Indonesia Abuzz Over Cartoons Belitting Prophet
By Mohd Nasir Yusoff
JAKARTA, Nov 20 (Bernama) — Indonesia was abuzz Thursday over cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad which appeared on an Internet blog, and Islamic organisations protested vehemently against the belittling of the prophet and called for the blogger to be arrested and penalised.
Police have appealed for calm while they investigated the appearance of the cartoons on the blog in Batak, one of the local Indonesian languages.
A police spokesman said it had yet to be proven that the cartoons were the work of someone of another religion who wanted to belittle Islam and that the server and blog were not hosted in Indonesia.
Communication and Information Minister Muhammad Nuh said his ministry would track the blogger and impose appropriate action under the law.
Muhammad Ismail Yusanto, spokesman of the Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia Islamic organisation, said the cartoonist should be sentenced to death.
Antara reported that the blogsite was the work of a Batak individual because it was hosted in the “Batak Toba” language.
Meanwhile, an Internet technology expert often used as a source of reference, Roy Suryo, said it could not be confirmed that the blogger was of Batak descent as anyone could have posted the cartoons to tarnish the image of the Bataks and spark inter-religious strife.
Source: BERNAMA.com.my