By Bernama
Melbourne : Australia has added its voice to the international chorus of outrage over an anti-Islam film posted on the internet by a right-wing Dutch politician.
Australia’s Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said Geert Wilders’ film, “Fitna” equated Islam with acts of terror and violence and was “highly offensive”.
“It is an obvious attempt to generate discord between faith communities,” Smith is quoted by the Australian Associated Press as saying.
“Like leaders in the Muslim world and in Europe, I strongly reject the ideas contained in the film and deplore its release.
“In Australia, we believe in the right to freedom of expression but we don’t believe in abusing that right to incite racial hatred.”
Muslim nations, the European Union and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have all expressed outrage over the film, posted on the internet last week.
Iran and Bangladesh warned the film could cause grave consequences and Pakistan has protested to the Dutch ambassador.
Smith echoed Dutch Muslim leaders’ calls for restraint, saying the best response was a “calm and responsible one”.