Germany rejects laws against insulting Islam

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich has ruled out measures to tighten blasphemy laws in the wake of a US-made movie deemed offensive to Islam’s most revered figure, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH)."Freedom in our country is very extensive and I am against the idea of responding to each specific situation with criminal and legislative changes," he told Deutschlandfunk radio station on Sunday.Friedrich’s remarks come as many people in Germany have called for a law against blasphemy to protect all religions from attack.They have also pushed for a change in Paragraph 166 of the German penal code, which lays out penalties for insulting the customs and beliefs of religious communities.Friedrich said that a social debate was needed for the law to be given the teeth."This is not something that legislation and criminal law can take the place of," he said.Hundreds of people held peaceful protests in Germany last Friday against a film insulting Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).Around 800 demonstrators marched through the centre of the southwestern German city of Freiburg under the banner "I Love My Prophet".Protesters hoisted signs reading "Yes to freedom of expression, no to insults" and "I am protesting against the lack of respect toward my beloved Prophet Mohammed".Meanwhile, another 500 people gathered in the western city of Munster. Further demonstrations took place in the cities of Karlsruhe and Dortmund on Saturday.Muslims in Iran, Turkey, Sudan, Egypt, Yemen, Tunisia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Kashmir, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Gaza, Morocco, Syria, Kuwait, Nigeria, Kenya, Australia, Britain, the United States, France, Belgium, and some other countries have held many demonstrations to condemn the blasphemous film.Angry protesters across demand the US government apologize to the Muslim world over the anti-Islam movie.The American-made anti-Islam movie is said to have been made with the help of Zionist donations totaling USD 5 million.The sacrilegious movie was followed by publication of several cartoons mocking Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in the satirical French weekly Charlie Hebdo./129