Fearful of a Jordanian boycott of their products, two Dutch companies have distanced themselves from the film Fitna, produced and released earlier this year by Freedom Party leader Geert Wilders. On Sunday, Friesland Foods and the Zwanenberg Food Group placed adverts in Jordanian newspapers to announce that they have nothing to do with the film. They're hoping to prevent their products ending up on a Middle East blacklist.
They took this step after 'The Messenger of Allah Unites Us', a broad coalition of Jordanian political parties, professional organisations and media, printed one million posters showing Dutch and Danish products that - they argue - consumers in Jordan and other Middle East countries ought to boycott. In addition to a number of Danish brand names, the list includes such Dutch companies as KLM, Philips and baby food manufacturer Friso.
There's considerable anger in Jordan regarding Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard and Dutch politician Geert Wilders. The chairman of the coalition, Zakaria Sheik, says that both men have offended Muslims throughout the world and shouldn't escape their punishment.
Distance
Dutch company Friesland Foods took steps to distance itself from Fitna as soon as it was released in March 2008. Although that earlier announcement was recently repeated in an advert by a Jordanian distributor it has, says company representative Bram Franken, had little success. Both Friesland Foods and the Zwanenberg Food Group are hoping that their new advert will prevent the names of their products ending up on a new series of posters. Friesland Foods has stated:
"The contents of the poster have been changed a number of times. When it first appeared, it contained several Danish brand names. Subsequently, several products of ours were added. One has since been removed, but the others have stayed. We're in the same position as KLM, which has also distanced itself from Fitna, but which also remains on the poster."
No panic
Zakaria Sheikh says that companies wanting to avoid the boycott should also put out posters in their own countries and speak out there against Fitna. Right now, Friesland Foods isn't worried about a huge slump in business, since Jordan is a relatively small market for its products. But if such a boycott were to spread to more countries in the Arab world, its sales would be at risk, since the Middle East as a whole is one of its most important markets. Up to now, Dutch companies have not really suffered economically in the wake of Fitna's release.
KLM, too, is not too worried about the boycott as yet.
"It certainly has our attention and we're keeping our finger on the pulse of our local people in Jordan,"
says representative Nanke Kramer. But she hasn't noticed any losses for the company so far. For a start, she says, KLM doesn't fly to Amman. Nor, as far as she knows, have travel organisations in other countries been called upon to boycott the airline.
Charges
Zakaria Sheikh has also urged the Jordanian authorities to investigate the extent to which Kurt Westergaard and Geert Wilders can be prosecuted. Criminal proceedings have already been filed against 11 Danish media companies in the country. They are accused of blasphemy, inciting disorder and threatening national peace: offences that could result in a maximum of three years in jail.
Tøger Seidenfaden, editor-in-chief of the Danish paper Politiken, is considering whether or not to go to Jordan to defend his paper against the charges. He hopes that he would be given the opportunity to explain how the Danish media work and how Danish society deals with freedom of speech.
* RNW translation (ng/tpf)
Tags:
boycott,
Denmark,
Fitna,
Geert Wilders,
Jordan,
Kurt Westergaard ,
Netherlands,
Politiken
Ian,
30-06-2008
- USA
I honestly think that Wilders is a low-life politician, that has no respect. He needs to apologize to all Muslims for his ignorance. If not, then this could cause an uproar, where he could be subjected to being assassinated.
Roxn,
24-06-2008
- UK
What about when Muslims in the Middle East associate the Crusades and colonialism with Christianity? Isn't it just the same as when westerners associate terrorism or more jihad with Islam and the Koran? There appears to be a double standard - Muslims want protection their religion and beliefs - but don't take the same care when dealing with the beliefs and practises of the "others".
Christians and non-Muslims are persecuted all across the Islamic world - but rarely - if ever do you hear of western Muslims speaking out about these types of practises - that are largely carried out by Islamic governments.
What we have decided in the west is that we are going to have freedom of expression - across the board - so long as it remains within the law. In the Islamic world almost all expression is controlled. By giving special respect to Islam - over Christianity - we run the risk of transforming our governments and systems of law into Islamic ones. And there is not a single Islamic country which respects the individual rights of its citizens, and even less rights are attributed to women.
Muslims should know that boycotts, and other forms of peaceful protest are fine, but violence will not be rewarded.
Thomas,
24-06-2008
- USA
"They have no freedom to do what they like."
So said the Dhimmi aplogist of Islamist terror.
Joost van Keulen,
24-06-2008
- the Netherlands
A great number of Danish firms have much difficulty in understanding the fierce responses of Muslim communities all around the globe. According to the Danish point of view on God, those insulting cartoons and freedom of expression are one and the same. This is the reason why they depicted those disgusting cartoons which mock Mohammad. Muslims are forced to be easygoing towards cartoons in Danish far-right newspaper Jyllands-Posten. Those editors said that it is as same as Danish sense of homour and satirical tradition which are very apparent in Denmark.
On the other hand, hundreds of thousands of Muslims are easily considered to be pro-Taleban, who are in favour of terrorism and the ruthless terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda and Hamas, etc. There is widespread prejudice against ordinary Muslims resident in Europe and USA. The ethnic hatred, extremism and xenophobia threatens cruelty and bloodshed wherever it occurs. Those Danish media provoked Europeans into doing something really stupid.
Culture is relative. Muslims did not approve of their arrogant claim. Because the Danish media reacted as if they fight for freedom of expression. Not everyone approves of that kind of liberty to put an indignity upon Mohammad. Although I am utterly opposed to any form of terrorism and savage attacks against Embassy of Denmark in Middle East.
I have no any religion, whereas I am opposed to both Jyllands-Posten and Geert Wilders. They have neither knowledge nor understanding of “others”. Failure to communicate may have brought the two worlds to the brink of war and terrorism. Geert Wilders adopted an aggressive propaganda campaign against his enemy “the whole Islamic World”. He has, in a sense, courted disaster by his own reckless conduct.
Muslims like religion better than the Dutch and the Danes. Religious issues now touch on almost every aspect of life in Middle East. We had better respect their religion and culture from a cultural relativism point of view. Understanding the different culture is key.
Hence, Geert Wilders and those racist Danish media are highly expected to apologise what they did. They didn’t attain freedom of expression. Their freedom is violative of the tolerance. They have no freedom to do what they like.
