A young Dane set up a Facebook group to apologize to Muslims there after the republishing of one of the 'Muhammad' cartoons following an apparent murder plot against the cartoonist.
... Young Danish student Anders Boetter says he has decided to start a Facebook site called Sorry Muhammad to apologise to Muslims on behalf of ordinary Danes and also give them a voice in the controversy over the row.
What does hurt my feelings is when a Danish newspaper publishes these very mocking cartoons of Muhammad
Anders Boetter
Sorry MuhammadAnders says that in the last two years since the first printing of the cartoons, the media has built up a debate which is very black-and-white.
"Either you were for the Muhammad drawings or you were against it, but I believe there are many Danes who do not feel that way - they're somewhere in between and I am one of them," he explains.
"I am myself an atheist, but I do respect any kind of religion," he says, adding that the cartoons therefore do not offend him but he understands that it "hurts the feelings of Muslims a lot".
'Shockingly fast'
During the first cartoon crisis in 2006, Anders says he e-mailed his Muslim friends around the world to apologise.
When all the major newspapers reprinted the cartoon on Wednesday he felt there needed to be a reaction from what he calls "everyday Danish citizens".
"What does hurt my feelings is when a Danish newspaper publishes these very mocking cartoons of Muhammad.
"For me this is not a matter of a drawing but the mocking of one of our minority groups in Denmark and that's a big problem. That is why I apologise for being a Dane coming from Denmark," Anders explains.
In the first 24 hours, more than 1,000 people joined the Sorry Muhammad network.
Anders' goal is to collect 10,000 members in 14 days - which would be a significant feat since the total number of Danes on Facebook is 300,000 so far.
He calls the response "shockingly fast" but admits that he has also received some hostile e-mails.
Rival network
One says: "If you have no brains at all, move to Iran you stupid ****," while another reads: "I hope you know what it's like to have someone plotting to kill you."
The story reports a rival group quickly sprung up:
Within six hours a rival network group appeared called No Need to Apologise to Muhammad.
"This is a mockery of freedom of speech and to me it doesn't matter what religion you have; you should be tolerant towards Danish freedom of speech," writes Tanya Kortgaard.