Urging the Muslim community to accept a Danish newspaper's apology for publishing cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has cautioned the media that freedom of speech is 'never absolute'.
"I am distressed and concerned by this whole affair. I share the distress of the Muslim friends who feel that the cartoon offends their religion. I also respect the right of freedom of speech. But of course (it) is never absolute. It entails responsibility and judgement," Annan said on Friday.
"What is important is that the newspaper that initially published the cartoons has apologised and I would urge my Muslim friends to accept the apology, in the name of Allah the merciful, and let's move on," he added.
Annan appealed to 'everybody not to take any measures that will inflame an already difficult situation', caused by the publication of the cartoons last September in the Danish daily Jyllands-Posten.
"I hope no attempts will be made in a way to punish a group that has nothing to do with the action of an individual journalist or a newspaper," he said. "We should not tarnish the whole nation of Denmark or all of Europe with this."
The Bush administration also came out against the offensive cartoons and sided with the Muslim community.
"These cartoons are indeed offensive to the belief of Muslims," US State Department spokesman Kurtis Cooper said. "We all fully recognise and respect freedom of the press and expression but it must be coupled with press responsibility. Inciting religious or ethnic hatred in this manner is not acceptable."
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