Muslim nations demand action after ‘Islamophobic’ Quran burning
Muslim nations including Iran and Pakistan say the desecration of the holy Quran amounts to an incitement of violence and have called for accountability after a series of stunts in Sweden caused a backlash around the world. A motion filed at the United Nations human rights body on Tuesday, in response to the latest incident last month, calls on countries to review their laws and plug gaps that may “impede the prevention and prosecution of acts and advocacy of religious hatred”. The debate has highlighted rifts in the UN Human Rights Council between the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and Western members concerned about the motion’s implications for free speech as well as challenges posed to long-held practices in rights protection. An Iraqi immigrant to Sweden ripped, burned, and stomped on the Quran outside a Stockholm mosque last month during the Eid al-Adha holiday, sparking outrage across the Muslim world and angry protests in several Pakistani cities. “We must see this clearly
Muslim nations including Iran and Pakistan say the desecration of the holy Quran amounts to an incitement of violence and have called for accountability after a series of stunts in Sweden caused a backlash around the world.
A motion filed at the United Nations human rights body on Tuesday, in response to the latest incident last month, calls on countries to review their laws and plug gaps that may “impede the prevention and prosecution of acts and advocacy of religious hatred”.
The debate has highlighted rifts in the UN Human Rights Council between the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and Western members concerned about the motion’s implications for free speech as well as challenges posed to long-held practices in rights protection.
An Iraqi immigrant to Sweden ripped, burned, and stomped on the Quran outside a Stockholm mosque last month during the Eid al-Adha holiday, sparking outrage across the Muslim world and angry protests in several Pakistani cities.
“We must see this clearly for what it is: incitement to religious hatred, discrimination and attempts to provoke violence,” Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari told the Geneva-based council via video. He added that such acts occurred under “government sanction and with the sense of impunity”.
— Spokesperson
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