LAHORE: Prominent religious and political leaders at an multi-party conference on Tuesday called upon the government to hold an Islamic summit in Islamabad and decide a common line of action by the Ummah against the incidents of blasphemy of the Holy Prophet (SAW) in the West.

The conference was organised by the Jamaat-i-Islami.

The participants said Islamabad should have convened an OIC meeting after the repeated publication of blasphemous caricatures and raised the issue at the UN for hurting feelings of 1.5 billion Muslims in the world.

They alleged the government did not fulfill its responsibility fearing reaction of the US and Europe. They demanded that the blasphemy of the Holy Prophet (SAW) be declared an international crime like the blasphemy of Jesus (AS).

The conference was presided over by JI emir Sirajul Haq. Those in attendance included Jamaatud Dawah emir Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, JUI-S chief Maulana Samiul Haq, former president Muhammad Rafiq Tarar, Mufti Munibur Rahman, Maulana Ataul Momin Bukhari, Qari Hanif Jaulandhry, federal minister Khwaja Saad Rafiq, PTI leader Mehmoodur Rashid, former AJK prime minister Sardar Attiq, JUI-F’s Maulana Amjad Khan, JUP’s Pir Ejaz Hashmi, Christian leader J Salik and Gurdawara Parbandhak Committee chairman Sardar Sham Singh.

Mr Haq said that the Muslim rulers should gather in Madina, the city of the Holy Prophet, and vow to protect the dignity of the Holy Prophet at every cost.

He said this was not any political or sectarian issue.

Hafiz Saeed said the leaders of 40 Western countries led a rally to show solidarity with the blasphemer publication, declaring that all of them were Charlie. In response to them, he said, the Muslims should declare that all of them were Muhammadans vowing to stand united for the protection of the respect and dignity of the Holy Prophet.

Maulana Samiul Haq said that the matter could not be resolved through mere condemnations.

Saad Rafiq said that terrorism, extremism and violence in the world had increased due to the partiality of the UN and the biases of the West. He said that the issues of the Muslim world, including Kashmir and Palestine, had not been resolved for decades.

He said the Pakistan government was trying to unite the Muslim world on this issue. He appreciated the statement of the Pope condemning blasphemy.

Ulema Council chairman Maulana Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi demanded that publications of the Qadyanis also be banned.

A declaration adopted at the conference said that the joint rally by the heads of 40 states in support of the blasphemer publication was a clear indication that the West was not ready to check this trend initiated at the behest of the Zionist lobby and the US imperialism and had crossed all limits of human values, dignity and human rights.

It stressed upon Muslim states to try for a permanent end to the trend of blasphemy of the Holy Prophet (SAW), all other prophets of Allah and all revealed religions by pronouncing it a crime under Articles 2 and 4 of the UN Human Rights Charter, punishable by death.

The conference demanded that Muslim states lodge a formal protest with France and other European states patronising such blasphemous publications.

It said if the measure fail to make any impact the Muslim states should sever diplomatic, trade and cultural ties with these countries and boycott their products.

The joint declaration noted that the incidents of desecration of the Holy Quran at the Guantanamo bay prison, US Pastor Terry Jones’ condemnable attempt to set on fire copy of the Holy Quran and the repeated publications of blasphemous caricatures in Denmark, Holland, and France, and other Western countries were being ignored as freedom of expression and opinion while any criticism on an individual, constitution, flag and the Zionist holocaust had been prohibited and declared a crime which clearly showed double standards.

The JI chief formed a steering committee. led by Liaqat Baloch, to organise the movement against blasphemy.

He said that two delegations would be sent to meet envoys of Muslim countries as well as of the non-Muslim states to apprise them of the sentiments of the Muslims on the issue of blasphemy.

A third delegation, he said, would visit the Muslim countries and mobilise them for taking a common line of action on the issue.

Published in Dawn February 18th , 2015

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