Date of article: 01 April 2008
Source: Bernama

The Netherlands has condemned the violent acts in the controversial movie "Fitna" which has angered Muslims worldwide and said it rejected the film's interpretation of equating Islam with violence.

Netherlands Ambassador to Malaysia Lody Embrechts said on Monday the film did not in any way reflect the perspective or policy of the Dutch government.

The movie shows the opinion of one man and not that of the Dutch government, he said.

He said Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenede has said that the film shows images of violent acts and holds the Quran responsible for them.

"The Dutch government condems such acts and those who commit them. The film equates Islam with violence. The Dutch government rejects this interpretation," he told Bernama here.

Fitna is a 15-minute film posted on a website on Thursday that highly criticises Islam, setting verses of the Quran against a background of violent images from terrorist attacks.

Dutch legislator Geert Wilders created the film, which also shows statements from radical clerics and cites verses from the Quran interspersed with images of the Sept 11 attack on the United States, the 2004 commuter train bombings in Spain and the murder later that year of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh on an Amsterdam street.

Embrechts said the vast majority of Muslims reject extremism and violence. In fact, the victims are often also Muslims, he added.

He said the Dutch government, for this reason, regrets that Wilders released this film and believes it serves no purpose other than to cause offence.

"But feeling offended must never be used as an excuse for aggression and threats," he said.

The ambassador said the Dutch government was heartened by the initial restrained reactions of Dutch Muslim organisations, adding that Muslims, Christians and people of other convictions can easily live together in peace.

"The problem is not religion, but misuse of religion to sow hatred and intolerance. That's why the Netherlands calls for respect for everyone's deepest convictions," he said.

Embrechts said the Dutch government was very much aware of the concerns and the sentiments about this film in the international Muslim community.

He said the Dutch government stands for a society in which freedom and respect go hand-in-hand.

"Such a society demands dedication and commitment and, I believe, the Muslim world has a right to be angry about the film Wilders produced. However, what we should not allow is for the movie to hijack emotions and negatively impact the relationship between the Netherlands and the Muslim world.

"More than before, it is important to dialogue and work together in order to create understanding and avoid extremism," he added.

For more information about Islam in the Netherlands, please click here.