China has joined the Muslim community in denouncing the recent burnings of the Quran in Sweden, with the Foreign Ministry calling for tolerance of minority groups’ religious beliefs.
Rasmus Paludan, leader of the Danish far-right Stram Kurs (Hard Line) party, incited riots in southern Sweden after carrying out an anti-Muslim demonstration that involved burning a copy of the Muslim holy book over Easter weekend.
Paludan, who has been known to stage offensive provocations against Muslims in recent years, also threatened to burn more copies of the Quran in the future.
“Freedom of speech cannot be a reason to incite racial or cultural discrimination & tear society apart. We hope #Sweden can earnestly respect the religious beliefs of minority groups including Muslims,” Chinese FM said on Sweden riots over the burning of #Koran pic.twitter.com/E3jRG57wQS
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) April 20, 2022
On Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin criticized the recent incident, saying, “Freedom of speech cannot be a reason to incite racial or cultural discrimination and tear society apart.”
“We hope Sweden can earnestly respect the religious beliefs of minority groups, including Muslims,” he added.
The Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (#OIC) condemns the provocative actions of burning copies of the Holy Qur’an during anti-Muslim demonstrations, which have been taking place in Linköping, Norrköping, and other cities in #Sweden. #Quran pic.twitter.com/voVkD5OExI
— OIC (@OIC_OCI) April 18, 2022
On Tuesday, Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha condemned “the provocative actions of burning copies of the Holy Quran during anti-Muslim demonstrations, which have been taking place in Linkoping, Norrkoping, and other cities in Sweden.”
According to the pan-Muslim group, the burning has raised Muslim concerns about “the alarming trend of Islamophobia perpetuated by extreme right supporters.”
Taha noted, however, that the incident “does not reflect the views of the majority of Swedish and European citizens.”
A number of Arab and Muslim countries have similarly criticized the Quran burning, with some calling it a provocation of the Muslim world.
#Statement | The Kingdom of #Saudi Arabia condemns the deliberate abuse of the Holy Quran by some extremists in #Sweden. pic.twitter.com/uefX0xNzfR
— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) April 17, 2022
— وزارة الخارجية (@MOFAKuwait) April 18, 2022
موجة الكراهية والتعصب التي تشهدها السويد ضد ديننا الإسلامي الحنيف مرفوضة وتشكل خطراً لتبنيها فكراً رافضاً لمبادئ التعايش، ما يجري يؤكد نجاعة نهج التسامح الذي يُميز الأمارات واختارته مساراً لها وانعكس ايجاباً على مجتمعها الذي تعيش فيه العديد من الثقافات والديانات بكل أمن واستقرار
— د. أنور قرقاش (@AnwarGargash) April 18, 2022
بيان | دولة قطر تدين بشدّة إقدام متطرفين على حرق نسخ من المصحف الشريف في مدينة مالمو بالسويد#الخارجية_القطرية pic.twitter.com/hqxbJ60nQ7
— الخارجية القطرية (@MofaQatar_AR) April 17, 2022
وزارة الخارجية تعرب عن استنكار مملكة البحرين لقيام متطرفين في السويد بإحراق نسخ من القرآن الكريمhttps://t.co/Gd5leQRXTe pic.twitter.com/VtTWFZViWP
— وزارة الخارجية 🇧🇭 (@bahdiplomatic) April 18, 2022
China has been accused of committing genocide against the Uyghurs and other mostly-Muslim ethnic groups in the Xinjiang region. It has claimed that its actions are aimed at countering terrorism and alleviating poverty.
Image: CGTN
