Cartoons crisis

When the crisis over the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed broke out, the EMPA Bureau was the first joint European and Arab body to speak on the subject with a single voice.

At its meetings last March, the EMPA strongly condemned "any offences against religious values" and urged governments "to ensure respect for religious beliefs... and to promote the values of tolerance, freedom and multiculturalism". This applies as well to Muslims after the recent event where an Afghan citizen was condemned to death for converting to Christianity (execution stayed by sending him into permanent exile).

At the same time, the EMPA stressed that freedom of expression is an essential part of any democratic, pluralistic, tolerant and open society.