The religious cartoons about the prophet Mohamed published in Denmark have had a certain impact on Georgia as well.

About 1000 local residents rallied on February 8 in Marneuli, a town in the Kvemo Kartli region, with a predominantly ethnic Azeri Population, to protest the cartoons which satirize the Prophet Mohammed. Before this demonstration, Imam Ali Aliev had asked both an Ombudsman and the religious leaders in the country to express their solidarity with the Islamic world.

 

On February 10 the Coordination Center for Religious Organizations at the Georgian Orthodox Patriarch and the Religious Council at the Ombudsman’s office convened separate sessions to address these developments. Both the representatives of the religions and the Ombudsman’s office condemned the insensitivity of the cartoons as well as the irrationality of responding to such insults in a violent manner. The religious leaders released a statement in which it is confirmed that both the freedom of the press and the freedom of religion are both valuable achievements of democracy, and that one cannot be ignored at the expense of the other. The president of EBC of Georgia, Pastor Merab Gaprindashvili said, that at the end of the meeting in the patriarchate the Patriarch told me with a beautiful smile >> “I considered you as our priest.” <<

The Ombudsman’s statement stated that freedom of speech should be respected; however it should also not be abused. The Ombudsman’s office also criticized the Georgian media for sometimes employing an unprofessional approach. The statement asked all journalists to champion tolerance and respect towards the rest of the society.