Free Speech Advocates Launch Campaign for ‘International First Amendment’
Photo of Geert Wilders at Heathrow courtesy of CNS NEWS
CNSNEWS.COM: Troubled by attacks on free expression by groups wanting to shield Islam from criticism or scrutiny, free speech advocates are preparing to unveil a campaign for an “international First Amendment.”

The initiative will be launched by the International Free Press Society (IFPS) at an event in Washington, D.C., on Friday. Attending will be Geert Wilders, the Dutch lawmaker whose views on Islam have stoked controversy worldwide.

The event will incorporate a screening of Wilders’ short documentary, Fitna, which features passages from the Koran along with footage of terror attacks and jihadists extolling violence while quoting from Islam’s revered text.

The film has been viewed by millions online, but recent attempts to show it at the European Parliament ran into difficulties, and Wilders was refused entry into Britain earlier this month to attend a screening at the House of Lords. The British government said he “would threaten community security and therefore public security.”

A closed screening for U.S. lawmakers has been arranged at the Capitol building on Thursday, hosted by Republican Senator Jon Kyl.

Recent years have seen an escalating drive by Islamic countries, working through the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), to counter what they regard as blasphemy – anything calling into question the assertion that Islam is a peaceful and tolerant religion.

Seeking to make it more difficult for people to challenge or criticize Islam, the OIC is promoting resolutions at the U.N. against “religious defamation,” based in part on the argument that anti-Islamic sentiment is a “contemporary form of racism.”

In a number of Islamic countries, blasphemy laws are enforced, often targeting Muslims who convert to another faith and are considered apostates under Islamic law (shari’a), but also anyone who questions Islamic teaching or practices associated with Islam.

In non-Muslim countries, especially in the West, “hate speech” regulations are sometimes used to similar effect, and Wilders himself is due to stand trial in the Netherlands soon on charges of “inciting hatred and discrimination.” >>> By Patrick Goodenough, International Editor | Thursday, February 26, 2009

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Arrested Dutch Cartoonist Speaks Out in Denmark
NIS NEWS BULLETIN: COPENHAGEN - For the first time since his arrest, Dutch cartoonist Gregorius Nekschot has spoken in public. This did not take place in the Netherlands though but in Denmark, at the invitation of the Free Press Society.

The organisation wished to give Nekschot a platform in Copenhagen in protest against "that shameless Netherlands, with that shameless government, which is endangering freedom to speech," the president of the Free Press Society, Lars Hedegaard, said in De Volkskrant newspaper yesterday.

The Dutch cartoonist wore an Islamic all-enveloping robe in Copenhagen, making him totally unrecognisable. He chose a nikab as a statement against Islam as a suffocating ideology, but also to show that he has been living in "a prison" for almost a year although he has not been physically locked up.

The then relatively unknown cartoonist was arrested in his home in Amsterdam on 13 May 2008 for causing offence and inciting to hatred. He is still awaiting a decision from the Public Prosecutors' Office (OM) on whether he will be prosecuted.

Nekschot, who has never dared to show his face or reveal his true name in the media, stated the arrest has put him in danger. His anonymity is at risk; if he is prosecuted, everyone will know who he is - including Muslim extremists. "Look what happened to Theo van Gogh," De Volkskrant quoted him as saying.

After the Danish cartoon riots, the Dutch government set up an 'Interdepartmental Work Group on Cartoon Problems'. Nekschot says he was arrested by this group - "the most ridiculous institution ever in Dutch history" - as a gesture to the Arab world. [Source: NIS News Bulletin] Thirsday, February 5, 2009

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Defend Geert Wilders and Freedom of Speech
THE INTERNATIONAL FREE PRESS SOCIETY: Washington, DC and Copenhagen, Denmark – A Dutch court yesterday ordered the criminal prosecution of Geert Wilders, Dutch parliamentarian and leader of the Freedom Party (PVV), for his statements - written, spoken and filmed -regarding Islam. The Amsterdam Court of Appeals has deemed such statements “insulting,” declaring that they “substantially harm the religious esteem” of Muslims.

Clearly, the effect of this Dutch court order is to set new limits to public debate in Dutch society, in this case about the highly controversial but nonetheless crucially important subject of Islam.

This makes the prosecution of Geert Wilders an unacceptable breach of the sanctity of freedom of speech in Western society.
Having ordered a criminal prosecution for the opinions of a duly elected leader of a legitimate political party, Dutch authorities have dealt a devastating blow to political expression. While Dutch prosecutors prepare their indictment and Geert Wilders’ future hangs in limbo, who in The Netherlands will dare discuss political and cultural matters related to Islam - Islamic law, Islamic integration, Islamic crime, Islamic policy - openly, freely and fearlessly? The chilling effect is instantaneous. If, indeed, Wilders is ultimately convicted, free speech will cease to exist in the heart of Europe. >>> Admin | Thursday, January 22, 2009

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