We must not bow down

A 19-year-old student of Clare College Cambridge has been moved to a safe house after threats of violence for allegedly causing 'widespread distress' by printing a cropped copy of the cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad along with offensive comments in last week's edition of Clareification, a student flysheet distributed within the college.A healthy democracy needs cartoonists to poke fun at humourless fanatics and would-be dictators.

When the Spitting Image programmes of the 80s and 90s poked fun at the British clergy along with the Queen and politicians alike, nobody was up in arms, but yet here we are again subjected to censorship in the name of political correctness.

We are heading down a very dangerous path. Winston Churchill had the right word for such cowardice - appeasement. He warned that giving way to enemies of freedom only makes them demand more.

This constant appeasement based on a false sense of guilt has to end.

I would also ask what the police intend to do regarding the threats of violence towards this student?

I think we all know the answer is none, however, no doubt this student now faces being expelled from the college and an uncertain career path for what amounts to no more than harmless fun and humour.

James Whittall, Ludlow