Beyond the ban

After Pakistan, now Bangladesh has banned the social networking website Facebook over a page that calls users to draw sketches of the Prophet Mohammad. But is it the right approach to deal with such problems, is the question I would ask. The government's move seems legitimate as both the countries have a Muslim-dominated populace and it might have created a law-and -order problem. However, it goes without saying that bans have only popularised the subject in question.

Is the freedom of expression of one individual more important than the peaceful co-existence ofu00a0 communities?

But, things turn ugly when it comes to religion. Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa against Salman Rushdie and his Satanic Verses. The edict proved a boon for the author and the publisher both. The fatwa brought unprecedented international media attention to the book and the author, making both of them bestsellers. But there were some very sane voices too, which were plunged in the clamour for capital punishment to the UK-based author. The best reaction came from the secretary general of the Arab League. However distasteful Rushdie's book is, he has become the focus of a dimension of intolerance that is not tolerated by Islam itself?
I would also like to remind the readers here of those who took to the streets after M F Husain painted Hindu goddesses in nude. Everybody did everything to condemn the fundamentalists who stood up against his freedom of expression. The manner of protest may have been intolerant but the pertinent question here is, is the freedom of expression of one individual more important than the peaceful co-existence of communities. Politicians have been booked for making provocative speeches and inciting hatred. Why shouldn't the same laws be applied to those who use social networking websites for spreading mischief?

Everybody condemns the placard-holding people on the street but what about those who trigger such reactions. Tolerance and peace cannot be one-way traffic. Why would somebody act in a manner, which is bound to ruffle so many feathers and create disharmony? Somebody told me that artists and creative people live on a plane that is beyond the conventional dimensions of society. Yet they are part of society and cannot be allowed to break the rules. If there are those who protest to gain mileage, then it must also be conceded that there is no dearth of those who cause controversy just for the sake of it. We must learn to distinguish mischief from creativity. And the last thing I would like to listen to now is some politician calling for a national debate over the subject.u00a0u00a0