The resignation of a Sarawak Tribune editor for reproducing a caricature that Muslims consider as blasphemous has sparked a debate among Malaysian media activists as violent protests continue to rage across the Muslim world.

Journalist-cum-activist Fathi Aris Omar, who said he was personally offended by the controversial cartoons, argued that the reproduction could be a debatable issue as the act must be judged on the context the cartoon was printed.

"Of course, press freedom is not an absolute freedom, it must come with responsibility and sensitivity." he said when contacted.

But he said that it would be difficult for the media to explain to their readers the outrage of Muslims worldwide if they have not seen the cartoons themselves.

"It is just like saying that police brutality exists - it is not enough, we must show the evidence such as the video clip of the woman was forced to do nude ear-squat," he said referring to a recent case of police abuse.

However, he stressed that it was wrong to publish the cartoons if they are meant to insult a particular religion.

'Case closed after apology'

Elaborating, Fathi - who is also a former spokesperson of the Independent Media Activist Group (Kami) - said he disagreed with the arrests of two Jordanian newspapers editors after they reprinted the cartoons to accompany articles that discussed the controversy.

On the resignation of the Sarawak Tribune's editor over the dispute, he reiterated that the reproduction of the drawings must be judged on the context whether it was used to explain the controversy.

Among the 12 cartoons, which first appeared in a Danish newspaper last September, one depicts Muhammad with a turban shaped as a bomb with a burning fuse. According to Islam, any images of the Prophet are banned.

The Sarawak-based newspaper had used one of the caricatures to accompany a foreign news agency report about violent demonstrations that flared up in many parts of the world.

The newspaper later published a front-page apology and the duty editor had resigned for the "oversight".

Deputy Internal Security Minister Chia Kwang Chye was reported as saying that the newspaper would be issued a show-cause letter while its editor-in-chief Toman Mamora has been summoned to Putrajaya tomorrow to meet with officials from the Internal Security Ministry.

Yap Swee Seng, spokesperson for the Action Against Political Interference in the Media coalition, said the issue should be considered as resolved with the public apology by Sarawak Tribune.

He urged that no further action be taken by the ministry.

"(If action was taken) this is again political interference by the executive into the operation of the media. This would dampen the role of the media as a watchdog of the government. The newspaper has apologised and it should be considered as 'case closed'," he told malaysiakini.

He said if sections of the public are still unhappy with Sarawak Tribune, they can lodge a complaint to the newspaper as is the common practice elsewhere.

However, he added that the media must be sensitive to the multi-racial and multi-religious make-up of the country.

On the resignation, Yap said: "We don't really know whether the concerned editor has resigned voluntarily. If he did, it is okay but we suspect there might be pressure from the ministry as they have planned to issue a show-cause letter and it holds the power to revoke the paper's licence."

He stressed the existence of the Printing Presses and Publications Act - which gives the internal security minister the discretion to issue, suspend and revoke a newspaper's licence - can exert pressure on the newspaper's management, forcing it to remove the errant editor.

Cartoonist's view

Meanwhile, political cartoonist Zunar viewed the drawings as inappropriate and insensitive, and he called on the editors in charge of the Danish newspaper and other newspapers that have since reproduced the cartoons to issue an apology.

"Press freedom must be upheld but it must not tread into religion sensitivity. Moreover, when it involves central religious figures, be it Prophet Muhammad, Buddha or Jesus Christ, we shouldn't make fun of them," he said.

Zunar said the drawings of the Prophet did not meet the two basic criteria - object and subject - of a cartoon.

"For example, I can draw a country's leader with an animal face to describe his character or what he has done in his capacity as leader. This is not deemed as an insult because of the subject matter - that is, what he had done - is there to fit in the context of the cartoon," he explained.

The cartoonist also said he would not draw religious figures, or subject relating to the teachings of any religion, in view of their sensitivity.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had condemned the caricatures as "a deliberate act of provocation" and a "blatant disregard for Islamic sensitivities."