The burning of a copy of Holy Qur’an was carried out by pastor Wayne Sapp under the supervision of Terry Jones, who last year drew condemnation over his aborted plan to burn a copy of Holy Qur’an to mark the anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
Highlighting the historical address of the president of Pakistan in the joint sitting of the Parliament on March 22, 2011, the prime minister stated that it was the fourth continuous address to the joint sitting of the Parliament by any democratically elected president. He said that the president in his address gave concrete guidelines to steer the country forward amid a number of challenges and reiterated that all political parties should adopt a reconciliatory approach in the greater national interest and also vowed to uphold the supremacy of the constitution and the Parliament.
In his opening statement, the prime minister said, “I, on behalf of the people, government of Pakistan and my Cabinet colleagues, strongly condemn the desecration of the Holy Qur’an in Florida. Our government also condemns drone attacks which are counterproductive and flare up extremism.” The prime minister observed that this heinous act is reflective of the presence of extremism in various societies. He said such irresponsible acts negate the teachings of all religions.
While condemning the act of Sapp, the prime minister proposed that it was high time Muslims and the people of the West come together and promote interfaith harmony for the sake of future generations. He called for an end to the trend of civilizations clashing, replaced by one that builds bridges and promotes tolerance and mutual respect between cultures.
He told the Cabinet that the government has decided to register a protest to all international forums and urged the Parliament to pass a unanimous resolution against the desecration of the Holy Qur’an.
He also informed the Cabinet that a US delegation had also been informed that this trend of intolerance is apparent across national boundaries and serves to create a religious divide. It is imperative for the world to act before it is too late, he added.
