The Danish parliament has passed a law prohibiting the mistreatment of the Quran and other religious texts.
The law was proposed in the wake of several public burnings of the Quran. Now, anyone who is convicted of inappropriate treatment of religious texts could be sentenced to up to two years in jail.
Known as the Quran law or the “Koranloven” in Danish, the policy was supported by the national legislature 94-77. The law prohibits burning, tearing, or defiling religious texts publicly or in videos recorded for mass dissemination.
Protestors burned copies of the Quran during public protests over the summer, including outside the Iraqi Embassy in Copenhagen on July 24.
“It was the second time in just a few days protesters from an ultranationalist group called Danish Patriots burned the Quran, following similar acts by different groups in neighboring Sweden,” reported NPR. “The acts have set off public protests in Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Pakistan and elsewhere. … Protesters previously attacked the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad over anti-Islam demonstrations that took place in Sweden's capital, Stockholm. Iraq's government expelled the Swedish ambassador and pulled the Iraqi chargé d'affaires out of Stockholm over the Scandinavian country's failure to stop the desecration of the Muslim holy book.”
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation called on its members to “take appropriate action” against governments where the Quran was being burned, per the BBC.
Sweden raised its terror threat level to a 4 out of 5 in August. Days earlier, two men set fire to the Quran outside of the Royal Palace in Stockholm.
“We are currently in the most serious security situation since the Second World War,” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told the media in July, per Time Magazine.
Denmark has insisted the new law does not infringe on verbal, written or illustrated expression.
"It is a cornerstone of our democracy that you have the right to express yourself," said Deputy Prime Minister Jakob Ellemann-Jensen in August. "You also have to behave properly."
“Denmark has sought to strike a balance between constitutionally protected freedom of speech, including the right to criticise religion, and national security over fears that Quran burnings would trigger attacks,” reports Al Jazeera.
Opponents of the law argue that any restriction on freedom of expression, particularly the freedom to criticize religion, sets back progress made in Sweden and Denmark to secure liberal values.
“History will judge us harshly for this and with good reason,” said Inger Stojberg, the leader of the Denmark Democrats party which calls for immigration restrictions, in a statement. “What it all comes down to is whether a restriction on freedom of speech is determined by us or whether it is dictated from the outside.”
Before the Quran law takes effect, it must be signed by Queen Margrethe of Denmark.
