This seems to be becoming something of a trend. Unhappy with depictions of the Prophet Mohammad posted on Facebook, Bangladesh has followed Pakistan in banning access to the site and protesters have taken to the street with flags and Zippo lighters. The target of ire? International Draw Mohammad Day (May 20), which encouraged web denizens to pull out their pen and paper and engage in their right poke fun at the Prophet. It seems to me that some Muslim-majority countries are taking Quit Facebook Day all too seriously, although I don’t think the protestors are too concerned with user privacy issues.
Below, Muslim protesters shout slogans and torch a Swedish flag during an anti-Facebook protest in Dhaka on May 28. Swedish artist Lars Vilks, known for his (shall we say) piquant Mohammad caricatures, is apparently the catalyst of this recent round of flag-burning. Apparently some students in Bangladesh are now protesting the ban, saying the government is “interfering in the business of expressing opinions”. It’s good to see something pushing back against the instincts of the mob.
UPDATE: Bangladesh has now restored access to Facebook, after the site “apologised” and promised to remove the Draw Mohammad Day page from the site. I’m not sure this can really be described as a victory, especially now that Turkey has also jumped on the bandwagon, banning access to YouTube for hosting clips “insulting” national icon Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
