Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has spoken out against the desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden.
This so-called “garb of freedom of expression” has been used to insult the religious sensibilities of 1.5 billion Muslims across the globe.
On Sunday, Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, denounced the heinous crime of sacrilege of the Holy Quran in Sweden.
“No words are enough to sufficiently condemn the abhorrent act of desecration of the Holy Quran by a right-wing extremist in Sweden,” the premier wrote in a tweet.
Shehbaz emphasised that “the garment of freedom of expression” was being utilised to offend the 1.5 billion Muslims around the world over their religious beliefs, calling the action “unacceptable.”
The statement from Pakistan’s Foreign Office from a day earlier claimed that the “senseless and offensive Islamophobic conduct” offended the religious sensibilities of billions of Muslims worldwide.
The Foreign Office had stated that “Such actions are not covered under any legitimate manifestation of the right to freedom of expression or opinion, which contains obligations under international human rights law, such as the need not to engage in hate speech and incite individuals to violence.”
“Muslims, particularly those in Pakistan, believe that all religions should be respected and that Islam is a religion of peace. All parties must support these principles, the declaration had added.
Islamabad had pleaded on the world community to unite in their opposition to racism, intolerance, and incitement to violence based on religion or belief, and to cooperate in fostering interfaith harmony and peaceful coexistence.
The authorities in Sweden are being informed of Pakistan’s worries. We implore them to be sensitive of the feelings of Muslims everywhere and the people of Pakistan, and to take action to stop Islamophobic acts, the office had said.
Rasmus Paludan, the head of the Danish extreme-right group Stram Kurs (Hard Line), torched the Holy Quran on Saturday in front of the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry had previously remarked, “We condemn in the greatest terms the disgusting attack on our holy book… Permitting this anti-Islam conduct, which targets Muslims and undermines our sacred principles, under the cover of freedom of expression is utterly unacceptable.”
