The Turkish government today described a new public burning in Sweden of a Koran, the holy book for Muslims, as scandalous and despicable, and linked the incident to Turkey’s veto of the country’s NATO entry.
“Especially before the NATO summit, the authorities of Sweden, which wants to be allies with Turkey, should put an end to the illegality and provocations that take place in their country under the guise of freedom, and take the necessary measures,” has declared the Minister of Justice, Yilmaz Tunc. The minister has described as “scandalous” that the Swedish Police have allowed the burning of a Koran today in front of a mosque in Stockholm. Tunc has stated that freedom of religion and conscience “is the most fundamental human right” and has said that insulting beliefs cannot be justified within the realm of freedom of expression.
“No judicial decision can legitimize this insult, this situation cannot be protected by any democratic State of law,” he denounced. Hakan Fidan, Foreign Minister, for his part, described the burning of the Koran as “despicable” and stressed that the act took place on the first day of the festival of sacrifice. “It is unacceptable that these anti-Islamic acts are allowed under the pretext of freedom of expression. Turning a blind eye to such heinous acts is complicity with the crime,” he said.
An individual burned a copy of the Koran next to a mosque in Stockholm on Wednesday, in the first act of its kind authorized by Swedish police after courts recently overturned a previous ban by the authorities on security grounds. The event, attended by some 200 people and with a strong police presence, took place without serious incidents, although one person was detained by the police for carrying a stone in his hand.
The burning of a copy of the Koran last January in front of the Turkish Embassy by the Danish-Swedish far-right Rasmus Paludan provoked a strong protest from Turkey, which maintains the blockade on the ratification of Sweden’s entry into NATO. The Alliance celebrates a summit the next days 11 and 12 of July in Lithuania.
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