Jeddah (UNA) – The Executive Committee of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) strongly condemned the recent despicable attacks on the Holy Quran in Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark, calling in its final statement on the governments of the countries concerned to take effective measures to prevent the recurrence of such despicable acts.
Yesterday, Tuesday, the committee held an extraordinary meeting at the headquarters of the Organization's General Secretariat in Jeddah, at the invitation of Turkey, to discuss the recent desecration of the Holy Qur'an that occurred in Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark.
The Committee deplored the increasing number of incidents of racial and religious intolerance and violence at the global level, including the phenomenon of Islamophobia, and urged all Member States of the United Nations to implement Paragraph 150 of the Durban Declaration and Program of Action.
The Committee condemned all attempts to desecrate the sanctity of the Holy Qur’an and other Islamic values, symbols and sanctities, including the Holy Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace), under the pretext of freedom of expression, which contradicts the spirit of Articles 10 and 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It calls on the international community to confront these attempts.
The Committee called on the ambassadors of the OIC Member States accredited to the capitals in which heinous acts against the Holy Qur’an and other symbols and sanctities of Islam take place to make collective efforts at the level of national parliaments, the media, civil society organizations, as well as governmental institutions, to express the position of the OIC He urged the relevant authorities to take the necessary legislative measures to criminalize such attacks, taking into account that the exercise of freedom of expression entails special duties and responsibilities.
It called on all OIC missions abroad (New York, Geneva and Brussels) to take the lead in international organizations with which they are accredited in order to address acts of hatred against Islam and its symbols and sanctities in interpreting relevant conventions, as well as developing new international legal texts for this purpose.
The committee urged Muslims who hold the nationalities of countries in which anti-Islamic attacks against the Holy Qur’an and other values and symbols of Islam occur to resort to local courts and exhaust all local litigation procedures, under the guidance of a specialized legal advisor, before filing cases with international judicial bodies, when appropriate.
The Committee called on all Member States to review the progress made in implementing the Group of Eight Action Plan unanimously agreed upon by Human Rights Council resolution 16/18, stressing its importance as an important step in the efforts of the United Nations to combat incitement to hatred, discrimination, stigmatization and violence based on religion or belief. And calling for every possible effort to be made to maintain the international consensus on this important initiative of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
She reaffirmed the essential role that political commitment at the highest levels has played in the full and effective implementation of UN Human Rights Council resolution 16/18, and urges States to attach particular importance to criminalizing incitement to violence on grounds of religion or belief, while recognizing the positive role debate plays. And open, constructive, respectful and interreligious dialogue in this regard.
It called on all governments to fully implement their existing legal and administrative frameworks at the domestic level, and/or adopt new laws, if necessary, in accordance with their obligations under the norms and standards of international law, in order to protect all individuals and communities from hatred and violence based on religion and belief, and to protect places of worship. .
She stressed the importance of encouraging dialogue, understanding and cooperation between religions, cultures and civilizations, and rejecting hatred and extremism in order to achieve peace and harmony in the world, which are the principles urged by the Amman Message.
The Committee called upon the General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to work with actors, organizations, international media institutions and social media sites to raise global awareness of Islamophobia, hatred and intolerance against Muslims, and to effectively address this phenomenon in coordination with national and international organizations.
It called on Member States and the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to take immediate steps to strengthen the Islamophobia Observatory in the General Secretariat, by transforming it into a full-fledged department, allocating the necessary resources to enable the observatory to operate effectively, implement concrete programs on the ground, and facilitate its link with other centers and mechanisms concerned with monitoring The phenomenon of Islamophobia around the world.
The Committee also called for the appointment of a Special Envoy of the OIC Secretary-General on Islamophobia, within available resources, to lead collective efforts on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
