Denmark seeks ways to prevent the burning of the Holy Quran
COPENHAGEN: The Danish government will seek to “find a legal tool” that would allow authorities to prevent the desecration of the Holy Quran, Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told national broadcaster DR on Sunday.
The development comes after the country faced a strong backlash over recent incidents of burning holy scriptures in front of other countries embassies.
“The burnings are deeply offensive and reckless acts committed by a few individuals. These few individuals do not represent the values on which Danish society is based,” Rasmussen said separately in a statement.
“Therefore, the Danish government will explore the possibility of intervening in special situations where, for example, other countries, cultures, and religions are insulted, and where this could have significant negative consequences for Denmark, especially in terms of regarding safety,” he said. saying.
Denmark and Sweden have found themselves in the international spotlight in recent weeks following anti-Islam protests where the Holy Quran was damaged or burned, sparking anger in the Muslim world.
Both countries have said they deplore the burning of the Muslim holy book, but cannot prevent it under rules protecting free speech.
In his statement, Rasmussen added that any action taken “must of course be done within the framework of constitutionally protected freedom of expression and in a way that does not change the fact that freedom of expression in Denmark has a very wide scope.” .
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is today holding an extraordinary virtual session for the Council of Foreign Ministers of Member States (CFM) to discuss the repeated incidents of desecration and burning of copies of the Holy Quran in Sweden and Denmark.
“This session has been convened at the request of Saudi Arabia, the chairman of the 14th Islamic Summit, and the Republic of Iraq,” the main Muslim bloc said in a statement.