VZCZCXRO6142
RR RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHPW
DE RUEHCG #0298 2491011
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051011Z SEP 08
FM AMCONSUL CHENNAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1836
INFO RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 3266
RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHCG/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS CHENNAI 000298 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER KISL IN
SUBJECT: RE-PUBLICATION OF CONTROVERSIAL DANISH CARTOON SPURS MUSLIM 
PROTESTS 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary: Hundreds of Muslims angry over a newspaper's 
September 2 re-publication of the controversial Danish cartoon 
caricaturing the Prophet Mohammed demonstrated in several locations 
 
in the South Indian state Tamil Nadu.  In Vellore, approximately 145 
kilometers from Chennai, demonstrators threw stones at the offices 
of the newspaper as well as government-owned buses on the 
Chennai-Bangalore highway.  The authorities said one police officer 
was injured in the violence; several dozen protestors were arrested. 
 The police also arrested the newspaper's graphic designer and the 
newspaper issued a front page apology on September 5.  Despite the 
apology, government officials expect the demonstrations to continue, 
albeit on a low key.  The protests demonstrate the continued 
sensitivity of Indian Muslims to the Danish cartoon.  End Summary. 
 
Angry Demonstrators Attack Newspaper Office, Buses 
----------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) On September 2, the Vellore edition of the Tamil-language 
newspaper "Dina Malar" pulled off the internet and re-published the 
controversial Danish cartoon caricature of Islam's Prophet that 
caused worldwide protests in 2006.  Later that day hundreds of angry 
Muslim demonstrators gathered and threw stones at the newspaper's 
Vellore office.  (Note:  There were no local protests in 2006 when 
the cartoon was originally published in Denmark.  End note.)  The 
protestors also blocked the Bangalore-Chennai road, stalling traffic 
for several hours.  A police officer was injured in the 
stone-throwing, and the police used riot-control canes to disperse 
the protestors.  The police arrested the newspaper's graphics 
designer for "hurting religious sentiments," as well as several 
dozen of the demonstrators for engaging in violence.  Less violent 
protests, continued on September 3 and 4 in locations throughout 
Tamil Nadu. 
 
Low-Key Demonstrations Likely to Continue 
----------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) A senior government official told post that he expects 
low-key protests to continue for some more time. "The Muslim groups 
will tend to use the opportunity to mobilize their ranks in view of 
the upcoming elections," he said.  But he does not expect major 
violence associated with the continued protests.  He added that the 
police and Vellore district authorities acted quickly to bring the 
situation under control. 
 
Media Dirty Tricks Fuel Muslim Anger 
----------- 
¶4. (SBU) A journalist told post that competition between two media 
organizations helped to fuel Muslim anger.  He said the powerful 
Dinakaran-Sun TV group exaggerated the scale of the protests in an 
effort to prompt a more vitriolic Muslim response, with an eye 
toward embarrassing its rival Dina Malar, which carried the 
cartoons.  The fact that a Hindu Brahmin owns Dina Malar probably 
further heightened Muslim outrage at the newspaper's action. 
¶5. (SBU) COMMENT:  Tamil Nadu has a reputation for generally 
peaceful Hindu-Muslim relations, and Vellore with its large Muslim 
minority has seen no communal violence despite periodic moments of 
tension, especially surrounding the anniversary of the destruction 
of the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya.  Although the protests were 
exacerbated by the fact that Dina Malar is Hindu-owned and by its 
rival's effort to stoke the fire, the fact is that the protests 
began as a spontaneous eruption of Muslim anger at the 
re-publication of the controversial cartoon.  It is telling that, 
even in an otherwise relatively prosperous and peaceful corner of 
India, Muslim anger against the inflammatory Danish cartoon 
persists.  End comment. 
¶6.  (U) This cable was coordinated with Embassy New Delhi. 
Simkin