Statement
Makkah
The Muslim World League condemned the statements made by the Chairman of the Justice Committee in the Swedish Parliament against Islam, the Holy Qur’an, and our Prophet Mohammed, peace be upon him, the messenger of mercy and kindness.
His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, the Secretary-General of the Muslim World League and the Chairman of the Organization of Muslim Scholars, said in a statement that this attack on our religion [Islam] from someone who does not only represent himself but is also a person of prominence, given his position as the chairman of the Justice Committee in the Parliament, is a clear indication of the rise of Islamophobia in the official entity this person heads. Sweden has a distinguished relationship with the Islamic world, the Swedish people are appreciated and respected by Muslims, they are described as civilized and friendly people, and they still are. These negative and immoral words only represent the person who expressed them and the entity he heads.
The MWL statement pointed out that the insults reflect an ignorance of the true Islam, they are based on concepts promoted by extremists, which are not related, in any shape or form, to the true and tolerant message of Islam, these concepts crumble in the face of the facts that have convinced over two billion Muslims across the world. He forgot that his insults apply to all extremist groups that exist among a section of the followers of all faiths, and not only among those who are outwardly claimed to be affiliated with Islam. This abusive person must get the truth from the original sources and carefully read history.
Dr. Al-Issa called upon the many sources of good in the Swedish society to stand in the face of this growing tide that seeks to create a rift between Muslims and other members of the Swedish society, as well as between Sweden and the Islamic world, based on extremist concepts that fuel the call for clash and conflict between civilizations. We firmly believe that the Swedish consciousness represented by all of its national components, will not allow bets that would compromise national and human values that believe in fraternity, love and mutual respect in Sweden, as well as in friendship between nations and peoples, and attempts that undermine the importance of promoting the alliance between civilizations based on shared human values.
Sheikh Dr. Al-Issa considered the insistence on practices that incite hatred and provoke religious sentiments cannot be justified under any pretext, whether against Islam or any other faith, culture or race. If such behavior is practiced as a form of freedom, then it is an abuse of this humane concept; because the values of freedom, based on the natural law, do not allow for the insulting of others, let alone allow for creating animosity with hundreds of millions of Muslims who love the world they live in and engage with it in a civilized manner according to their religious and patriotic principles. Especially, the Muslims of Sweden who love their country, they are proud of it and are ready to sacrifice for its sake.
Sheikh Dr. Al-Issa affirmed that the aforementioned statements will only serve extremist agendas, will silence the voices of reason and will undermine the efforts of bridging the gap and building bridges between nations and peoples.
His Excellency, the Secretary-General, warned Muslims in Sweden and the rest of Europe, not to be drawn into the space that extremists are luring them into by creating an atmosphere of mutual hatred among the various components of the society. Dr. Al-Issa stressed that such statements should increase Muslims’ adherence to their values that emphasize the necessity of building and not destroying; getting closer rather than growing apart; the keenness to make societies stable and not to disturb harmony; they also stress the importance of bonding around the national state based on the constitution and laws of each country, whatever the identity may be.
His Excellency affirmed Islam is against countering abuse with abuse, and against any negative behavior; whether in word or action, including actions that violate the laws, especially those that provoke hatred and escalate matters. To deal with such matters we need wisdom, we need to turn away from them, this is the approach of the Holy Quran, as mentioned in several verses, and so was the approach of our Prophet Mohammed, peace be upon him, as was the case in several such incidents.
In conclusion, Dr. Al-Issa said that Islam is a true religion that cannot be harmed by provocative words or actions. Throughout its history and its exponential growth, with more than two billion followers across the world, Islam was never affected by those who attempted to target it, the adherent of Islam believe in it as a religion of mercy and peace for humanity at large.
