What is the difference between Terry Jones and the mullahs who are sympathetic to the cause of the Taliban?
KARACHI: Can someone please explain why no one can see that the pastor in Florida who wanted to burn copies of the Holy Quran is really no different than the clerics in this part of the world who incite their followers to kill non-believers? The latter churn out their message of hate and loathing, much like the pastor but nobody really in this country seems to have the courage to call a spade a spade. One can see and hear these messages on a daily basis, in many of our mosques and even on the electronic media and not a day goes by in Pakistan that Muslims and non-Muslims are killed by bigoted fanatics.
So what is the difference between Terry Jones of this world and the mullahs who are sympathetic to the cause of the Taliban and the militants? Is there anything in religion that sanctions the murder of innocent men, women and children who may or may not follow the same beliefs? Why is the same Ummah which protests against the pastor so quiet and reticent about these fanatics?
Dr Mervyn Hosein
Published in The Express Tribune, September 17th, 2010.
