MUSLIM FSO'S REFLECT ON CARTOON CONTROVERSY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KUWAIT 000658

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TAGS: KPAO PTER KISL XF KU
SUBJECT: MUSLIM FSO'S REFLECT ON CARTOON CONTROVERSY



1. (SBU) Note from Ambassador: At my request, two members of my
staff, both of them Muslims on their first overseas tours with the
State Department, provided below their reflections on the Danish
cartoon controversy. I asked them to share their personal
reactions as well as attempt some analysis on the reasons for the
reactions we have seen. I hope this message contributes to the
discussion of lessons learned from the cartoon controversy among our
policymakers and analysts in Washington as well as among those of us
serving in countries with large Muslim populations.

Personal Reflections
--------------


2. (SBU) As progressive and devout Muslims raised in America and
employed by the U.S. Government, our initial reactions to the Danish
cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist were discontent,
frustration, and dismay. We were upset at the Danish newspaper for
failing to exercise good judgment in publishing such offensive and
predictably destabilizing material and we were surprised by the
Danish government's decision to forego condemnation of the
publications. We were frustrated at the misguided and misplaced
public arguments espoused by the European press legitimizing the
cartoons and their publication as exercises in freedom of speech.
We were dismayed at the ensuing (and foreseeable) violence and the
opportunity presented to religious fanatics and political
opportunists to exploit and undermine the sanctity of Islam through
acts of incomprehensible violence.

Addressing the Root Cause
--------------


3. (SBU) The majority of the European media and certain political
figures have failed to address the root cause of Muslim anger and
frustration at the cartoons. The European default has been to
deflect Muslim sentiment as reactionary and evidence of Islam's
incompatibility with Western ideals of liberty, progress, and
enlightened thinking. As a result, European political and public
rhetoric promoting free speech has further aggravated Muslim
sentiment, and in the process, united Islam's very diverse social
and religious spectrum, resulting in both non-violent and violent
manifestations--the latter being propagated (and aggravated) by a
largely radical minority of religious extremists and political
opportunists.


4. (SBU) Muslim moderates, embodying the majority of the Muslim
world, opted rightly to voice their condemnation through non-violent
mediums of expression in accordance with Islam's non-violent ethos.
(Note: The term "Muslim" means "one who submits" to the will of
God--Allah (in Arabic meaning the One God). Islam derives from the
Arabic root "Salam" (Peace) and means "submission" to the will of
the one God.)


5. (SBU) Many non-violent protesters are even calling attention to
growing Muslim perceptions of "Islamophobia" in the Western world.
Unfortunately, Muslim reaction in the media has been largely defined
by the more visible violent responses. Many of the isolated violent
demonstrations appear to be the hallmarks of religious extremists
and anti-democratic political organizations. These entities have
mobilized supporters and other disenfranchised elements to advance
parochial political interests under the guise of religious protest.
Nonetheless, these and other non-violent demonstrations underscore
the broader Muslim discontent with the publications.

Not About Freedom of Speech
--------------


6. (SBU) For Muslims, the cartoon controversy is not about freedom
of speech. The publication of the cartoons did little to advance
the cause of free speech in the Muslim world or to uphold the
integrity of the institution as it exists in the West. The message
conveyed to Muslims worldwide, regardless of their worldview, was
one of Western disregard and utter disrespect for Islam and its most
revered personality-the Prophet Muhammad.

The Prophet's Role in Islam and Muslim Society
-------------- -


7. (U) Understanding the source of Muslim discontent requires a
better understanding and appreciation of the Prophet's sacred
position in the lives of the world's 1.2 billion Muslims.


