The Danish government announced on Sunday that it will explore legal means to stop protests involving the burning of holy texts in certain circumstances, citing security concerns following reactions to such incidents in which the Koran was desecrated in Denmark and Sweden.
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Noting that such protests played into the hands of extremists, the government wants to “explore” the possibility of intervening in situations where “other countries, cultures and religions are insulted, and where this could have significant negative consequences for Denmark, especially everything in terms of security,” he said in a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Of course, this must be done within the framework of freedom of expression protected by the Constitution and in a way that does not change the fact that freedom of expression in Denmark has a very wide scope,” he added, stressing that it is one of the most important values of the country.
Several recent protests related to desecrations of the Muslim holy book have raised diplomatic tensions in the Middle East and the two Nordic countries.
The Danish government noted that the protests have “reached a level where Denmark, in many parts of the world and on all continents, is being seen as a country that facilitates the insult and denigration of the cultures, religions and traditions of others.” countries”.
It added that the “primary purpose” of some of the actions had been to provoke and “could have significant consequences”.
Both Danish and Swedish envoys have been summoned to various countries in the Middle East.
In a separate statement, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said he had been in close contact with his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen and that a similar process was already underway in Sweden.
“We have also already started to analyze the legal situation (…) in order to consider measures to strengthen our national security and the security of Swedes in Sweden and around the world,” Kristersson said in a post on Instagram.
Saudi Arabia and Iraq have called a meeting, scheduled for Monday, of the Jeddah-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to address the desecration of the Koran in both Sweden and Denmark.
*With AFP; adapted from its original in English
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