After watching ‘Fitna‘ yesterday, I wasn’t sure whether to post a reaction that night here on the blog. The film failed to move me either way. It was a series of images which we have all seen before, especially regular readers of blogs, while the only thing distinguishing it from a U.S presidential campaign ad was that Wilders’ argument is directed at the entire religion and not just at an identified radical strain.

Let’s face it, the film was boring. It didn’t live up to its hype. However now that it seems the initial reaction to the film was one of relief, it may very well shine the spotlight on Wilders’ argument. It is an argument that I do not believe can stand much scrutiny if considered honestly, and one that is not easily proven by a 15 minute film.

Of course, the IRI responded quickly. The Iranian Foreign Minister was quoted as saying “This heinous measure by a Dutch lawmaker and a British establishment … is indicative of the continuation of the evilness and deep vengeance such Western nationals have against Islam and Muslims.”

In Pakistan, a few demonstrations took place, none of them attracting over 100 people. The story was still managed to make the IHT. Indonesia also issued a statement, saying:

“We are of the view that the film has a racist flavour and is an insult to Islam, hidden under the cover of freedom of expression,” a Foreign Ministry spokesman said. “We call on Indonesian people not to be incited.”

Once again, however, all this pales in comparison to reaction within Holland. I wrote this at the beginning of the month:

Yet what is worrying about this story is its’ propensity to attract judgment on the basis of foreign reaction. The movie’s release and broadcast may not necessarily stoke severe social tensions within the Netherlands, but looks bound to provoke an international reaction disproportionate to the issue itself. Religious leaders from Egypt and Syria have demanded the EU take action against those who insult religion, for example, bringing back into focus an increasingly familiar debate of cultural sensitivity versus freedom of speech.

I still think this story has a way to go before people forget about it, although it shouldn’t provide us with much more than increased calls for interfaith dialogue as well as the lowest common denominator protests we read about every so often. One hopes at least that we don’t see an exaggerated reaction to a movie that isn’t very offensive.

Karim blogs over at Outsider On The Inside

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