Open letter to Jyllands-Posten from the Confederation of Danish Industries.
It is now time for the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten to use its freedom of expression to explain its own reaction to the fact that drawings of the prophet Mohammed, published in September 2005, have offended the feelings of a large number of people. Since the publication of the drawings, the editors of the newspaper have remained silent and chosen not to comment on the consequences of the drawings.
Obviously, Danish companies are in no way direct parties in the dispute between Jyllands-Posten and religious leaders. Nevertheless, companies have experienced a number of repercussions in the Arab World during the past week: boycotting of their products, cancellations of sales and project meetings, lost orders etc. Furthermore, the personal safety of their employees is now also at stake. In this way, Danish companies and their employees are paying for the unsolved dispute between the newspaper and religious groups. This situation calls for a reaction from the editors of Jyllands-Posten.
In our view, it is no longer sufficient just to discuss whether a newspaper has the right to publish drawings of the prophet Mohammed. Our freedom of expression does not make us unaccountable for our actions. Accepting its responsibility in this respect, Jyllands-Posten now has to show whether it has any sympathy and respect for the people whose feelings have been hurt by the publishing of the drawings. It is now that the newspaper's editors have to break their silence in this respect.
Freedom of expression is one of the basic values of our society, but until now Jyllands-Posten has only invoked this freedom to explain its actions. I now urge the newspaper to acknowledge the fact that many people have been offended and that this has negative consequences for third parties who are not directly involved.
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