Dutch envoy summoned over anti-Islam film
By Our Diplomatic Correspondent

ISLAMABAD—The Ambassador of the Netherlands in Islamabad was called to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday by Additional Secretary (Europe) and a strong protest was lodged with him on the internet release of Dutch Parliamentarian Geert Wilder’s film defaming Islam.
He was told that the Government of Pakistan strongly condemned the release of the defamatory film which deeply offended the sentiments of Muslims all over the world and which was expected to result in expressions of strong abhorrence and outrage.
The Additional Secretary further underlined that insult to other religions could never be justified on the basis of freedom of expression and ran counter to the efforts of those individuals and countries that were building bridges between religions and civilizations.
Referring to Foreign Secretary’s earlier meeting with the Dutch Ambassador on the subject, the Additional Secretary stated that it was incumbent upon the Dutch Government to take all necessary measures in order to minimize the impact of the incident and to prosecute Geert Wilder for defamation and deliberately hurting Muslims’ sentiments. The Additional Secretary underlined that Article 137 of the Dutch penal code prohibits defamation and incitement to hatred.
The Dutch Ambassador termed the release of the film on the internet as extremely unfortunate and as a despicable act, something the Dutch Government has strongly condemned. He referred to the statement of the Dutch Prime Minister which was issued immediately after the release of the film and said that the statement underlined that the film had no other purpose but to cause offence. The Dutch Government strongly rejected the message of the film which was to equate violence with Islam. The Ambassador also referred to the Dutch Government’s earlier efforts to block the release of the film on television channels and to repeated negotiations with Geert Wilder impressing upon him not to release the film. He said that this was an individual act for which the Dutch people as a whole should not be blamed. The Dutch Government will now institute a criminal investigation into the affair and that Wilder would have to bear the consequence of his actions.
Iran, Pakistan and Indonesia on Friday condemned a film by a Dutch lawmaker that accuses the Koran of inciting violence, as Dutch Muslim leaders urged restraint.
Islam critic Geert Wilders launched his short video on the Internet on Thursday evening. Titled “Fitna,” an Arabic term sometimes translated as “strife,” it intersperses images of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States and Islamist bombings with quotations from the Koran, Islam’s holy book.
The film urges Muslims to tear out “hate-filled” verses from the Koran and starts and finishes with a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad with a bomb under his turban, accompanied by the sound of ticking.
The cartoon, first published in Danish newspapers, ignited violent protests around the world and a boycott of Danish products in 2006. Many Muslims regard any depiction of the Prophet as offensive.