How do Muslims feel about caricatures of the prophet and do you think that freedom of speech is compatible with BLASPHEMY law?

Yeah, my question is clearly in reference to the horrific assassinations last week in Paris of the Charlie Hebdo's publishing team.
I am not here to debate whether or not the caricatures of the prophet that Charlie Hebdo published years ago and that started all the drama were offensive and islamophobic (I think they were).
I am not here to debate whether or not the journalists deserved to die (I think most sane people would agree that no one deserves such horrendous death).

I am here to know if Muslims could accept caricatures of the Prophet as long as they are not racist or islamophobic.
This wednesday, the surviving team of Charlie Hebdo published a new caricature of the prophet saying 'I am Charlie' and 'Everthing is forgiven'.
[img]culturebox.francetvinfo.fr/sites/default/files/assets/images/2015/01/charlie_une_0.jpg[/img]
I rather liked it and I thought it presented the phrophet in a positive light as forgiving and loving. Yet, around the world, in Muslim countries, violent demonstrations erupted from Senegal to Turkey or Yemen, churches and synagogues were targeted. I really don't understand why. Some Muslisms told me that the prophet should not be represented AT ALL! AT ALL in Islam! Yet I was listenning to an Islam specialist based in France called Maleck Chebel and he said that the taboo of the representation of the prophet did not originate in Islam but under the Byzantine empire in the 7th century.
Moreover, even if it did originated from Islam, why should blasphemy law be imposed on people in democracies or non-theocracies? Are Quran, Torah and Bible now constititions?

Because it all comes down to that, BLASPHEMY LAW - something being forbidden in a religion. In democracies, one's right ends where another' starts. So people can express their opinion or point of view on a religion as long as they don't insult, degrade, dehumanise people from the said religion. Charlie Hebdo should have been condamned years ago when the Muslim community in France sued them, but we all know how racist the French judicial system is. Anyway, as long as any one draws the prophet without insulting where is the problem?
And what really shocked me was the answer to the new caricature: Violence, more violence and some threats. Seven churches were burned down today in Niamey because of this inoffensive caricature, can you believe that? Charlie Hebdo publihed caricatures of Jesus Christ on the cross, IN ERE.CTION and I dont recall Christians violently demonstrating or threatenning to kill anybody.

I don't want to stigmatise Muslisms, I really don't want to but it is extremelly shocking for me to realise that the Muslism world has become so close-off to dialogue and so keen on extreme measures. I even thought countries like Senegal or Turkey were any better but they are not. So many people can't understand that NOT EVERYONE ON EARTH live by their God's law and it is pathetic.

This thread is open to anyone even Christians, religious traditionalists and atheists. Do you think that a free state, human rights and democracy are compatible with blasphemy law?

Op, don't start another war here.

You know how touchy this issue can be.

In any case, you know the answer, so why ask the question?

Let sleeping dogs lie, abeg.

Unionised:
Op, don't start another war here.

You know how touchy this issue can be.

In any case, you know the answer, so why ask the question?

Let sleeping dogs lie, abeg.

Excuse me, I am new here, have we met?
Are you mistaking me with someone else?
Which war are you talking about? Post the links of the threads if my answers are there. Thanks.

username792:


Excuse me, I am new here, have we met?
Are you mistaking me with someone else?
Which war are you talking about? Post the links of the threads if my answers are there. Thanks.

Don't take it personal.

You are welcome to nairaland.

This is potentially a hot topic.

Don't heat up the section.

Unionised:


Don't take it personal.

You are welcome to nairaland.

This is potentially a hot topic.

Don't heat up the section.

Yeah, I just scrolled down the section and now realised that it is indeed a hot topic :/
I really didnt know
I still want people's intake on blasphemy law thought. This concerns everybody not only Muslisms.

Speaking for myself as a Muslim, i think i am more embarrassed and frustrated by the reaction of my co-religionists than the cartoons.

I don't see anything wrong in depicting Muhammad pictorally and i don't feel the cartoon tainted Muhammad 's character because everyone is innocent till proven guilty.

The cartoons were mocking... on another hand these rules are outlined for Muslims, people of other faiths are entitled to do as they please to do.

That said, no one should die for mocking Islam. I'm 100 percent sure murder is more haraam than mocking the Prophet (pbuh).

I would also like to know why a book like the Satanic Verses written by Salman Rushdie could elicit such a vitrolic and violent response from muslims.

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