JEDDAH: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation convened an extraordinary meeting of its executive committee at its headquarters in Jeddah on Tuesday.
The meeting was held recently in Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark to express the organization’s common stance against desecration of the Holy Quran, as well as to discuss possible actions of the OIC against the perpetrators of Islamophobic attacks.
The incidents occurred earlier this month, when far-right activist Rasmus Paludan, who holds both Danish and Swedish citizenships, received permission from the police to protest outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm, where he burned a Quran on 21 January. One. A few days later, Edwin Wagensveld, the Dutch leader of the far-right Pegida movement in the Netherlands, tore pages from a copy of the Quran held by the Dutch parliament and beheaded them.
In response, several regional and international organizations including the OIC issued statements strongly condemning the incident.
During the meeting, Saudi representative to the OIC Saleh Hamad al-Suhaibani said the Kingdom strongly condemns the desecration of the Quran, which urges love, goodness, justice and equality.
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The incidents occurred earlier this month, when far-right activist Rasmus Paludan, who holds both Danish and Swedish citizenships, received permission from the police to protest outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm, where he burned a Quran on 21 January. One. A few days later, Edwin Wagensveld, the Dutch leader of the far-right Pegida movement in the Netherlands, tore pages from a copy of the Quran held by the Dutch parliament and beheaded them.
The Kingdom rejects all extremism and hatred, he said, and instead called for the spread of Islamic values based on dialogue and coexistence.
“These heinous acts clearly contradict the humanitarian, moral and religious principles and values of all countries that respect peace and coexistence. The repetition of the action shows complacency and freedom of expression on the part of some governments in curbing the phenomenon of Islamophobia.” The excuses raise several questions regarding their failure to take necessary measures to instigate the criminals and punish the criminals.
Islamophobia is defined as the fear or hatred of Islam, which often translates into intolerant gestures, deliberate discrimination and outright attacks against Muslims.
OIC Secretary-General Hissen Brahim Taha said these actions were not only irresponsible, but criminal acts targeting Muslims. “The concerned governments should take strict punitive measures, especially given the frequency of such provocative acts by the same people,” he added.
“The outrageous actions … are further evidence of the alarming levels reached by the phenomenon of Islamophobia, hate crimes, intolerance and xenophobia.
“This assures us that we must take urgent measures to prevent the recurrence of such provocative incidents in the future.”
Taha said a strong message must be sent to all governments, institutions and individuals to make it clear that these actions are not justified under freedom of expression. He highlighted that several international laws, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, clearly state that freedom of expression is not an absolute right, as it involves specific duties and responsibilities.
Turkey’s Permanent Representative to the OIC Mehmet Metin Aker said that Turkey strongly condemns the recent aggression against the Holy Quran.
“Unfortunately, the failure of the Swedish authorities to take the necessary precautions against the attack on the Holy Quran on 21 January has encouraged many subsequent attacks in the Netherlands and Denmark. We also expect the Swedish, Dutch and Danish authorities to take the necessary measures against the perpetrators of these hate crimes.
He cited statistics relating to violent, Islamophobic acts by European activists since 2019, saying that hatred against Islam has reached alarming levels in many parts of the world, particularly in Europe.
Acker, referring to the massacre in New Zealand in 2019, said, “We watch with great concern how many far-right politicians use anti-Islamic and xenophobic rhetoric … to resort to this kind of populism against Muslims.” Paves the way for racist attacks.” 51 Muslims were killed in the terrorist attack on two mosques.
Ecker added: “In this context, an important measure to be taken within the OIC, we think, is to strengthen the Islamophobia Observatory in order to engage more efficiently with international partners, as well as better follow-up efforts in Western countries.” Can be faced. Growing Islamophobia.
The OIC condemns attempts to spread ideas that mock, insult or discredit holy books, symbols and holy figures of any religion. The organization will act to raise concerns whenever the Holy Quran is violated or holy figures of Islam are insulted with the intention of inciting hatred against the religion or its followers.