NGO, political figure condemn Quran burning in Sweden

Yadim chief executive officer Tuan Kamarul Arief Tuan Soh said the anger and frustration of Malaysians especially the majority Muslim population over the incident was totally justified.

"We believe this hate-mongering act doesn't reflect the majority of Swedish and Danish as proven in their rejection towards the Stram Kurs party led by Paludan. Such profanity must not be allowed to exacerbate further.

"Besides expressing disapproval officially through the existing diplomatic channel, Yadim believes that discourse on Islam and the Quran must be intensified beyond the Muslim realm," he said in a statement today.

Tuan Kamarul said the message of mercy, compassion and courteousness that Islam propagates through the teaching of the Quran must be upheld profoundly and any attempt to lure hatred and violence under the false pretext of freedom and human rights must not be condoned.

Meanwhile, DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang said Paludan's action was not only a blatant defilement of the holy book of Islam, but an unacceptable hate speech that cannot be justified as 'freedom of speech' in any civilised society.

"The burning of a copy of the holy book of Islam is a clear form of Islamophobia, but equally reprehensible, irresponsible and immoral are actions at the other extreme end, for example, people shouting non-existent Islamophobia to create fear and hatred that Islam is under threat of survival," he said in a statement.

Anwar yesterday not only condemned the action in the strongest terms but also urged the Swedish government to take urgent measures against Paludan as well as ensure drastic steps in the future to address the alarming rise of Islamophobia in the country.

Paludan, leader of the Danish far-right party Stram Kurs (Hard Line), was permitted to burn the Quran on Saturday outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, causing the Muslim world to erupt in anger due to the incident.