A/HRC/4/27 page 8 II. ISSUES A. The Special Rapporteur’s visit to Denmark 22. At the invitation of the Danish Human Rights Institute, the Special Rapporteur went to Denmark in April 2006 to participate in a number of meetings, including with Government officials, in which he gathered significant information regarding the “Danish Cartoons Affaire”. 23. On September 2005, the publication in the newspaper Jylland Posten, of a series of cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad as, inter alia, a terrorist, provoked anger within the Muslim community in Denmark. This event followed the broadcasting in August 2005 by the Danish Radio Holger of a controversial programme in which the radio-speaker delivered a hate speech calling for the deportation of all Muslims back to their countries of origin, or alternatively, for their physical elimination from European soil. Shortly after the broadcasting of that programme, the Danish National Radio and TV Commission withdrew Radio Holger’s licence for three months. 24. In spite of significant efforts to defuse the tension caused by the publication of the drawings, the quarrel spread beyond Danish borders. The Arab League’s Ministers Council, at a Conference held in Cairo in December 2005, issued a statement expressing surprise and discontent at the failure of the Danish Government to act against the newspaper. The Prime Minister of Denmark, in his 2006 New Year’s address, condemned attempts to demonize groups of people based on their religion without explicitly referring to the Jyllands Posten case. The Prime Minister had earlier reiterated that, in Denmark, the press and media are completely independent from the political power and that his Government has no intention of breaking this long-established tradition. 25. On 30 January 2006, Jyllands Posten issued a press statement apologizing to the Muslim world stressing that it had not been their intention to be offensive. The newspaper’s statement was followed by a press statement of the Danish Prime Minister on 31 January in which, while emphasizing that Denmark attaches fundamental importance to the freedom of expression, he stressed that the Danish Government condemns any expression that attempts to discriminate against people on the basis of their religion or ethnic background. 26. In early February, Ministers from several Arab countries urged the Government of Denmark to act against Jyllands Posten for offences to Islam. In the following wave of protests that spread throughout the Muslim world, around 200 people lost their lives. In addition, Danish embassies and other Western offices were attacked by the mob, Danish goods and products banned in Muslim countries’ markets, and some Westerners briefly kidnapped by extremist organizations. Reportedly, several death threats were issued against the cartoon illustrators and the newspaper. Special Rapporteur’s findings 27. In Denmark, article 77 of the Constitution prohibits censorship and preventive measures. The Danish Media Liability Act (6 June 1991) established the Danish Press Council