8. (U) The Prophet Muhammad, after God and the Qur'an, is the most
unifying element and focal point for Muslims across the ideological
spectrum. After the Qur'an, the Sunnah or sayings and teachings of
the Prophet, capturing anecdotes of his personality and actions,
serve as a sacred guide for believers. For Muslims, the Prophet
embodies human perfection in all its dimensions. Muhammad's
uniqueness lies in the Muslim belief, as revealed in the Qur'an,

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that the Prophet is the final messenger of God-the "Seal of the
Prophets"-confirming the teachings of the prophets before him and
reaffirming the final truth as revealed in the Muslim holy book.
Moreover, Islam requires believers to have equal reverence for past
prophets including Abraham, Moses, David, Jesus, and others.

Islam's Prohibition of Prophetic Imagery
--------------


9. (U) Although there exists today a written physical description
(Hilya) of the Prophet, visual depictions or impersonations of
Muhammad and other prophets are generally believed to be forbidden
in Islam.


10. (U) There is general agreement among Muslims that Islam forbids
iconography and the veneration of idols portraying religious
figures, even those representing monotheistic prophets, on the basis
that such human imagery fail to accurately depict the true images of
holy personalities and run the greater risk of deification of
prophets.


11. (U) However, there have been historical exceptions such as
ancient Islamic art depicting the Prophet and other holy figures in
religious scenes, albeit without discernible facial features. The
Islamic injunctions against prophetic imagery notwithstanding, these
attempts have nonetheless portrayed the Prophet and other religious
figures positively.

The Prophet: No More than a Mortal Man
--------------


12. (U) Although Muslims venerate the Prophet, it is considered
unacceptable, based on the teachings of the Qur'an, to deify him or
any other prophet. For Muslims, the Prophet, as the embodiment of
human perfection, was nothing more than a mortal man.


13. (U) Most Muslims reject any depiction of the Prophet, and
certainly one presenting him as a terrorist. Within the past few
years, American television shows such as Saturday Night Live and
South Park both included cartoon representations of Prophet Muhammad
within the past few years without international repercussions, in
part because those cartoons did not portray Muhammad as a terrorist.



14. (SBU) Though there is clearly reprehensible anti-Jewish and
anti-Christian discourse in the Islamic world, and anti-Semitic
cartoons, Muslims would argue that these do not disparage the
revered Prophets of Christianity or of Judaism. Whereas a negative
political cartoon in the Arab press of the Pope or Ariel Sharon
might be viewed as permissible by some, cartoons of Jesus or Moses,
even if permitted, would not be viewed as legitimate or acceptable
forms of discourse.


15. (U) Most Muslims would not be offended by depictions of
contemporary Muslim leaders, many of whom are considered political
personalities. If the current Danish cartoons depicted Osama Bin
Laden instead of the Prophet Muhammad, Muslim outcry would have been
non-existent or isolated to a fundamentalist minority.


16. (U) Also, Muslims reject the logic that if European Christians
find satirical portrayals of Jesus acceptable, that Muslims should
likewise accept insulting images of Muhammad or even of Jesus. The
violence of the past weeks might have been avoided had the Danish
government condemned the cartoons at the outset, while also
supporting freedom of speech.

Where are the Moderates?
--------------


17. (SBU) Ironically, the Danish cartoons have succeeded in uniting
Muslims of all worldviews in condemnation of the depiction of the
Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist. The unacceptable violent response
in some countries to the cartoons has begged the question, where are
the moderates? (This has also been asked in regard to the seeming
lack of condemnation by Muslim moderates of the attacks on Shia in
Iraq or support for the Global War on Terror.)


18. (SBU) The so-called Moderate Muslims are united with other
Muslims in opposition to the cartoons. While the moderates do not
support the burning of Embassies or sectarian violence, they do
recognize as legitimate non-violent forms of protest, including
boycotts of Danish products or peaceful demonstrations as seen in
London, Istanbul and elsewhere. Insulting the central figure of
Islam has widened the gap of mutual understanding and trust between
Islam and the West, while also prompting a debate among Muslims,
some of whom argue that the violence and deaths caused by Muslim
demonstrators have done more to harm the image and standing of Islam
and Muslims than the original provocative cartoons.

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LEBARON