Knowing the defender from the offender [Archives:2006/925/Opinion]
By: Shaker Lashuel
We are following with great astonishment the arrest of Mr. Mohamed Al-Asadi, the editor of Yemen Observer and two other journalists. The charges against the three Yemeni journalists represent an overzealous outreach of the prosecution to levy charges that are unacceptable, unreasonable and represent another attack against Yemeni press freedom. The publishing of the cartoons by the European newspapers has been a blatant and deliberate attack against Muslim values. People in Yemen are justified to be angry and disgusted by the publication of the blasphemous cartoons and they have the right to boycott and resent any newspaper that is deemed disrespectful and dishonoring of the society's Islamic values.
It is at these times, when emotions are high, that one expects governments to take a lead role in defining for society the limits of freedom. The blind and misguided prosecution of Mr. Al-Asadi and the other journalists who attempted to present the cartoons in context does not serve or protect Islamic values. Their role obliged them to shed some light on the topic, and if they considered it their responsibility to present the cartoons in a tasteful, newsworthy way and in the context of defending society's Islamic and cultural values then they should be given the benefit of doubt. Their prosecution does not help in the greater dialogue we need to embark on and instead serves to stir up already heightened emotions.
In the midst of these difficult times, and this blinding anger we need to take a step back and understand what we are doing. The efforts of Muslim societies should be focused on insuring that no further disregard or blasphemy is attempted by anyone who provocatively attempts to challenge values that we as Muslims hold dear. Yet, it is important to guarantee that the reaction remains, measured, reasonable, adequate and reflective of true Islamic values.
Many voices are raised in defense of Mr. Al-Asadi, editor-in-chief of the Yemen Observer, Akram Sabra, the managing editor of al-Hurriya weekly newspaper and reporter Yehiya al-Abed of Hurriya because it is believed that they never had the intention to attack, insult, or challenge the Islamic values of society.
Mr. Alasadi admitted there was a mistake in production. In an interview with the Newsweek he explained that he “reprinted the cartoons but blacked them out.” Because of an unfortunate “innocent mistake in the production process, a thumbnail of the cartoons appeared on the front page)only 1.5cm [0.6 of an inch] by 2cm [0.8 of an inch], you could hardly read it,” he told Newsweek. Does this mistake warrant his imprisonment?
Yemen's press freedom has been tested often lately and in the eyes of the outside world it remains a measure of the extent of democratization that Yemen would like to claim. Many decisions over the past years have led many to question the censorship and the constraints imposed on newspapers and journalists. In this case, the grounds for charging and imprisoning the journalists can be seen as an overreaction and a succumbing to emotions which left us incapable of differentiating between Mohamed Al-Asadi and the Danish newspaper publisher who challenged and attacked Islamic values and emotions.
Shaker Lashuel is a freelance Yemeni writer based in the U.S. He has written on the Yemeni-American community and Yemen related issues. He is a teacher working for the New York City Department of Education.
([email protected])
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[archive-e:925-v:14-y:2006-d:2006-03-02-p:opinion]
