They didn’t make the exception explicitly here. But MENA reported this in September: “Arab League chief Nabil al-Araby said Wednesday that the league, along with the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the European Union and the African Union are close to formulating an international agreement penalizing blasphemy and insults to religious figures.” And of course only Muslims want to criminalize “blasphemy and insults to religious figures.”
Of course, al-Araby may be lying. But on the other hand, Europe has not appeared to be a bastion of free speech over the last few years.
“EU says artists are free to ‘shock,'” from UPI, November 1 (thanks to Block Ness):
BRUSSELS, Nov. 1 (UPI) — The European Union criticized Poland’s supreme court for allowing prosecutors to try Adam Darski, leader of the band Behemoth, for illegal artistic expression.
At issue is the interpretation of Article 196 of the Polish penal code referring to “the crime of offending religious sensibilities.” While on stage in 2007, Darski, singer in the heavy metal band, allegedly ripped pages from a Bible and referred to the Catholic Church as a “murderous cult,” the EU Observer said Wednesday.
In a statement, the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, cited the European Convention of Human Rights’ section on freedom of expression, noting, “This right protects not only information or ideas that are favorable received or regarded as inoffensive … but also those that offend, shock or disturb.”…