ISLAMABAD – Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has announced that ajoint communique by all the members of OIC had been issued which containssix proposals – four of whom were put forth by Pakistan.
“All four of our proposals received uniform acceptance and I would like toput these forward before you,” he said.
Friday said that rising trend of Islamophobia was a serious phenomenonwhich did not happen overnight, as he outlines a comprehensive globalstrategy to tackle the issue at an emergency meeting of the Organisation ofIslamic Cooperation’s Council of Foreign Ministers in Istanbul.
The meeting was called to discuss the causes, impacts and way forward inthe aftermath of the New Zealand terror attacks targeting two mosques inChristchurch, in which 50 Muslims, including nine Pakistanis, were killedby a ‘white supremacist’ during Friday prayers last week.
Foreign ministers from over 20 countries participated in the meeting,alongside representatives from international organisations, including theUnited Nations and the European Union and Organisation for Security andCo-operation in Europe. New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters alsoattended the session.
Talking to reporters following the conclusion of the session, Qureshiannounced that a joint communique by all the members had been issued whichcontains six proposals – four of whom were put forth by Pakistan. “All fourof our proposals received uniform acceptance and I would like to put theseforward before you,” he said.
“The first proposal is that the scope and definition of terrorism bebroadened. And the imposition of sanctions should not be limited toentities such as Al Qaeda, Daesh, etc – though those are important in theirown right – but those elements which reek of Islamophobia should also beincluded in the list of those sanctioned,” he said.
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‘Our second proposal which came under discussion and was then accepted isthat a special session of the United Nations General Assembly be held onthe topic of Islamophobia,” he added.
“The third proposal we put forth is that the OIC secretary general shouldplay a role in the removal of content on social media that is linked toIslamophobia and should devise a strategy to deal with how it inciteshatred and how it can be tackled immediately because such content isleading to extremism taking root,” he continued. “The fourth thing that wasproposed is that a special rapporteur be appointed who monitorsIslamophobia and presents recommendations on how to counter it,” he added.
Earlier in his speech at the session, Foreign Minister Qureshi said theChristchurch attack has shed light on a number of alarming trends ? themainstreaming of anti-Muslim sentiment by the rise of populist politics inmany western countries; the undermining of a culture of respect andtolerance through narratives of exclusion and bigotry, and theimplementation of anti-immigration policies by some in the west. Hereminded the attendees that the attack is not an ‘isolated act of a lonemaniac’. “What happened in New Zealand is a grim reminder of the tide ofIslamophobia sweeping the world. Every bullet fired by the terrorist was anassault on the values of pluralism and diversity that underpin modernmulticultural societies,” he stated.
Qureshi explained that the acts are not restricted to western countriesalone. “Pakistan’s eastern neighbour, a self-professed friend to many ofthose sitting around the table, prides itself in its democratic and secularcredentials. In practice, it is anything,” he lamented, and discussed asystemic discrimination and the social, political and economicmarginalisation and humiliation of the Muslims in India at the hands of‘Hindutva brigades’. “Mob lynching of Muslims in the name of cow protectionand attempts at Muslims’ forced conversions are commonplace, as indeed isviolence against other minorities including Sikhs, Christians and Dalits,”he said.
“In Indian-held Kashmir, extra-judicial killings, staged encounters, sexualharassment and use of pellet guns against unarmed protesters are a norm.Recently, an Indian court exonerated Hindu terrorists who had confessed tokilling 68 people, mostly Muslims ? including 44 Pakistanis ? on a train inIndia,” he said. “There exists no United Nations architecture that canproscribe such individuals or address terrorism posed by Hindutvaideologues or white supremacists,” he pointed out.
