Move to devise Muslim world plan against blasphemous content

ISLAMABAD: The foreign ministry would circulate a comprehensive strategy paper dealing with legal and technical issues regarding blasphemous content on the social media among ambassadors of Muslim countries, who would share the document with their respective governments so that a plan of action could be evolved for the future, it was decided on Friday.

The decision was taken at a meeting between Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and ambassadors of Muslim countries based in Islamabad.

The meeting — which arguably marked the first step towards evolving a joint strategy to deal with blasphemous material on the social media — also decided that references on the matter would be sent to chiefs of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and Arab League.

Once responses to the strategy paper were received from the Mus­lim countries, the issue would be taken up with the United Nations, the minister and the ambassadors said. They resolved that legal options would be exercised and courts in the countries from where the objectionable material were originating would be moved.

The meeting was convened by the minister and it had the single-point agenda of discussing ways and means of responding to the “madness unleashed against Islam and its holy personalities in the name of freedom of expression”.

There was unanimity among those attending the meeting that the Ummah stood united in protecting the sanctity and dignity of its religion and of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Khan said that distortion of religious beliefs and sacrilege of holy personalities could never be tolerated. No law should allow people to distort religious beliefs or disrespect holy figures.

It was unfortunate, said the minister, that despite being the most notable victims of terrorism, Muslims were often portrayed as the perpetrators of terrorist attacks. Muslim countries should join hands to impress upon the international community that it should get rid of major irritants like Islamophobia.

Chaudhry Nisar was of the view that the international community should recognise that wilful distortion of any religion was like carrying out a terrorist attack.


https://www.dawn.com/news/1322728


What can one say, when religions try to criminalize criticism of said religions and deny Free Speech.
Again the problem of religions constantly being exposed.
The UN needs to tell them to get stuffed and that its them who are denying people rightly to be critical of bad beliefs and ideologies. Islam, being one of the worst and this proves that it is.
Even more so to help Islam progress, it needs Muslim champions to be critical of bad beliefs within the religion.