In what can be best described as an opinion piece published on its website, CJTF-82, the U.S. military command for eastern Afghanistan, has taken Dutch politician and filmmaker Geert Wilders to task for announcing the production of a short film on the Koran. CJTF-82 begins its piece, provocatively titled “Stirring the Hate,” by questioning Wilder’s motivations:
Ostensibly an exercise in the Party for Freedom’s right to free speech, Dutch politician Geert Wilders prepares to release a new anti-Islam film. Wilders will not comment on details of the movie but says it will show that Islam’s Holy Book, the Quran “is an inspiration for intolerance, murder and terror”. Wilders close political association with Ayaan Hirsi Ali and film maker Theo Van Gogh, sent Wilders into hiding after Van Gogh’s assassination by a Muslim extremist following the release of “Submission”, a film which criticized the treatment of women in Islamic society. The publication of the “Muhammad Cartoons” in September of 2005 caused protests and riots as over 200 people were killed by violence around the world. In Afghanistan there were protests in Maymana, Bagram, Kandahar, Mehtar-Lam and Kabul Violence in neighboring Pakistan was even worse. Wilders website was one of several that re-published the cartoons after the initial violent demonstrations had begun, citing a defense of freedom of speech and igniting further violence. Polls immediately following the Van Gogh assassination predicted the possibility of the Party for Freedom winning as many as 29 seats (of 150) in upcoming Dutch parliamentary elections. By October of 2005 the number had slipped to one, rising again to three following the “Muhammad Cartoons” controversy. While his party does favor immigration restrictions, especially from non-western countries; the corresponding surge in popularity provides a suspicious motive for his latest “exercise in free speech.” resulting in at least 5 deaths.
Leaving aside Wilders’s motivation for making the film, one wonders why CJTF-82 posted this article on its website in the first place. Should CJTF-82, which is engaged in the fight in Afghanistan, be injecting itself into a debate over free speech in Holland, an allied nation with troops currently deployed in Afghanistan? Is it appropriate for the U.S. military to criticize the actions of a leader of a foreign political party? And has CJTF-82 officially determined that Wilders is responsible for “igniting further violence” by publishing the Muhammad cartoons? We suspect the answers are no, no, and no. Fewer movie reviews and more like this, please.
