TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Russian President Vladimir Putin saying insulting the Prophet Muhammad does not count as freedom of expression. “Insulting the prophet is a violation of religious freedom and a violation of feelings against people of the Muslim faith,” Putin said at his annual press conference on Thursday. TRT World.
According to the Russian News Agency TASS, Putin also criticized the posting of Nazi photos on websites such as the one entitled Eternal Regiment. The photo is dedicated to the Russian soldiers who died in the Second World War.
Putin said these actions elicited extremist retaliation. He cited the example of the attack on the editorial office of Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris after the publication of the cartoons of the prophet.
Artistic freedom in general, Putin said, has its limits and must not violate the freedom of others. Russia has developed as a multi-ethnic and multi-recognition country. Russians, Putin said, are accustomed to respecting each other’s traditions. Not many countries respect other ethnicities and religions, according to Putin.
Putin’s statement on the Prophet Muhammad was welcomed by Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan. In his teasing at Twitter, Khan welcomed Putin’s statement.
“I welcome President Putin’s statement reaffirming my message that insulting our Holy Prophet is not freedom of expression. We Muslims, especially Muslim leaders, must spread this message to non-Muslim world leaders to fight Islamophobia,” he wrote on Twitter @ ImranKhanPTI, on Friday night.
The satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo published a caricature of the Prophet Muhammad, initially in 2006. Last year the caricature was reprinted.
Picture Nabi Muhammad this is seen by most Muslims as blasphemy. But France defends Charlie Hebdo’s right to publish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad on the grounds of freedom of expression.
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TRT WORLD | TWITTER
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