JEDDAH: A man was charged by Swedish police on Wednesday with “agitation against an ethnic group” after he desecrated and set fire to pages of the Qur’an outside the main mosque in Stockholm. Salwan Momika, 37, who fled from Iraq to Sweden several years ago, said he wanted to highlight the importance of freedom of speech. “This is democracy. It is in danger if they tell us we can’t do this,” he said. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Momika’s protest was “legal but not appropriate,” and it was up to the police to permit it or not.
A flag represents the state, religious text book represents the teachings of a religion, a pride flag represents the minorities.
Going out of your way to burn the book of a religious group in front of its gathering sites is obnoxious and counterproductive at best, and surely one could hold actual hatred along otherwise protected expression, but the religion itself and its teachings are not above criticism. As crude as burning a book may be, you’re inserting a lot of meaning in to it that just isn’t actually there.
A flag represents the state, religious text book represents the teachings of a religion, a pride flag represents the minorities.
Going out of your way to burn the book of a religious group in front of its gathering sites is obnoxious and counterproductive at best, and surely one could hold actual hatred along otherwise protected expression, but the religion itself and its teachings are not above criticism. As crude as burning a book may be, you’re inserting a lot of meaning in to it that just isn’t actually there.