Denmark’s parliament has passed a law that forbids the public desecration of Quran and other holy Books.
Following a 94-77 vote, offenders now face a fine or up to two years in prison.
This came on Thursday after several burnings of the Qur’an, which caused a stir in Muslim countries, Al Jazeera reports.
The Justice Minister of Denmark, Peter Hummelgaard, said the law was necessary to stop the systematic insults that have been going on for a long time. He said the law would protect the security of Denmark and the Danes.
The law defines desecration as “inappropriate treatment of writings with significant religious importance for a recognized religious community.”
This includes burning, tearing or otherwise defiling holy books publicly or in videos intended to be disseminated widely.
The law carries a penalty of a fine or up to two years in prison. The law will be evaluated after three years.
Between July 21 and October 24 of this year, 483 book burnings or flag burnings were reported in Denmark, according to the national police.
After complaints that the initial draft of the law was overly ambiguous and might restrict free speech, it was amended. Not just books, but also objects of great religious significance were included in the original draft.
Some politicians, artists, media, and experts on freedom of speech opposed the law as well, believing it to be a resurgence of the blasphemy law that Denmark had repealed in 2017.
Denmark is not the only nation in Europe with legislation prohibiting the desecration of holy books. Denmark’s Ministry of Justice claims that eight other European nations—Belgium, Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Romania—have comparable legal systems.
