AMP Report – April 3, 2019
In the aftermath of New Zealand Mosques massacre:
UN General Assembly condemns Islamophobia
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
In the wake of the horrific attack at two New Zealand mosques, in which 50 people were killed and 50 others injured, the UN General Assembly Tuesday (April2, 2019) unanimously adopted a resolution strongly condemning Islamophobia.
The UN General Assembly convened a special session on Tuesday to adopt the resolution.
The resolution, titled ‘Combating terrorism and other acts of violence based on religion or belief’, was presented by Turkey and co-sponsored by countries including Pakistan.
The UN resolution condemned “in the strongest terms the heinous, cowardly terrorist attack aimed at Muslim worshippers in Christchurch, New Zealand”.
The resolution also urged all states to protect and promote freedom of religion and belief and to foster a domestic environment of religious tolerance, peace and respect.
Introducing the resolution, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said the international community must stand up against the spiral of hate. “Islamophobia and racism go hand in hand,” he said.
Rejecting the actions of reckless politicians who “use distorted historical narratives and toxic conspiracy theories to equate Islam with terrorism”, he quoted the poet Rumi who said, “Listen with ears of tolerance, see with eyes of compassion, speak the language of love.”
Pakistan’s representative, Maleeha Lodhi, said increasing anti-Islam sentiments were threatening global peace. She asserted that Pakistan has and will always support efforts to bring nations and religions closer.
Noting that nine victims of the Christchurch attack hailed from Pakistan, Ambassador Lodhi said profiling and stigmatising people from one country leads to drastic consequences.
Iran’s delegate said that measures such as a Muslim travel ban and the use of the term “Islamic terrorism” are ways of encouraging Islamophobia, while the representative of Kazakhstan called for dialogue between civilizations.
Speaking in explanation of position before the vote, the representative of New Zealand welcomed the focus of the text on strengthened international efforts on a global dialogue to foster a culture of tolerance, diversity and peace.
“New Zealand is humbled by the outpouring of support from the international community and particularly grateful to the global Muslim community who stood with us during these dark days,” he said.
Canada’s delegate recalled the attack in a Quebec City mosque two years ago and said that when violence like this occurs, whether in mosques, churches, synagogues or on the streets, it must be called what it is: neoNazism, white supremacism, Islamophobia, and antiSemitism.
The European Union’s delegate said that “attacks on places of worship are attacks on all of us who value diversity”, adding that sensitive issues require careful consideration and the deliberations on the draft were “somewhat compressed”.
In a message UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ welcomes the UN General Assembly resolution.
“I reiterate my own horror at the vile attack that killed 50 worshippers in [two mosques] in Christchurch, New Zealand, just a few months after the appalling shooting at the Tree of Life Congregation synagogue in Pittsburgh in the United States,” he said adding:
“The world must stand together to protect all religious sites against rising antiMuslim hatred, antiSemitism, xenophobia, racism and hate speech. We must counter those who seek to demonize and divide. And we must defend the freedom of religion and belief. The United Nations is urgently working on global action plans to combat hate speech and to safeguard religious sites.”
According to the Israeli Mission to the UN, an early version of the resolution failed to mention anti-semitism and referred only to Islamophobia. Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the UN, launched a diplomatic campaign with other states that agreed not to support the resolution if it does not mention antisemitism. “Turkey,” said the Israeli mission, “was forced to accept the position of Ambassador Danon, changed the wording of the resolution and added the term anti-semitism.”
Speech of Pakistan UN Ambassador
In her speech, Pakistan Ambassador Lodhi, noting that nine victims of the Christchurch attack hailed from her country, said that profiling and stigmatizing people from one country leads to drastic consequences.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims and survivors of this cowardly terrorist attack. While expressing solidarity with the people and government of New Zealand, she saluted Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for her “exemplary leadership” in the face of this tragedy.
The Christchurch terrorist, she said, was only the latest manifestation of a growing phenomenon rooted in hate, bigotry, racism, and the extremist ideology of racial and white supremacy.
“The rise of extreme nationalist and populist ideologies in liberal Western democracies and elsewhere, including in our region, are fanning the flames of bigotry, intolerance, anti-Muslim hatred and xenophobia,” the Pakistani envoy added.
The growing prejudice against Islam was “evident in policies aimed at creating walls and barriers against displaced populations, as much as in attempts to denigrate Islamic beliefs and our sacred personalities on the pretext of freedom of expression.”
“The political falsehood of equating people of different religions with violent extremism, in order to garner political support for the forces of hate lies at the heart of this phenomenon,” Ambassador Lodhi said.
Freedom of expression, she said, was often used as an excuse to enable such vile expression to prosper and for hate speech to enter the mainstream. The Christchurch tragedy also exposed social media’s radicalizing role.
“It is time that we evolve ways to ensure that social media companies are held accountable for their content that incites violence or spreads hatred,” she said, adding that Islamophobia posed a grave threat to global peace and security.
“We must strengthen efforts to foster a global dialogue on the promotion of a culture of tolerance, dialogue and peace at all levels, she said, while emphasizing respect for human rights and diversity as well as space for diverse voices, religions, worldviews and faith traditions.
Pakistan, she said, was committed to continuing its efforts to build bridges of understanding and challenge and resist those who seek to construct walls of bigotry and hatred.
“We look towards all those who believe in humanity’s common future, to help in evolving a consensus for action to combat the forces of Islamophobia, xenophobia and racism.”
Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the Journal of America (www.journalofamerica.net) email: asghazali2011 (@) gmail.com
The Journal of America Team:
Editor in chief:
Abdus Sattar Ghazali
Senior Editor:
Prof. Arthur Scott
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