|
"We don't sell products made in Denmark", reads a sign in Saudi Marché. Dozens of grocery stores throughout the kingdom have pulled Danish products from their shelves in protest to the series of derogatory cartoons published last September in the Jyllands-Posten newspaper in Denmark. 
The newspaper claims that it exercised its right to "free speech" by publishing a series of 12 cartoons that depicted the beloved prophet of Islam (saws) as a terrorist among other over-the-top stereotypes. It is blasphemy in Islam to draw pictures of the Messenger of Allah (swt), regardless of the intended effect. To add insult to injury, Jyllands-Posten published an "apology" in the Arabic language on their Web site, which does nothing more than defend their decision and claim that they were within their rights.
Since it has refused to adequately apologize for the incident, countries such as Saudi Arabia, have pulled products from their shelves, which include Lurpak, KDD, and Puk to name a few. According to Dr. Omar Abdelkafy, of the television show, "Al-Wa'ad Al-Haqq" broadcasted on Al-Shariqah Television Network, the boycotts of Muslim countries accounted for a loss of $5 million to the Danish economy. This shows that boycotting can be an effective means of proving a point, without having to rely on threats or reciprocation. The best thing for each Muslim to do is to contact Jyllands-Posten and inform them that it is not in their best interest to offend 1.9 billion Muslims worldwide. It will have economic repercussions and will affect the entire country of Denmark. When contacting them, be firm but polite. Do not get hostile or make threats. Ask them to publish a public apology to the Muslims of the world for desecrating the image of our holy prophet (pbuh). Contact: Jyllands-Posten, Telephone: +45 87 38 38 38. e-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
