Nine years of fighting phantoms

Nine years of fighting phantoms

Fighting Phantoms

15 October 2010

This is with reference to the article, ‘Nine years of fighting Phantoms’ (KT, Oct 12).

In the USA, West and India, Muslims enjoy complete and absolute religious freedom as minorities that many Muslim majority countries deny to other religions. You are complaining about Ground Zero mosque, minarets’ ban and burqa restriction. But always writers like you are silent on dismal discrimination shown to non-Muslims.

In the name of religion and Shariah, if Saudi Arabia denies women right to drive vehicles, prohibit other religious structures, Iran stones a woman to death for adultery, Malaysia canes a woman for drinking a can of beer, Sudan lashes a woman for wearing trousers, Pakistan crush minorities on blasphemy laws, Afghanistan passes laws for starvation of woman for refusing sex, how can you expect other people to view the same positively?

From Karachi to Karbala who is responsible for the persecution of Shias? Who is sending suicide bombers to mosques and Sufi shrines? Whether any one telling them to blast girls’ schools? I don’t think it is an act of few illiterate men.

Faisal Shahzad and Mohammad Atta are qualified professionals. Is Israel, USA or India responsible for bombing and mayhem in New York, London, Madrid, Bali, Mumbai, etc. Who is behind the countless attacks that killed Muslims in Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran.

How can you say that the entire world is false? Muslims are fighting with Hindus in India, Jews in Israel, Buddhists in southern Thailand, Atheists in Xinxiang (China), Roman Catholics in Mindanao (Philippines) apart from West and the USA. If anybody feels entire world is against them and insecure, the problem is with them.

If you view world with dark glasses every thing will be bleak and black.

It is not for a state to dictate how one likes to dress. If Danish cartoonist is wrong, so is M.F Hussain who hurt Hindu sentiments but was accorded Qatari citizenship. If France and Spain are wrong in banning burqa, Saudi Arabia and Iran are also wrong in enforcing burqa and Hijab. So please avoid duplicity and double-standards.

K. Raama Moorthi, by email - Letter in Khaleej Times, Dubai.

P.S. Raama Moorthi sounds right? Prathap G., Sharjah.