Making Sense of the Cartoon Controversy

Feb. 8, 2006 — -- World leaders were caught off guard by Muslim outrage over 12 cartoons that negatively depicted the Prophet Mohammed in the European press. A torrent of anger and protest has rocked Muslim countries from Indonesia to tiny Lebanon, at times turning violent.

World leaders were also surprised by the spectacular victory of Hamas (official name: the Islamic Resistance Movement) in Palestinian parliamentary elections last month. The militant group swept the governing Fatah party from power, winning 74 of 132 seats; Fatah won 45. As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said: "I've asked why nobody saw it coming. It does say something about us not having a good enough pulse."

But Muslim protests and Hamas' triumph are neither surprising nor isolated developments. They are an expression of Islamic identity under siege -- an extreme response by people who sense internal and external danger. They are part of a trend that is transforming the political landscape of Muslim societies.

Mainstream Islamists, whose goal is to establish governments based on shariah, or Koranic law, are increasingly seen as the real defenders of the ummah, Muslim community, against foreign encroachments, be it military or cultural invasion. When the cartoons that depicted Mohammed were first published by Denmark's largest newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, on Sept. 30, there was hardly any public outcry for three weeks.

Islamic activists waged an intense media campaign to publicize the matter and criticized the religious and ruling establishment for not taking a more vocal stand. They led the way, and their mobilization efforts paid off handsomely.

Ordinary Muslims responded to the Islamists message because they were genuinely offended by the public depiction of their prophet in a hostile light. There is also a widespread perception among Muslims that the West is waging a real war -- under the cover of the war on terror -- against Islam and Muslims. Public opinion surveys show for many Muslims who believe that their deepest spiritual values -- their Islamic identity -- are being targeted, the cartoon controversy is seen as another battle in the wider Western onslaught against Islam. Thus, the cartoons touched a raw nerve and poured fuel on a simmering cultural fire. All Islamic activists had to do was stoke the fire.