Sweden shuts website over cartoon

[Stephanie]

The Swedish government has moved to shut down the website of a far-right political party's newspaper over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
The site's host, Levonline, pulled the plug on the website of the Swedish Democrats' SD-Kuriren newspaper after consulting with the government.

It is believed to be the first time a Western government has intervened to block a publication in the growing row.

Kuriren editor Richard Jomshof said the government was breaking the law.

"We have to do something about it. This is illegal. They can't do this just because we are a small magazine," he told the BBC News website.

The Swedish Democrats are a small anti-immigrant party with no representatives in parliament, but a few local elected officials.

Jomshof said the newspaper had a print run of about 30,000.

Call for cartoons

He had asked readers to send in their own Muhammad cartoons, but he denies intending to offend Muslims.

His website briefly posted a picture showing Muhammad from the rear, looking into a mirror, with his eyes blacked out - an image he said was about self-censorship.

It seemed like it could be a bad for us and for others to have the site up

Levonline CEO Turkel Nyberg

"It was directed at the Swedish government and Swedish magazines," Jomshof said.

"They are cowards for not standing by the Danish people and Jyllands-Posten [Danish newspaper which first published controversial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad last year]."

Muslims around the world have demonstrated against the cartoons since they were republished in a number of European newspapers at the end of January.

Swedish Foreign Minister Laila Freivalds described Kuriren's move as "a provocation" by "a small group of extremists".

"I will defend freedom of the press no matter what the circumstances, but I strongly condemn the provocation by SD-Kuriren. It displays a complete lack of respect," she said in a statement.

Site back up

Levonline CEO Turkel Nyberg told the BBC News website his company had pulled the plug on the site after discussions with the foreign ministry and the security police.

"It seemed like it could be a bad for us and for others to have the site up. The problem was the content, which was these Muhammad pictures," he said.

He said he had been told by the government that Arab media were carrying reports about SD-Kuriren's call for cartoons about Muhammad.

Sweden - which opposed the war in Iraq and is a leading donor to the Middle East - has largely avoided becoming the target of Muslim anger over the cartoons.

The SD-Kuriren website is currently back online via a back-up server.

"All they did was close down some links to the server. We have other links that are still working," Jomshof said.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4700414.stm

 

[dmp]

Good LORD...why do these fockers CAVE?? I mean really?? God help this world. Radical Muslims now control Governments.

 

[rtwngAvngr]

"I will defend freedom of the press no matter what the circumstances, but I strongly condemn the provocation by SD-Kuriren. It displays a complete lack of respect," she said in a statement.

THis is it. This is the bald faced contradiction which will be recited over and over until free speech is abolished.

 

[dmp]

"I will defend freedom of the press no matter what the circumstances, but I strongly condemn the provocation by SD-Kuriren. It displays a complete lack of respect," she said in a statement.

THis is it. This is the bald faced contradiction which will be recited over and over until free speech is abolished.

...and nobody can buy or sell without a mark on their hand or forehead.

 

[rtwngAvngr]

...and nobody can buy or sell without a mark on their hand or forehead.

The rumour is that all the shriner halls around the country will be used as conversion centers. They already have the correct insignia outside.

 

[Just a guy]

And I guess quite obvius by now.

These pictures are not intresting at all. This is about our/any nations right to execute our own laws. Should these laws conflict with another nations intrests an official game of diplomacy would start. Those games are played everyday around the world to get things running smoothly. Usually issues are solved.

But this time the the diplomacy has been by-passed by fanatics. If we bow for this we can at least save som tax money by firing all personal in the foreign ministry. They're clearly not needed any more becuse what they accept to be their new counterpart cannot be discussed with.

I have caught a cold but I feel sick about this hipocracy.
I have caught a cold but I ain't weaker than our policy.

 

[Nuc]

Free societies caving in to the whims and fancies of primitive thinking atavistic throwbacks? A shame.....but.....

Reminds me of the debate over "Intelligent Design". At least those are primitive thinkers from our own country.

I'm not saying people don't have a right to think that way. People have an equal right to believe any supernatural thing they want whether it's that the world is 6000 years old or that an illiterate wrote a holy book. But it is primitive. And in the case of "ID" it's not science.

 

[Hagbard Celine]

If anything, the uproar over these cartoons should be the final straw that opens everyone's eyes to how backwards and elitist Muslim people are.

I know that is a sweepingly broad and stereotypical comment to make--and even I would not have made it six months ago, but this cartoon ordeal proves it. There are thousands violently protesting in numerous Muslim countries calling for the destruction of the West--including the United States, which had nothing to do with the cartoons in the first place.

These people are ruthless savages out for blood--nothing else. They are all primitive, reactionary hillbillies and their elitist views--that somehow Muslims and thier beliefs are better than every one else's--should be viewed as and treated as ridiculous and not cowtowed to as they have been by European and other nations.

The freedom of speech is exactly that--and should not be amended for hurting Muslim's feelings.

Cry me a river Islam!

 

[rtwngAvngr]

If anything, the uproar over these cartoons should be the final straw that opens everyone's eyes to how backwards and elitist Muslim people are.

I know that is a sweepingly broad and stereotypical comment to make--and even I would not have made it six months ago, but this cartoon ordeal proves it. There are thousands violently protesting in numerous Muslim countries calling for the destruction of the West--including the United States, which had nothing to do with the cartoons in the first place.

These people are ruthless savages out for blood--nothing else. They are all primitive, reactionary hillbillies and their elitist views--that somehow Muslims and thier beliefs are better than every one else's--should be viewed as and treated as ridiculous and not cowtowed to as they have been by European and other nations.

The freedom of speech is exactly that--and should not be amended for hurting Muslim's feelings.

Cry me a river Islam!

You maka me so prouda!