Freedom of speech is about to become a relic of history in Sweden, and that should worry everyone in the rest of Europe and the United States as well, for we are not all that far behind. Two men are about to go on trial for the crime of burning the Qur’an.
Even those who disapprove of book burnings because of the National Socialist involvement in the practice should understand that larger issues are at play here: Swedish authorities are in the process of submitting to Islamic law, and reinstating blasphemy laws in what up until recently was a free society.
Making Sweden’s surrender all the more piquant is the fact that the two men who are about to be tried are named Salwan Momika and Salwan Najem. Neither is, in other words, a “white supremacist” whose distaste for the book that Muslims hold sacred stems from “racism” or “bigotry.” Both are men whose dislike of the Qur’an stems from a great deal of unpleasant firsthand interaction with those who believe that it is the perfect word of Allah. That fact, however, is routinely ignored in the Western establishment media, which, when it deigns to notice the existence of Momika and Najem at all, dismisses them as “right-wing extremists” in the teeth of all the evidence.
Reuters reported Wednesday that Swedish authorities were planning to try Momika and Najem “for setting fire to the Quran in a series of incidents last year that prompted outrage in the Muslim world and raised fears of attacks by jihadists.” It’s because the Qur’an burnings “raised fears of attacks by jihadists” that Momika and Najem are going on trial. Sweden is surrendering to violent intimidation and discarding the freedom of speech out of cowardice and fear rather than committing itself to doing what it takes to defend its own way of life.
The Swedish Prosecution Authority explained that Momika and Najem committed "offenses of agitation against an ethnic or national group" when they carried out public burnings of the Qu’ran four times. Senior Prosecutor Anna Hankkio claimed that “both men are prosecuted for having on these four occasions made statements and treated the Quran in a manner intended to express contempt for Muslims because of their faith."
It’s safe to say, however, that had there been no threat of jihad terrorism, these two men wouldn’t be facing legal proceedings today. Reuters noted that “Sweden's domestic security service raised its terrorism alert level as a result of the burnings, while neighboring Denmark, which also saw a spate of Quran burnings, tightened its legislation to outlaw the practice.” Meanwhile, Reuters added laconically that “critics have said Sweden and Denmark, two of the most liberal countries in the world, should treat Quran burnings as a form of free speech protected by law.” No kidding, really? What a great idea! Why didn’t anybody think of that before?
Momika, who has faced numerous legal difficulties in Sweden, including efforts to deport him back to his native Iraq, explained what was at stake back in March: “The persecution I am subjected to in Sweden is tantamount to defending Islam and supporting the project of Islamizing Sweden and the West, granting asylum and protecting Islamists, and while those who criticize Islam are expelled and persecuted, this means that the law on freedom of expression is in real danger and Islamic values may be imposed on Western societies and the application of Sharia law. Islamism will inevitably come to them unless we take action.” Just under four months later, he has to face the prospect of the Swedish authorities applying Sharia themselves.
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Momika added, “How can the Swedes be so calm when Sweden is being Islamized before their eyes? What would you say to future generations? Will you tell them that one day an Assyrian came and told us about Islam and warned of its dangers while we handed him over to Iraq to be killed?"
Freedom of expression is on the ropes not just in Sweden, but all over the West. In light of the Western political and media elites’ well-established admiration for authoritarianism and distaste for the freedom of speech, can the U.S. be far from following in Sweden’s footsteps?
