What did you think of all the furore after the Archbishop of Canterbury's speech last Thursday? As a result of a carefully crafted speech about the practice of faith and the rule of law in a multi faith society he has been condemned by many fo9r comments about using some aspects of sharia law in relation to marriage and divorce matters. What he was proposing was in a sense quite inocuous, but the reaction has been amazing. Largely because the "tabloid" media have made sensational headlines and run articles that bear little resemblence to anything the A/Bp actually said. Also, they have played on the latent fears the general British public has of anything Islamic.
The greater tragedy is the assault on free speech. The reaction would cause any leader a pause, will I speak about this or that issue or not?
Civil society is based in part upon the freedom of its members to express their point of view.
If the reaction to the A/Bp's speech is anything to go by, we are at risk of being ruled by the mob!
We need to value free speech, and honour it. We need to encourage our thinkers and leaders to express a wide variety of views, we need to have our minds stretched so that we can have genuine progress and a richer and more harmonious society; built on respect for the other and tolerance for a variety of points of view.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
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