ISLAMABAD, Sept 11: PPP chairperson and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has said the third anniversary of the tragic events of 9/11 is a time to reflect on how the world has changed and what the Muslims response should be.

In her message on Saturday, Ms Bhutto said, unfortunately, since that moment when the direction of history changed with the collapse of the Twin Towers, Muslims were in international focus for the wrong reasons.

The series of attacks by extremists have tarnished the good name of the Muslim community in the world at large. While the terrorists are a small minority, the Muslim majority is suffering due to their actions. It is time to build awareness that the acts of terrorists are damaging to the Muslim community as a whole.

While much of the terrorist network was broken in Afghanistan and even to some extent in Pakistan, the rise in incidents of terrorism on Pakistani soil is a grim reminder of how much work still remains to be done. Fighting terrorism is a battle with both internal and external dimensions.

That so many wanted terrorists were arrested from Pakistan despite Islamabad's solemn pledge to seal the borders at Tora Bora in 2001 is a poor reflection "on our abilities to seal borders and to equip our law-enforcement agencies with the means to save our people as well as the international community".

The United States has taken measures to ensure the security of its people as have other countries of the world. "We, too, in Pakistan need to take concrete measures that can safeguard the lives of our people who, today, are victims of terrorism in places of worship, in the market place and even when travelling by bus."

"The PPP and I believe that a culture of tolerance must replace the culture of hate, that a culture of interfaith understanding must replace religious discrimination to create a world of harmony and peace," she said.

The massacre of innocent children at Beslan is condemnable. The act itself has harmed the cause of Chechen people. There is a need, therefore, to re-evaluate methods of protest. Such acts should have international legitimacy and bring sympathy rather than distance.

Islam is a religion of emancipation and reform. It is a religion that is grounded in human dignity. The extremists and terrorists are harming the whole Muslim world by killing children and using the name of religion. Their actions stun and shock the Muslim community.