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Danish television news team visits KT office

As part of a whirlwind tour of places in the Middle East, they wanted to discover the effects the blasphemous caricatures have had on Muslims living here.

Henrik Lerche, Correspondent for News and Foreign Affairs on the channel's Horisont programme, took a little time out of his busy schedule to discuss the situation in the wake of the caricatures appearing in the Copenhagen-based Jyllands-Posten newspaper.

"I hope when the flames have died, we can start learning about one another more," he said. "I think sometimes for the Danes — and other countries in Europe — that it's perhaps a little difficult to accept that other cultures take their religions very seriously. It's been a wake-up call for Denmark," he added.

Lerche revealed that he is investigating the effects the incident has had on Danish exports to the Middle East.

"We produce a weekly documentary similar to the BBC's Panorama programme. Obviously this is a relevant story and we're covering different aspects of it," he said. "We're specifically out here doing the part on the boycott of Danish goods," he added.

Lerche suggested that the boycott of produce is having an effect on business.

"The dairy factory in Riyadh we visited has closed production, and they are now waiting for it to end," he revealed. "Once it's calmed down, they'll start up production again."

Lerche was keen to point out that he hasn't visited a large number of places in the Middle East, but of the places he has visited, he said of Dubai: "Dubai has been more moderate, and fairly balanced."

When talking of Denmark, a country of five million with an approximately 200,000 strong Muslim community, he said his countrymen were taken aback by the worldwide outcry that followed the publication of the cartoon.

"I think Denmark was very surprised that it became such a big issue," he said. "Mainly, the Danish public feel sad that their country has been portrayed as one that has had digs at Muslims. We have always been considered a tolerant nation, and I think we are. Everyone's disappointed that this happened," he concluded.

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