Battling hate

The UN has adopted the Pakistan-led resolution, ‘Promoting interreligious and intercultural dialogue and tolerance in countering hate speech’. The UN resolution has urged the global community to counter all forms and dimensions of hate speech. We have seen how the desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden and other such provocations against the Muslim community in the West have led to protests in various countries. Such provocative and shameful acts cannot be justified under any law, and freedom of speech cannot be used as a pretext for this sort of hate speech either. Discrimination on the basis of religion and religious identity is prevalent across the globe and after 9/11, we saw Islamophobia rising across the West in the garb of ‘free speech’. It is not just the extremist and fascist elements in societies that are fanning such hatred; even saner minds have resorted to linking every terrorist incident with Muslims. This in itself is racism, bigotry and xenophobia that paints every Muslim as a terrorist or an extremist. The Western media has not helped in combating such racial discrimination while some governments have passed legislations that target Muslims specifically.

This is the context in which Muslim countries, and Pakistan especially, have been raising the issue of Islamophobia at all global fora and raising awareness about it. As a co-sponsor of the UN resolution, Pakistan led efforts along with Malaysia and Egypt on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries to include language that takes strong exception to all acts of violence against persons on the basis of their religion or belief, as well as any such acts directed against their religious symbols, holy books, places of worship, religious sites and shrines in violation of international law. This is the first resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly to state such unequivocal reservations regarding all acts of violence against religious symbols and holy books and scriptures. Earlier, the European Union had expressed its “strong rejection” of the shameful Quran burning incident in Sweden. The bloc had called the act “offensive, and disrespectful and a clear act of provocation”.

Last year, former prime minister Imran Khan had congratulated the Muslim Ummah after the UN adopted a landmark resolution, designating March 15 as the ‘International Day to Combat Islamophobia’. Earlier this year, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had denounced Islamophobia at the UN and had categorically said that hatred was being spread against Muslims under a well-thought-out strategy. Bhutto explained how Muslims were being targeted because of their religion and Islamophobia is being constantly fuelled by “structural discrimination, xenophobia, and negative stereotyping of Muslims and their faith”. What is important is that the international community must realize that in a world connected through technology and a world that celebrates diversity of all kinds, hate speech affects communities in real time. The frightening rise of the fascist right wing in Europe and the US over the past few years has only increased the already pervasive Islamophobia in the West. Unofficial travel restrictions have been in place against Muslims for years and racial profiling is common in the West. Amidst this, it is welcome news that the UN has woken up to this and hopefully the West too will realize that a united stand against racism and bigotry will only lead to a united global community.