Freedom Crusader Criticized by Desmond Tutu

(From cartoons demonstrations in Turkey)

The Danish freedom crusader, Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, is being criticized by Desmond Tutu. Tutu participates in the UN meeting in the Alliance of Civilizations initiative, where he is interviewed to the Danish paper Politiken (28.2.06).

The Danish cartoons case has dominated big parts of the agenda of this initiative that was started before the cartoons case got under way. It surprises Tutu that Fogh Rasmussen refused to meet the muslims' representatives, for instance the ME ambassadors. He calls it arrogance on the part of the Danish PM. The Danes haven't learned how to live in a multicultural society.

Tutu further thinks it is due to Danes having a kind of subconscious fright dating back to the time when the moors invaded most of Europe. That is probably not correct. The Danes' arrogance is probably more connected to the feeling of superiority that the self flattery about welfare has led to. The Danes are proud of their welfare and the high scores they receive in GDP pr capita comparisons and competitive indexes. What they forget is that this on the other hand must go hand in hand with obligations to other parts of the world where people are not so fortunate. The Danes want to have their cake and eat it too.