—— PM says Pakistan will not tolerate any kind of ‘propaganda against Muslims’
—— Asks Sweden to clear its position on the incident
—— Terms the heinous act an attempt to create animosity between Muslims, Christians
—— Parliament passes resolution urging Sweden to take ‘appropriate steps’ against Holy Quran’s desecration
—— Urges UN Secretary General to convene special session on the matter
By Anzal Amin
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif urged all civilized nations and international institutions to play a role in combating Islamophobia.
Addressing the joint session of parliament, PM Shehbaz said the desecration of the Holy Quran was an attempt to create animosity between the Muslims and Christians and any recurrence of such a condemnable act would in no way be tolerated.
He urged the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to convene a special session to invite the Muslim world leaders, adopt a condemnatory resolution and also warn the Swedish government and such individuals against the recurrence of such condemnable act. The prime minister urged the National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf to form a committee with a mandate to formulate recommendations for their onward dissemination to the world including international organizations so that such acts could be prevented.
He said as per their belief, Muslims revered all of the religions and revealed books including Bible as Holy Quran taught patience and harmony. He said despite that, such deliberate Islamophobic acts were being carried out to pit Muslims against Christians. He said that despite their belated condemnation, the Swedish government would have to clarify its position as to why they allowed such an act under the protection of their police on the day when the Muslims were celebrating Eid-ul-Azha.
It is pertinent to mention here that the federal government will observe Yaum-e-Taqaddus-e-Quran on July 7 to hold countrywide protests against the desecration of Holy Quran in Sweden.
