The non-Muslim editor of the Sarawak Tribune, an English local newspaper in Malaysia, has resigned after publishing controversial cartoons satirizing the Prophet Mohammed in Saturday’s edition.
The Sarawak Tribune reprinted the cartoons in its Saturday edition after its editor-on-duty made an oversight in looking to illustrate the story, said Polit Hamzah, executive director of the paper’s publisher.
“He has voluntary resigned and apologized for the things he did” said Polit. Reuters news agency said the Malaysian Government will demand the publisher explain its actions, though the Sarawak Tribune printed a front-page statement of regret in its Sunday edition.
According to Adnkronosinternational website, Noh Omar, Malaysia’s Security Minister said that he will ask the paper for a detailed explanation. If he failed to get this, the paper could lose its license to publish.
Meanwhile Malaysia expressed its deepest regret over the publication of caricatures of Prophet Muhammed in Danish newspaper and also some other European countries, which have insulted Islam and became furious across the Muslim World.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said in a statement: “This deplorable act is a blatant disregard for Islamic sensitivities over the use of such images which are particularly insulting and forbidden by Islam.
It is even more regrettable that newspapers and journals in some other countries such as Norway, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy and Spain had seen fit to reproduce the offending caricatures despite worldwide protests against the publication of those images. This is a deliberate act of provocation.They should cease and desist from doing so.”
The Prime Minister also called upon Malaysians to remain calm and rational.
“Let the perpetrators of the insult see the gravity of their own mistakes which only they themselves can and should correct.” he said.
Malaysia is mainly Muslim and Islam is the official religion.
