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for business, cartoons no laughing matter
by amena bakr
the furore over satirical cartoons of prophet muhammad has created
a storm of controversy around the world and highlighted the extent
to which people will defend both freedom of expression and religion.
twelve caricatures, including one in which prophet muhammad is depicted
wearing a bomb-shaped turban with an ignited fuse, were first published
in the danish independent newspaper jyllands-posten on september
30, 2005, but became the flashpoint of worldwide protest four months
later after a danish muslim delegation touring the middle east circulated
them as examples of western anti-muslim sentiment.
the cartoons violate the traditional islamic prohibition against
images of the prophet, but perhaps more offensively, insinuate that
islam is a religion based on terrorism. outraged muslims worldwide
denounced the drawings, and the apparent lack of a timely, appropriate
response by the danish government [see sidebar, page 28]. in a number
of incidents, angry muslim protesters burned danish flags, threatened
european nationals and burned down embassies and churches.
most muslims, however, have resorted to more peaceful means of protest
including a consumer boycott of all danish products. the boycott
began in saudi arabia on january 26, when supermarkets there began
removing all danish products from their shelves. it soon spread
to other gulf countries and egypt, fueled by an e-mail and sms campaign.
"for the love of prophet muhammad, boycott all danish products,"
said one e-mail that included a list of danish products and their
logos.
according to danish foreign ministry figures, denmark's exports
to muslim countries were valued at 14 billion kroner (£e 12.9
billion) last year, amounting to 3 percent of all exports, of which
some 8 billion kroner (£e 7.3 billion) were destined for middle
east markets. however, this does not include the production of danish
companies whose subsidiaries operate local factories in the region,
or revenue from transnational sectors such as shipping, communications
and services. in all, a sustained boycott could threaten 10,000
danish jobs.
"i think this boycott will be effective because it's not only
egypt that's taking part in it, it's the entire arab and muslim
world," said khaled hussein, the owner of a small grocery store
in cairo.
egyptian supermarkets have thrown their weight behind the boycott
by removing all danish products from their store shelves. metro
market, part of the mansour group, was the first local chain to
take action in late january. alfa market, seoudi and smaller locally
owned supermarkets and grocers quickly followed suit.
meanwhile, majid al-futtaim, the middle east franchise partner of
french hypermarket chain carrefour, ordered the its branches in
egypt, united arab emirates, oman and qatar to pull all products
of danish origin from their shelves. a sign on an empty shelf in
a cairo carrefour outlet, previously lined with danish dairy products,
read: "dear clients, we express our solidarity with the islamic
and egyptian community. carrefour [does not] carry danish products."
the decision to join the boycott marks a departure from the non-political
role that supermarkets have traditionally assumed. herve majidier,
country head of carrefour egypt, says the company's participation
is a clear example of corporate social responsibility, and an appropriate
response to the public outrage over the cartoons. "insulting
any person, is one thing, but insulting prophet muhammad is a completely
different matter."
complicating the matter is the decision by some editors to republish
the controversial caricatures. more than a dozen western newspapers,
as well as some publications in the middle east, have republished
some or all of the cartoons. some of these newspapers sacked their
editors, many of whom cited the need to explain the root of the
controversy.
carrefour was put in a precarious position when french newspaper
france soir republished some of the cartoons on february 1. "we
are not boycotting french products because the french government
neutralized the situation by taking a fast and good decision to
fire the editor-in-chief," he said, referring to the editor's
sacking by the newspaper's egyptian christian director, raymond
lakah, though other reports indicate the government made the call.
he added that many papers reprinted the cartoons only to satisfy
the curiosity of their readers who wanted to see them, and not as
an insult.
in reality, admit supermarket managers, denmark is an easy target
because only a handful of danish consumer goods - from lurpack butter
to lego toys - are available in egypt. "we have substitutes
for all these products that are either made locally or imported
from other countries," said emad mahmoud, manager of alfa market's
giza branch.
he says the supermarket chain would have been more apprehensive
about the boycott if it involved us products. imported american
goods account for about 35 percent of store sales and many are without
viable substitutes. to remove them from inventory would severely
hurt the chain's revenues.
boycotts of us products following the outbreak of the palestinian
intifada in late 2000 and the run-up to the 2003 iraq war were widely
acknowledged to have hurt the egyptian economy more than the american
companies they targeted. egyptian workers employed by local factories
that produce us brands lost their jobs, while the us parent firms
barely noticed the dent in their global revenues. the boycott on
danish products is expected to be more effective because almost
all these locally available products are imported.
majidier, however, admits that carrefour's boycott may upset customers
who still wish to purchase danish products. "i am not here
to be loved by everyone, but i am here to be respected by the majority
of people and that's why i had to take this action even though it
might upset a few people," he said.
he insists that this is not a case of picking on denmark because
it is a small country. instead it is a stand on the principle that
freedom of expression should not allow for the insulting of a religion
with impunity. "if i am asked to stop working with a company
that produces thousands of products i would do it if it's based
on a strong principle like this one," he says.
