Denmark to Ban Public Burning of the Bible and Quran

The Danish government is proposing a law that would make it illegal to destroy or desecrate any holy book in Denmark. The law comes on the heels of a string of recent public burnings of the Quran by anti-Islamic activists which sparked diplomatic protests and violent demonstrations in Muslim countries.

The law is not just about the Quran but pertains to any “holy book” including the Bible, presumably also the Bhagavad Gita, and Buddhist canon.

The Danish center-right government intends to extend Denmark’s existing ban on burning foreign flags by also “prohibiting improper treatment of objects of significant religious significance to a religious community,” according to Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard. In effect, “The bill will make it punishable, for example, to burn the Quran or the Bible in public. It will only aim at actions in a public place or with the intention of spreading in a wider circle.” Indeed, such acts would be punishable by fines or up to two years in prison.

This reminds me of a crazy event in Brisbane, Australia back in 2010 when Alex Stewart, the then 29-year-old university lawyer, made a video of himself using pages from the Quran and Bible to smoke marijuana. He was a member of an atheist group and went on a drug-fuelled expletive rant against religion. No, I’m not making this up!

There are so many things for us to consider: Promoting tolerance of others, respect for cultural diversity, freedom of expression, and freedom to critique religion.

Nobody likes their religion being mocked or wants to see its holy books publicly desecrated, but are we willing to afford the same protections to every religion? Do we want to curtail protests against religion? Do you think someone should be fined or go to jail for burning a copy of L. Ron Hubbard’s Dianetics which is an important text in Scientology?

There are clear pros and cons to this proposed law. Let’s unpack them.