Margot maelstrom: Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom hit the wall when she tried to rap Saudi Arabia on issues of human and women’s rights in the Swedish Parliament. A misplaced observation!

It backfired: Riyadh described the statement as a ‘flagrant interference’ in its internal affairs; stopped issuing business visas to Swedes or renewal of current visas of Swedish nationals living in KSA. It’s a sandstorm, Ms. Wallstrom.

The fallout: Jolted the Swedish business. Going to have a vast negative impact for the companies with interest in the region, said the Stockholm’s Chamber of Commerce.

Stats speak: KSA is Sweden’s 18th most important exporting country, accounting for goods worth $1.3bn in 2014. Firms like Volvo, H&M and IKEA operate in KSA, besides a range of medium-sized businesses.

Diplomacy takes a dip: KSA, UAE recalled ambassadors to Sweden; GCC called it as unacceptable interference in the internal affairs of the KSA. The Comoros considered it ‘abusive.’

Wallstrom wails: She apparently backed down on her statement saying Saudi Arabia is a key nation in the region, which is at the forefront of fighting global terror; Stockholm respects Islam as a global religion, and respects its contribution to human civilization, she stressed. Not enough, may be.

No ‘Walls,’ no storm, only bridges: Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf is ‘concerned’ and offers to help in resolving the issue, in efforts to bridge the Gulf. Let’s hope for the best!

Wall of silence: Why Wallstrom is silent on countries like Israel for its flagrant violations of international treaties, UN resolutions and racist policies? That’s part of anti-Arab, anti-Muslim, anti-Islam agendas, Muslims protest.

Offensive on defense: Sweden has decided not to consider defense-industrial trade agreement with Riyadh. This dents its own reputation and credibility as a contractual partner. This whole situation is unfortunate, said Carl Bildt, a former minister.

Lest Sweden forgets: Human Rights Council report recently pulled up the govt. to deal with hate crimes, discrimination and violation of minority rights. Will she make remark on this?

10 things, understanding the debate

1. It’s a clash of culture — an undeclared, but an uncalled-for, unnecessary and unjustifiable war of words, mostly spearheaded by the western countries.

2. The clash is perennial — it’s divine law Vs. people’s law; faith Vs. temporal; and God Vs. man.

3. The world seems to align against Islam when it comes to a clash between faith and the temporal. This is ridiculous given the majority in the world has a faith.

4. Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life says over 84% in the world has a faith; 8-in-10 people identify with a religious group. Then why questioning Muslim faith?

5. Riyadh’s WAMY Assistant Secretary General Mohammed Badahdah says it’s a duty of all countries and societies to respect religious faiths, beliefs and cultures of different communities in order to promote peace and stability in the world. Do they want peace?

6. That Islam, or Saudi Arabia for that matter, should not be seen or studied in isolation, is a common Muslim refrain; and rightly so.

7. While the West continued to harp on petty issues like those of a flogging of a blogger which is strictly within the internal rights of a country, it hides its own crimes on international level like killing people in Iraq and Afghanistan and inaction to stop civilian massacres in Israel and Syria.

8. Sweden for instance rakes up issue of human rights, but its own judicial system has been ineffective to stop crimes: Sweden is 2nd top country in the world to have maximum cases of rapes. Unrestrained freedom is wild. Islam is against it.

9. Western double standard at its best when they relate Islam with terrorism, forgetting roundly their role in the genocide in Japan bombing, and Israeli genocides. They gave the world the world wars.

10. If Islam is growing fast in the West, the need on global level is to understand it, study it instead of making it an issue for worldwide tension and flareups.

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