After the controversies around the burned Korans in the Scandinavian countries, having caused unrest in several Muslim countries, the Danish government chose to crack down. A bill presented this Friday, August 25 would aim to ban the burning of the Koran.
The law will “prohibit the inappropriate treatment of objects of significant religious significance to a religious community,” Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said at a press briefing, adding that it specifically targets burning or trample these objects in public places. “A fundamentally contemptuous and unsympathetic act”, the fact of burning a Koran “harms Denmark and Danish interests”, estimated the Minister of Justice.
The new text is to be included in Chapter 12 of the Penal Code, which deals with national security. “This is the heart and the motivation of what we do,” he insisted. “We cannot continue to sit idly by while a few individuals do whatever they can to provoke backlash,” Hummelgaard said.
The legal provision will also apply to desecrations of the Bible, Torah or religious symbols like the crucifix. The offender is liable to a fine and a two-year prison sentence.