
Switzerland, while other protests took place in
Ireland,
Austria
and Belgium.
From
Tehran,
Cairo,
Istanbul
and
Nairobi
to
Kuala Lumpur
and
Islamabad, protesters had taken to the streets after the Friday prayers to
protest the cartons.
Norwegian
Apology
Meanwhile,
the editor of a Norwegian Christian newspaper apologized to Muslims on
Friday for publishing the cartoons.
Vebjoern
Selbekk, who initially defended his January 10 publication of the
cartoons in Magazinet as an expression of press freedom, shook hands
after his apology with a Muslim leader in Norway
who said he considered the controversy over, Reuters reported.
"I
address myself personally to the Muslim community to say that I am sorry
that your religious feelings have been hurt," Selbekk told a news
conference. "It was never our intent to hurt anyone."
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Magazinet
editor Selbekk (L) meets with the chairman of the Islamic Council
of Norway Hamdan in Oslo. (Reuters)
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"I,
as editor, did not fully understand how hurtful the publication of the
facsimile was. I would like to apologize for that today."
He
also said he "deeply regretted" upsetting Muslims.
The
Islamic Council in Norway welcomed Selbekk's apology and said they would protect him.
"Anyone
who touches him, touches us," said Mohammad Hamdan, leader of the
council who shook Selbekk's hand after a joint news conference hosted by
Norway's Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion Bjarne Haakon Hanssen.
"I
understand ... that he has children the same age as mine. I want his
children to grow up together, live together in peace, and become
friends," Hamdan said.
"Our
Prophet Muhammad has said that everyone can make mistakes but the best
is the one who expresses regret and asks for forgiveness," he said.
Hanssen
praised Selbekk and Hamdan for their accord.
"When
these two are building bridges, it creates a basis for reconciliation
and a hope that others will do the same."
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