Sir – Edmund Gray and Daniel Emlyn-Jones (Letters, February 26) think the law should be used to enforce respect for religious beliefs; well it hasn’t been very effective with racism or sexism and there is plenty of reason to take offence at class snobbery but I don’t somehow see that being legislated against.

The law cannot enforce respect but it can and should control those who threaten and abuse, for example on the Internet.

Firmly held, genuine beliefs are able to withstand mockery, at least in theory, but abuse and threat are more serious. Drawing cartoons or not couching one's opinions with respect is not a capital offence except under totalitarian regimes and respect is something which is earned by individuals on personal merit, it is not automatic and can never be enforced. Nobody deserves to die for drawing cartoons and many Muslims have pointed out that the criminals who committed these murders could not have been true believers, but were misusing the name of Islam to confer spurious authority on their cause.

Extending the law will not help the offended, but it may well protect the criminals.

S Heeks, Oxford