Muslim Exchange Student in Holland Embraces Freedom - to Fight Freedom

A Muslim exchange student studying law at the University of Maastricht noticed that some students from the debating society had put up posters advertising an upcoming debate about 'the issue of Geert Wilders'.

On the poster was a picture which is now famous - the 'Motoon', a cartoon of Mohammed with a bomb in place of his turban, as drawn by the Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard.

As some of you may recall, the reaction to this cartoon in the Muslim world led to rioting in which many died; the Danish embassy in Pakistan was bombed, leading to five deaths. Mr Westergaard lives in fear of his life, and at least one Muslim plot to murder him has been cracked in Denmark.

Anyway, here is what Saiqa Riaz, the Muslim student in question, had to say:

I am an exchange student at the Faculty of Law and a member of study association Ouranos. I write this letter to complain about one of the advertisements that has been posted by Ouranos in the faculty.

I am a muslim, a strict practicing one where my life is heavily influenced by and based on my religion. I pray five times a day, and believe in full submission to God. After seeing the ‘debate’ poster all over the law faculty, I have felt insulted and even my religion being discriminated against.

The poster included a stereotypical cartoon of a man with a beard, turban and a bomb about to explode causing great offence to me. This image has been banned from Geert Wilders’ film Fitna and has been banned ever since due to causing religious hatred. This image was actually taken from the Danish cartoons criticising Prophet Mohammed, then it was implemented in the Fitna film. I had never seen the cartoon and refused to see it, as I knew it would upset me. However Ouranos despite all the banning publicised it, when they were aware it has been banned.

I would not have been offended if a replacement image was advertised. But this stereotype cartoon had a verse from the Holy Quran on the turban. This verse of the Quran is the most holy, most sacred, most important verse and part in the Islam and for any muslim in the world. The poster advertised a negative image of my religion, not thinking about any views of the small muslim community in Maastricht. I am extremely disappointed and upset about what Ouranos has done, surely there were other means of them gathering students to come to their debate than to discriminate against the Islam. Maastricht University has a high rate of many international students, and if there were more muslim students here, I am sure they would also complain, and some would maybe even become violent.

Please be open to respect all religions, and develop your knowledge upon the religion of Islam, do not attack it so openly. Please do not publicize any posters or images attacking anyone’s religion.

So here we have someone from the back of beyond privileged enough to be able to study in the Netherlands, a successful country in almost every sense (for the moment, at least).

The worst part isn't that he had the ego to write this letter in the first place, but the thinly veiled threat:

...and if there were more Muslim students here, I am sure they would also complain, and some would maybe even become violent.

Well, we don't need him to tell us - we've seen the evidence for ourselves, over and over again, from Athens to Amsterdam and Sydney to Stockholm.

Yet still, many can't quite seem to match up the observations of their eyes and ears to their brains.

As Geenstijl notes:

Have you seen who the University invited to speak? PvdA-laywer and Wilders-hater Els Lucas and some left-wing hippy from Groen-Links! Therefore, nothing to be afraid of. Just the old Geert Wilders bashing as usual.

Exactly. But with Islam, as with Leftism, no dissent is tolerated. You don't just have to agree - you have to want to agree, or suffer the consequences.

Hat tip: Geenstijl.