rather than return his inventory of danish products to his suppliers,
majidier donated them to charity. an unspecified volume of food
and household products were given to orphanages, though he refused
to disclose the value of the goods for fear it would be perceived
as advertising.
despite apologies from the offending newspaper and the danish government,
supermarkets are not budging - at least not as long as the public
outcry continues. "i can't tell you exactly when we will return
danish products. it all depends on how the public responds to the
apologies," says majidier. he went on to emphasize that he
would not be the first store to return the products to its shelves.
danish food and household goods are the obvious targets of the boycott,
but the country's pharmaceutical companies are also feeling the
sting. according to denmark's foreign ministry, pharamceutical products
account for 14 percent of total goods affected by the muslim boycott.
a media campaign led by the egyptian doctors' syndicate and the
egyptian pharmacists' syndicate is urging people to stop consuming
danish medicine and seek alternatives.
health ministry spokesman dr. abdelrahman shahin, however, emphasizes
that this is a consumer-level campaign and the government has not
put any ban on importing or distributing danish medical products.
"the government is not part of this boycott; it is the choice
of the people. [however,] we have to ensure their safety by providing
them with other choices."
he notes that while only 13 of the 4,000 registered medicines on
the egyptian market are of danish origin, all of which have substitutes,
some of these pharmaceutical products carry enormous health ramifications.
danish pharmaceuticals giant novo norodisk, for instance, is egypt's
largest supplier of insulin, accounting for about 60 percent of
all supplies. the company has been contracted to provide $35 million
worth of insulin and insulin products to the egyptian government
in fy 2005-06. observers fear a decision by pharmacies to boycott
the medicine could put the lives of egypt's 3 million diabetics
at risk.
shahin explains that while insulin shortages were common as recent
as the 1990s, local producers such as eli lilly & co., a joint
venture between us pharmaceuticals giant eli lilly and egypt's alkan
pharmaceuticals, as well as egypt's sedico and vacsera, now have
the capacity to fill any gap. he refuted claims that locally produced
insulin is inferior to its danish counterpart. "there is no
such thing as four-star and five-star insulin, insulin for the rich
or insulin of the poor... all insulin produced locally is as effective
as imported insulin," he said.
yet amir bishay, a 26-year old diabetic, disagrees. he claims that
locally-made insulin is not as effective as the medicine produced
by novo norodisk. "the danish insulin is better in quality
and has a more effective impact than insulin manufactured in egypt,
so there is no real alternative for us."
danish businesses are beginning to feel the brunt of the boycott,
which according to denmark's jyske bank has already cost the country
7.5 billion kroner (£e 6.9 billion). dairy company arla foods,
denmark's biggest exporter to the middle east, has reported losing
$1.6 million a day since the boycott began and has temporarily laid
off 125 workers. novo nordisk reported losing a $32 million contract
to supply insulin to turkey, while food company danisco said it
lost or was forced to postpone several small contracts.
some companies have responded by repackaging their products in ways
that downplay their danish origin, such as identifying them simply
as "made in the european union." others have shifted their
export operations to their less visible subsidiary companies.
eu trade commissioner peter mandelson has threatened to take the
matter to the wto, charging that the international trade body could
impose punitive measures on countries whose governments are found
to be encouraging the boycotts. if the boycotts are purely consumer-driven,
however, little can be done.
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say sorry
muslim anger over the publication of the 12 caricatures of
prophet muhammad in the danish daily jyllands-posten was exacerbated
by the paper's initial refusal to apologize for printing the
cartoons, and the danish government's insistence that it cannot
be held responsible for the actions - regardless of how irresponsible
they may have been - of an independent newspaper.
in a statement issued on january 30, and amid a growing muslim
boycott of danish products, the newspaper's editor, carsten
juste, said the 12 caricatures were published "as part
of an ongoing public debate on freedom of expression."
he described the drawings as "sober," insisting
the drawings "were never intended to be offensive, nor
were they at variance with danish law, but they have indisputably
offended many muslims, for which we apologize."
seemingly under pressure from danish businesses and the government,
the newspaper posted a stronger-worded apology on its website,
which was reprinted in a full-page ad in al-ahram newspaper
on february 7 alongside a position statement from the danish
government. "we apologize for publishing the caricatures
of prophet muhammad, which were not intended to offend or
hurt the feelings of any muslim," juste wrote.
danish prime minister anders fogh rasmussen, reluctant to
get the government involved in the issue, issued a statement
on january 31 that stopped just short of an apology. "i
want to emphasize that the danish government condemns any
expression, action or indication that attempts to demonize
groups of people on the basis of their religion or ethnic
background," he said.
the danish embassy in cairo declined business monthly's requests
for an interview, but issued a statement on february 2 condemning
the publication of the cartoons. "there has never been
in denmark an intension or will to insult, mock or in any
other way behave disrespectful towards muslims," it said.
the apologies by the newspaper and government were rebuffed
by muslim leaders, who said they came too little, too late.
"the danish apology came late, so why are we expected
to stop the boycott now?" asks mohamed kinawy, a sermon
leader at a mosque in cairo.
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