Stirring collective conscience

In his maiden speech at 14th Summit Conference of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) in Makah, the Prime Minister Imran Khan jolted the conscience of Muslim leaders to realise the gravity of rising wave of Islamophobia in the western world and give a collective response in a befitting manner. He said that we should explain to the western countries how deeply the incident of blasphemy committed against the Holy Prophet (PBUH) hurt us, deploring that leaders of Islamic countries have not been able to explain to other countries the love and affection Muslims feel for the Holy Prophet (PBUH). He painfully noted that some western countries are suffering from Islamophobia and the leaders of these countries should differentiate between moderate Islam and extremism.

The Prime Minister gave a correct and objective assessment of the wave of Islamophobia that merged with the publication of a blasphemous novel in 1989 in the UK followed by sacrilegious caricatures in 2006 in Denmark. Response to these acts of blasphemy came from Pakistan and Iran and the rest of OIC countries remained indifferent to those anti-Isalm and anti-Muslim events. Since then the wave of Islamophobia is on the rise. Previously it remained confined to the racist far right groups but later it influenced the leadership of political parties. The complacency shown by the governments of Islamic countries made it easy for the governments in western democracies to make legislations against full face veil to target Muslim Communities living there. France was the first European Union member country to have passed and enforced such a discriminatory law against Muslims in 2011.  In Denmark the Danish parliament passed legislation in August 2018 making wearing of full face veil a cognizable offence under law liable for punishment in the form of fine. While presenting the draft of full-face veil ban, the Danish Justice Minister Soren Pape had said, “I do not think there are many who wear Burqa in Denmark. But if you do you would be punished.” According to him Burqa and Niqab were not compatible with the values and sense of community in Danish society. Earlier in June last year, Austrian Chancellor Seba stian Kurz issued orders to close seven Turkish Mosques and expel 40 Imams.

Ironically, the sentiments of Islamphobia have been rising fast in western countries and it is now being used a political football by not only the politician affiliated with far right political parties but with the right of the center political parties as well. It is being used as electoral support garnering strategy both in national elections and the one contested for the European parliament. In Finland amid European polls leader of the Finish First Party Macro Dewit publicly ripped a copy of the Holy Quran in full view of the police officers one week ago. In March German Interior Minister Horesr Seehofer told the German daily newspaper Bild that Islam does not belong to Germany. The comment stands in sharp conflict with the repeated statements of Chancellor Angela Merkel that she had made since 2015. German Interior Minister told Bild newspaper that he would push through a master plan for quick deportation of Muslim immigrants. In Germany the population of Turk immigrants alone is well over 5000000 and the immigrants’ from Pakistan and other Muslim counties are about 1 million in addition to 800000 Syrian war refugees.

The docility of Muslim leaders to take a united stand against the US led New World Order agenda of destroying Islamic countries like Iraq, Libya and Syria has brought the situation that Muslim communities living in western countries are now being targeted with discriminatory laws and acts of blasphemy are committed by racist elements and far right politicians. It is a moment of introspection, shunning difference and galvanizing unity among the 57 Islam countries for which the Prime Minister of Pakistan has made a strong call at OIC summit.