ISLAMABAD: Following a series of desecrations of the Holy Quran in European countries, Muslims worldwide condemned the acts and demanded reverence for the Holy scripture. This pressure prompted the Danish government to formulate plans that would prohibit the burning of all divine books.
Consequently, Pakistan welcomed Denmark’s reported decision, as the Foreign Office (FO) released a statement on Saturday labeling it a “step in the right direction.” During a meeting with the Danish Foreign Minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani expressed appreciation for the proposed legislation, as outlined in the FO statement.
Jalil Abbas Jilani expressed optimism that once the bill is passed, it would foster interfaith harmony and quell the environment of animosity among individuals of different religious beliefs.
In response to a series of desecrations of Islam’s holy book within Denmark, the Copenhagen government announced plans to ban Holy Quran burnings, which incited anger in Muslim nations.
Denmark heightened security measures
Meanwhile, Denmark heightened security measures earlier in the month due to the backlash, a response echoed by neighboring Sweden following its own recent instances of Quran burnings.
Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard of Denmark revealed the government’s intention to “criminalize the improper treatment of objects of significant religious importance to a religious community.”
Consistently, Pakistan has upheld the view that desecrating and burning holy scriptures amount to significant acts of religious animosity. They assert that these actions should not find allowance under the pretense of freedom of expression, opinion, or protest. The FO statement cited international human rights law and the call from the UN Human Rights Council to prevent and prohibit such provocative acts through legal means.
The FO emphasized that the recurring incidents of Quran desecration in recent months deeply wounded the sentiments of over 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide.
“These reprehensible acts aim to stoke tensions among communities and undermine interfaith harmony and mutual respect,” the statement conveyed, underscoring the obligation of national governments to take necessary measures to prevent such acts of religious animosity, xenophobia, and Islamophobia.
Islamabad expressed its hope that Denmark’s actions would lead to effective legislation to combat the desecration of the Holy Quran and other sacred texts.
The FO’s statement also expressed the aspiration that other nations would follow suit and enact similar measures to prohibit such hateful actions.
