Leave Indonesia, ambassador warns Danes
Denmark advised its citizens to leave Indonesia today, as anger over the drawings of the Prophet Muhammad in Western newspapers spread across the world’s most populous Muslim nation.
“The Foreign Ministry recommends that Danes already in Indonesia leave and that those interested in coming postpone their plans,” said Geert Aagaard Anderson, Denmark’s ambassador to Indonesia, who said there was little security in place to protect his citizens.
Danish missions in the country have been temporarily closed.
Protests have been held in the capital, Jakarta, and at least two other cities, with demonstrators throwing rocks and setting fires at several Danish consulates.
More rallies are planned today.
Anderson said he did not know exactly how many Danes were in Indonesia. Nearly 250 had registered at the embassy, he said, but the number was probably much higher.
“My concern is that I have not seen any adequate security measures,” Anderson said. “I have not seen any security measures at all to protect the Danish embassy or other places.”
The 12 cartoons first appeared in a Danish newspaper in September, but have since been republished by media outlets across the world, most of which have done so in claiming to support free speech.
One of the drawings shows Muhammad wearing a turban shaped as a bomb. Another portrays him holding a sword, his eyes covered by a black rectangle.
Muslims were angered because Islam prohibits any depiction of the prophet to prevent idolatry.
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