Pakistan condemns despicable act of public burning of Holy Quran outside mosque in Sweden

F.P. Report

ISLAMABAD : Pakistan has strongly condemned the despicable act of public burning of the Holy Quran outside a mosque in Sweden on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha.

According to the spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, such wilful incitement to discrimination, hatred and violence cannot be justified under pretext of freedom of expression and protest.

The Spokesperson said under international law, States are duty bound to prohibit any advocacy of religious hatred, leading to incitement of violence. The recurrence of such Islamophobic incidents during the last few months in the West calls into serious question the legal framework which permits such hate-driven actions.

She reiterated that the right to freedom of expression and opinion does not provide a licence to stoke hatred and sabotage inter-faith harmony.

Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said Pakistan’s concerns about the incident are being conveyed to Sweden. She urged both the international community and the national governments to must undertake credible and concrete measures to prevent the rising incidents of xenophobia, Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hatred.