I am shocked, disgusted and totally condemn the killing of Ahmadis and Shias in Pakistan, it is morally reprehensible and strategically damaging to the country. I am horrified by the persecution of Christians in Syria, I utterly and whole heartedly condemn violence against Jews and their property in Europe. I condemn anyone who hijacks religion and bends and construes it for their political aims at the expense of human life. To those who kill minorities and hide behind the name of my faith: Please read the Quran and study the lives of your Jihadist heroes. All our heroes, Muhammad (pbuh), Abu Bakr (RA), Omar (RA), Ali (RA), Saladin, every single one of them protected the human rights of minorities, their places of worship, their personal property and their infrastructure. For those who would like to disagree, internet links from hate groups, Islamophobes and self claimed ulemas who are part of terrorist organizations on the blogosphere will not suffice as counter evidence to seekers of Truth. Please refer to serious, impartial academic work. Clearly these imposters from ISIS never read this document: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achtiname_of_Muhammad Commandment from Abu Bakr (RA): I advise you ten things: Do not kill women or children or an aged, infirm persons. Do not cut down fruit-bearing trees. Do not destroy an inhabited place. Do not slaughter sheep or camels except for food. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them. Do not steal from the booty, and do not be cowardly. That my friends is the behavior of a MORAL Army. As a British Mohammaden of South Asian ethnicity, today I celebrated Eid with my family with total peace, happiness, safety and security (By God Almightys Grace). My employer lets me go to Friday prayers every week and I work in an environment which affirms, celebrates and respects my faith. Religious freedom, the protection of minorities and safeguarding of all peoples DIGNITY, SAFETY and SECURITY is a mandatory requirement of a civilized society and is a Universal (Religious and Humanist) value. Pakistan MUST safeguard its churches and its Hindu temples, We MUST allow the Sikhs to visit and venerate their holy sites in the Punjab. Jews used to live in Karachi once upon a time, and you know what, if any of my Sephardi (the ethnicity that was in Pakistan) Jewish friends are a fair sample, our country would be a MUCH better Place if they came back and helped rebuild our shattered society: From: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Pakistan Magen Shalome, the Bene Israels only synagogue, was demolished in 1988 to make way for a shopping plaza by order of General Zia-ul-Haq shortly after the Bene Israel community in Israel petitioned for its maintenance and use as a historical or other community center. This by the way was the same man (with the greatest respect and apologies to those friends of mine who are related to him) who killed more Palestinian combatants than Israel has in the recent conflict (to be fair, Israel hasnt killed that many combatants, unfortunately this current military action seems to be more effective in killing civilians). Also if you would like to study the rise of extremism and religious intolerance in Pakistan, analyse Pakistani society pre and post this time in history. Like Israel, Pakistan is a created nation that was made to provide sanctuary and a state to a specific religious group. Like Israel, some horrific things seem to happen in Pakistan when you have a hatred filled, military minded psychopath ruling the country. Like Israel, Zealots seem to have dominated the intellectual discourse and religious narrative in Pakistan after a militarily and secret service controlled government starts to interfere with the narratives of civil society. Like Israel, Pakistan has a nuclear arsenal, heightening the need for moral scrutiny on their governments. Lets not get into arguments and try to quantify wrong actions. No one is going to win a medal in this comparison. What goes around comes around. Those who live by the sword, die by the sword, the Buddhist and Hindu concept of Karma, resonates and echoes in all faiths. Whereas I loathe to talk about the death of a person, this is how Zia ul Haq died: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_and_state_funeral_of_Muhammad_Zia-ul-Haq A little historical context for those Pakistanis judging and condemning Israels recent behavior. And why Zionism appeals to many/most(?) Jews as a Sanctuary. Saying all of that, I would like to use this opportunity to re-affirm that the plight of the people in Gaza is a cause the offends my conscience so intensely that I have not been able to sleep for the last 2 weeks. There is something that stirs the deepest corners of the human soul when you see a people rounded up, besieged, indiscriminately killed, provoked and insulted. When hundreds of children are killed by machines of war and this is witnessed by journalists and UN workers from all religions and ethnicity. Insult and confusion to injury is added when good, loving, intelligent people are dedicating their lives to support and justify this. In parallel to this there is an obvious demonization of the people in Gaza and their religion (which happens to be mine, so yes I am biased because the global campaign to demonize Islam amongst the voting population of the US, EU and UK is an issue which DIRECTLY affects my children). It doesnt take an understanding of how people can be moved to HATE another people by reading about Joseph Goebbels, or a nuanced reading/ understanding of the power of insinuation, subtext, subtle suggestion from great thinkers such as Noam Chomsky, Malcolm X or Michel Foucault for an informed person of conscience to conclude that Fox news, The Daily Mail, The Telegraph (list goes on) and company are demonizing Muslims. 72 Virgins, which all my AIPAC/ BICOM friends seem to be joking about is no different from: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_libel As a tax paying member of British Civil Society, I will protest and raise awareness about the morally reprehensible acts of this Israeli Government as opposed to ISIS, Boko Haram, Al Qaeda, because last time I checked we do not (openly?) and directly engage with these groups. We label them as terrorist organizations, we arrest and interrogate their members should they slip through this countrys border. We do not send them military aid, we do not engage in international trade with them, we unabashedly condemn them in the media outlets that force us to pay a TV license so they can provide impartial journalism, we most certainly do not abstain from UN resolutions that call impartial investigation into allegations of war crimes, allegations that are backed by hundreds of samples of photographic evidence from people who do not even know how to pronounce the word Hamas, completely visible to entire world because of technology. The People of Conscience in the UK. who stand in solidarity with Gazas private condemnation of these terrorist groups does not translate into public outcry, because if we would hold rallies/ protests/ take political action against these groups, the elected body that we are appealing to will ask what all the noise is about. People dont campaign and engage in activism to re-enforce the status-quo! I hope that adequately answers my very dear Zionist friends questions as to why my visible and public moral outrage is in solidarity for the children in Gaza. And I hope for those of you who are campaigning for the plight of the people of Gaza, whether you are Christian, Jewish, Humanist, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist (forgive those I left out, the list goes on, humanity is UNITED on this issue) can fully and property answer those who ask why your efforts are directed on one of the most important Human rights issue of our time... I love you all, especially those of you who disagree with me. Eid Mubarak to those of all faiths and none.
Posted on: Tue, 29 Jul 2014 04:20:39 +0000
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