MPAC Cautions Against Anti-Muslim Backlash in India
December 02, 2008
The Muslim Public Affairs Council today sent a letter to the Bush administration and the Obama transition team expressing concern about a potential backlash that could be triggered in the wake of terrorist attacks in Mumbai. MPAC called on both to promote a message of tolerance and to encourage India to take pre-cautions against a possible backlash against India's Muslim population.
SEE: "Fears of Sectarian Violence After Mumbai Carnage" (AFP, 12/1/08)
SEE: "Best Ways to React to India's '9/11'" (Christian Science Monitor, 12/1/08)
India's Muslim community expressed outrage over the terrorist attacks, and Muslim leaders in charge of Muslim cemetaries in Mumbai yesterday publicly refused to offer burial spaces in their cemetaries for the perpetrators of last week's terrorist attacks.
"The killing of innocents is against Islam. These men are not Muslims. Why should we give them place anywhere? There is no place for them in our hearts and in our cemeteries," said president of Dawat-e-islami Hamid Abdul Razzak, according to media reports.
SEE: "Muslims Deny Burial for Slain Terrorists" (NDTV.com, 12/2/08)
MPAC fears fanatics will unleash hate against the vulnerable Muslim minority in India, which lost 2,000 lives at the hands of targeted killings of Muslims by Hindu fanatics in Gujarat in 2006.
Pakistan yesterday expressed its unequivocal condemnation of the terrorist attacks and unwavering commitment to helping apprehend the culprits. In spite of the actions, many commentators are prematurely pointing fingers at Pakistan, which raises serious concerns about the stability of this vitally important area in the coming days.
