COPENHAGEN, Denmark (Dispatches) — The Danish government on Friday said it will propose a law that would make it illegal to desecrate any holy book in Denmark, where a recent string of public desecrations of the Qur’an by a handful of anti-Islam activists has sparked angry demonstrations in Muslim countries.
Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said the legislation especially targets the disrespectful desecrations carried out by a few individuals at public places in the Scandinavian nation which has upset Muslims.
In the latest act of desecration of the Holy Qur’an in a neighboring Scandinavian country, a serial blasphemer burned a copy of the sacred Muslim book in front of the Iranian embassy in Stockholm.
Swedish police instead arrested a woman who tried to stop the perpetrator.
Such sacrilegious moves, which have been authorized by the Swedish police under the pretext of freedom of speech laws, have drawn the ire of the whole Muslim world, prompting the summoning or expulsion of Swedish and Danish envoys from several countries and putting the Scandinavian countries’ security forces on high alert over fears of reprisal.
Denmark’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Lars Lokke Rasmussen, for his part, expressed strong regret over the insults, insisting the government strongly condemns any desecration of the Holy Qur’an.
The Danish diplomat said freedom of expression was allowed by Danish law, but expressed regret that some people abuse it, “which we consider unacceptable.” “These few individuals should not be considered representatives of the Danish people.”
The provocative stunts, considered sinful by the Muslim world, have spurred anguish in several countries, where many have urged European governments to take stronger action and prevent the incidents.
In July, hundreds of protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in response to a planned Qur’an burning outside the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm, the Swedish capital.
The Swedish government recently ruled out any sweeping changes to its freedom of speech laws but repeated it would look into measures that would allow police to stop the burning of holy books in public if there is a clear threat to national security.