Pakistan raises facebook cartoons issue at OIC moot
Pakistan raises facebook cartoons issue at OIC moot
Thursday, May 20, 2010
By Mariana Baabar
ISLAMABAD: As the Lahore High Court banned the Facebook website which was carrying blasphemous cartoons, the sentiments of the Muslims were echoed by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nawabzada Malik Amad Khan, who condemned the rise of the insidious trend of Islamophobia in the recent past.
Speaking at the 37th session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Dushanbe, the minister said, “Political dividends reaped by Dutch extremist Geert Wilders in regional elections is encouraging extremists in other countries to resort to Islam bashing in election campaigns. Negative stereotyping of the Muslims and defamation of Islam have become fashionable under the pretext of freedom of expression.
“Following the ban on construction of minarets of mosques in Switzerland, a Swedish radical party has published appalling and outrageous posters of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). We strongly condemn these sacrilegious posters. It has gravely hurt the Muslim sentiments throughout the world”.He said, as the second largest inter-governmental organisation, the OIC needs to play a more active role in the reform of the United Nations as well as the UN Security Council.
“We must ensure adequate representation of the OIC member states in any category of membership in an expanded Security Council. “We appreciate the efforts by the OIC working groups on Human Rights in New York and Geneva in support of the resolution on Combating Defamation of Religions. The OIC needs to follow a two-pronged strategy of closer interaction with the West to address the phenomenon of Islamophobia and defamation of Islam and to develop a united approach within the OIC member states on this sensitive issue,” he added. Commenting on sufferings at the hands of terrorists, the minister said, “Terrorism is the most serious challenge confronting us all today. Misguided people, in the name of religion, are killing innocent men, women and children in mosques, schools, hospitals and market places. These criminals do not represent our noble faith. We will not allow them to hijack our faith and societies”.
He added that as a frontline state in the ongoing struggle against terrorism, Pakistan has suffered enormously both in terms of human lives and material. “Our more than 2,500 brave security personnel have sacrificed their lives to make the world safer for us and our children. Over 10,000 civilians have fallen victim to brutalities of terrorists.
Besides, we have suffered economic losses of more than $35 billion. All this has strengthened our resolve to root out this menace from our territory and the region at large”, he added.Pakistan, he stressed, was fully conscious that use of military force was not the enduring solution to the problem of terrorism. The Government of Pakistan, therefore, has evolved a 3-D strategy comprising dialogue, development and deterrence to comprehensively deal with this scourge.