Belgian radio station presenters destroy Jesus statue — but decline to do same to symbols of Islam

A Belgian radio station has apologised after presenters smashed a statue of Jesus Christ but declined to also destroy symbols of Islam or Judaism.

Studio Brussel hosts shattered various objects in an improvised "rage room" to mark the most depressing day of the year, "Blue Monday", including a model of the Virgin Mary holding the Son of God.

However, when pressed about it, one of the presenters from the VRT station said they would not do the same for symbols associated with other religions.

One of the presenters, Sam De Bruyn, acknowledged while some people might feel offended, it was "not a big issue". He emphasised all the items in the video were already broken when they targeted it.

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Mr De Bruyn spoke to Catholic news agency EWT News alongside co-presenters Eva De Roo and Dries Lenaerts.

When asked if they would smash a symbol of the Prophet Muhammad, they said: "No, because that would be inappropriate."

Ms De Roo added: "We all come from the Christian tradition ourselves. So it is more like laughing at ourselves."

When asked if they would do it to a Star of David or other symbols of Judaism, Mr De Bruyn said: "It is different when you do that about a religion you know nothing about. I think that is very dangerous."

Flemish Minister of Media Cieltje Van Achter criticised the segment, saying you should be able to "laugh about all religions".

Reacting to the clip from the Vatican journalist, she said: "This was a particularly painful segment. As a minister, I’m not going to sit in the VRT’s chair: the broadcaster has editorial autonomy.

"But autonomy doesn’t absolve anyone of responsibility or respect.

"Good that it’s also acknowledged at the end that one should have thought better here. Think before you start. And yes, one should be able to laugh about all religions."

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VRT spokeswoman Yasmine Van der Borght since issued an apology for the sketch.

She said: "Studio Brussel misjudged the 'Blue Monday' sketch. Eva and Dries apologise.

"The video was intended as a humorous act, and they underestimated how sensitive religious symbols can be. They understand that this was hurtful to some people and would make different choices today.

"VRT considers it important that all its employees show respect for every religion. Our aim is not to compare religions, but to treat everyone's beliefs with care."

Ms De Roo said: "We shouldn't have done it. We just didn't think about it that hard"

She added: "If a listener were to bring this up with us, we would call them up and talk about it on the radio."

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