The news:

Jyllands-Posten, a Danish newspaper printed caricatures of Mohammad (the Prophet) last September. They were reprinted by Norwegian, Italian, Spanish, French and other newspapers in Europe. The cartoons include one showing a bearded Muhammad with a bomb fizzing out of his turban.

This has provoked uproar across the Middle East and among Muslim community leaders in Europe. Many Middle Eastern countries boycotted Danish products. The French paper later apologised and apparently sacked its managing editor.

The issue:

That was the news. The issue goes further than "upsetting" or "provoking" Islamic rage against the artist, editor or the newspaper. It is a battle between religious reaction on the one side and secularism and freedom of speech on the other. The apologies too are a retreat from the values of French Revolution and compliance with political Islam's advances in the Middle East and Europe.

On the face of it, it seems that Islamic leaders are objecting to the editor for making fun of the prophet Mohammed and an insult to Islam. The German Muslim League, told the Guardian. "Press freedom shouldn't be used to insult people."

I wish thousands of people who have been executed, stoned to death, put in sacs and thrown down the cliff, killed for violating the Islamic honour and values could come out of their graves and give a lecture to the offended Islamists about insult!

I wish thousands of secularists and atheists who were executed for their believes and freedom of speech could rise from their graves and teach the German Muslim League a few words about insult.

Who died and made the Muslim Brotherhood, Syria, the Islamic Jihad, and the Islamic states or Islamic leaders the supervisors of freedom of speech?
They demand an apology from the editors while themselves are suppressing freedoms in general and freedom of speech every single second. Who should apologise to whom? Who has given the offended Islamists the right to execute atheists?! I think everybody knows who should apologize to whom!

The world of political Islam, terrorism and Western aggression is bad enough as it is. Goodness knows what it would be like without "Life of Brian" or the lessons of the French Revolution! Religion and religious values were once challenged in history by secular and progressive forces. The war is still on. It is not about "insult", rather about reaction and progression.
"Life of Mohammed"!! That's a thought!

Maryam Kousha
Editor of the English paper of:
Organisation for Women's Liberation-Iran