Forum: 'Fitna' seeks to incite hatred

Fri, 04/11/2008 12:32 PM  |  Reader's Forum

I regard the maker of Fitna as a crazy man. He knows nothing about Islam but he dares to explain Islam as if he knew it well. In his bad movie, the Koran is shown incomplete and inclined to put Islam in a bad spot.

He has no good understanding or comprehension of the holy book he uses in the movie. It seems like he never watches on TV how Americans kill innocent people and children in Iraq.

They brought the slogan about nuclear weapons to fight Islam in Iraq, but they can't prove that Iraq had nuclear weapons.

Their real top priority is to take over the property of people in Iraq. The property is oil. We all know that Iraq is rich in oil, while the oil in the U.S. is running out. This is the only reason why they kill Iraqi people.
FAHRI NURAHMAN
Jakarta

Indonesia blocks YouTube -- April 9, p. 1

The banning of YouTube and other free opinion sites by the ministry of information smacks of totalitarianism. It is, first, against the Constitution which guarantees freedom of expression.

It is also establishing a state religion by favoring one religion over the others, but more importantly it is trampling over human rights.

These are steps more commonly taken by dictatorships and other tyrannies fearful of the truth, such as the communist regime in China.

If a group of persons are so easily offended by another's opinion, then they need to address their anger management problems, instead of resorting to their primitive base emotions.

It is especially ironic as the offending parts of Fitna are actually writings taken directly from the Koran. It appears that Wilders managed to get his target audience to swallow the bait, by taking the action which just proves his point.
BRIEN DOYLE
Jakarta

First, I want to express my surprise that most upset and angry Muslims I spoke with admit they never saw the movie. Second, I want to assure that the movie is no attack of the West toward Islam.

Believe me, there are a lot of insulting cartoons, movies, jokes about the pope or Jesus Christ here as well. This is part of Europe's freedom of speech.

Finally, the way to convince the world that Islam is a peaceful religion is not by using violence. A clear stand of moderate Muslims against any form of radicalism within Islam would be much more convincing.
ERIC
Brussels

Muslim leaders warning that violence could continue (The Jakarta Post, March 7) is either a thinly veiled threat or a bonus for Wilders. I sincerely hope it's neither.
BEN
Semarang

Telkom to cut rates -- April 8, p. 1

There are still 24 hours in a day, I hope. Telkom's new rates account for only 13 hours -- 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. What about the rate for the remaining 11 hours? Or is there a mistake in your report? Or have I missed something?

The rate reduction for the time slot 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. is insignificant to say the least, just about 2 percent. But your report is only about the 46 percent tariff reduction which applies for only one hour in a day.

In the recent past The Jakarta Post carried articles about misleading advertisements on mobile phone charges. But the reports never did any in-depth study to tell us poor users the true facts.

There is one mobile phone company which advertises its great low tariff on a few local TV stations -- the tariff which rises from the bottom of the sea is several zeros after the decimal point.

We know that this is nothing but pigeon dung. What is the truth? Can you put one of your super sleuths on the job, please?
YASH
Jakarta

House approves Boediono -- April 8, p. 1

I specifically refer to the quote "The decision was made through a vote after the commission held 'fit and proper' test (sic) to examine Boediono's vision and mission."

I am, to say the least, dismayed that a decision on such an important position as central banker could be made after simply an eye examination and making sure his mission fitted properly (even if it was an imported one)!

I would think, at the very least, that they should check his blood pressure and cholesterol as well and perhaps even refit his mission.
IAN GREGORY
Sydney

Will history repeat itself?

At the end of 1903, Col. F. Younghusband with more than 3,000 soldiers entered Tibetan territories.

To avoid bloodshed, Tibetan Gen. Yetung pledged that if the Tibetans make no attack, the British should also not make any attack against Tibetans. Younghusband replied that "unless we are ourselves attacked, we shall not attack the Tibetans".

Despite the agreement, in March 1904 the British took the lives of a few thousand soldiers and civilians near a village called Guru.

According to Younghusband's account of killed and wounded, Tibetan casualties numbered 500. Others claim it was as high as 1,300.

According to the British, the fighting was triggered by the Tibetans firing, but according to other witnesses, the British were killing Tibetans with machine guns as they were running away.

The day after the massacre Younghusband telegraphed his superiors: "I trust the tremendous punishment they have received will prevent further fighting and induce them to at last to negotiate."

Will history repeat itself or will the Chinese government refrain from violence and be open to a dialogue and can the Dalai Lama convince his people to stop the violence on their side too, to enable a peaceful solution?

After all, when one humiliates one's boss in public, the chance of a getting a promotion will become substantially slimmer compared to that of getting fired.
YANTI
Jakarta

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