De Volkskrant:
Enkele weken geleden dook het gerucht op in de sociale media. In de chocola van het Britse wereldconcern was varkens-dna gevonden. Het gerucht zwol aan en Maleisië ontplofte zowat toen het ministerie van Gezondheidszorg het officieel bevestigde. Moslimorganisaties liepen te hoop en het had weinig gescheeld of de zaak was helemaal uit de hand gelopen.
Een boycot was nog het minste wat Maleisische moslims bedachten voor de chocoladefirma Cadbury. Sluiting van alle fabrieken was nummer twee, op de voet gevolgd door een jihad: een 'heilige oorlog'. Zeker twintig moslimgroeperingen riepen hun volgelingen op tot de strijd tegen dit 'complot om de islam te verzwakken'. Moslimleiders eisten dat het bedrijf zou betalen voor bloedtransfusies om hun binnenste te reinigen van de varkensbesmetting.
En toen bleek het allemaal niet waar te zijn.
Deed me erg denken aan de aanloop tot de Indiase opstand van 1857:
The final spark was provided by the ammunition for the new Pattern 1853 Enfield Rifle. These rifles, which fired Minié balls, had a tighter fit than the earlier muskets, and used paper cartridges that came pre-greased. To load the rifle, sepoys had to bite the cartridge open to release the powder. The grease used on these cartridges included tallow derived from beef; which would be offensive to Hindus, or lard derived from pork; which would be offensive to Muslims. At least one Company official pointed out the difficulties this may cause: "unless it be proven that the grease employed in these cartridges is not of a nature to offend or interfere with the prejudices of caste, it will be expedient not to issue them for test to Native corps". However, in August 1856, greased cartridge production was initiated at Fort William, Calcutta, following a British design. The grease used included tallow supplied by the Indian firm of Gangadarh Banerji & Co. By January, the rumours were abroad that the Enfield cartridges were greased with animal fat. Company officers became aware of the rumours through reports of an altercation between a high-caste sepoy and a low-caste labourer at Dum Dum. The labourer had taunted the sepoy that by biting the cartridge, he had himself lost caste, although at this time such cartridges had been issued only at Meerut and not at Dum Dum. There had been rumours that the British sought to destroy the religions of the Indian people, and forcing the native soldiers to break their sacred code would have certainly added to this rumour, as it apparently did. The Company was quick to reverse the effects of this policy in hopes that the Indians would be quelled.
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