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Danes make up with SA Muslims
08/02/2006 12:54 - (SA)
Cape Town - Danish ambassador Torben Brylle described as "good" a meeting held on Wednesday with the Muslim Judicial Council, ahead of an MJC protest march over Danish-penned cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
"Yes, I will say that we had a good meeting, a very useful meeting and we have had an opportunity to clarify respective positions, and we agree that we will continue to have a peaceful and good dialogue," Brylle told Sapa after the 40-minute meeting at the MJC's headquarters in Athlone, Cape Town.
Brylle said he would convey to his government that the parties had a "good" meeting, and he would also be present when the MJC held the protest march on Thursday.
In a statement issued last Friday, Brylle said the Danish government strongly condemned any expression, action or indication of attempts to demonise groups of people on the basis of their religion or ethnic background.
Brylle's statement echoed that of the Danish government, as reaction intensified globally following the publication of 12 caricature drawings of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, and subsequently reproduced across Europe.
The ensuing furore around the publication of the cartoons has brought into sharp relief tensions between the principles of religious freedom and freedom of expression.
In South Africa an interdict was granted prohibiting various newspapers from publishing the cartoons, with a boycott called by local Muslims of the Mail & Guardian publication, which published one of the cartoons.
On Wednesday, Sheik Ebrahim Gabriels, MJC president as well as president of the United Ulama Council of South Africa, said Muslims were always open to dialogue.
'A positive meeting'
"It was a positive meeting and constructive meeting for the future," he said of Brylle's visit.
Gabriels felt positive results could emerge from the cartoon row, and that people around the world could learn respect for each other's religions.
"And for future relationships, the human relationship, I think we can only benefit from what has happened in the newspapers and the drawings of and depiction of our beloved Prophet Muhammad."
Gabriels said the way forward for the MJC was informing non-Muslims about the Islamic religion and who, for example, the Prophet Muhammad was.
If the Danish newspaper which first published the cartoons had apologised, then none of the ensuing fury would have been unleashed.
"We are human beings, we make mistakes. So, apologise and then everything will be fine. The way really forward is to respect one another because all of us, somewhere along the line, belong to one another."
Gabriels said on Thursday's march would be done the "South African way" and did not predict any violence, which marred similar protests to Danish embassies and consulates across the world.
"We are doing it the South African way. We have been marching for Palestine and for other purposes and we always had a very peaceful march, and from the leadership of the MJC we always tell our people 'Let us do it in the most responsible way' and we firmly believe this is what will happen tomorrow (Thursday)," Gabriels said.
- SAPA
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