Racism A Prelude to Colonial Onslaughts on Muslims: Lebanese Lawyer

IQNA – Racist assaults on Islam and Muslims have been used as a prelude to colonization of Muslim lands, a Lebanese lawyer said.

Speaking to IQNA on the occasion of the World Human Rights Day, Muhammad Talal Shami said racist attacks on Islam and Muslims are not a goal but a means to pave the way for colonizing Islamic countries, especially those having oil reserves.

A study of the history of colonialism clear shows that before any colonial campaign, there has been racist onslaughts the people of the targeted country, he stated.

He cited the United States as an example, saying US forces entered Iraq in the name of democracy and human rights in order to plunder its oil wealth and that was also Washington’s goal in Syria and Afghanistan.

The West attributes extremism and terrorism to Muslims whereas the West itself has been behind creation of terrorist groups and supporting them to achieve its destructive goals, he added.

Muslims are the target of racism and discrimination in Western countries and feel isolated in those societies, Shami deplored.

He noted that such a racist approach to Islam and Muslims has been in violation of all human rights laws and international conventions, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, whose article 7 states, “All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.”

Asked about the desecration of the Holy Quran as a violation of Muslims’ human rights in the West, the Lebanese legal expert said such acts of sacrilege clearly run counter to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including its Article 29.

He added that the United Nations’ Human Rights Council has also recently passed a resolution against religious hatred but authorities in Western countries continue to allow such offensive acts against Islam’s sanctities.

The law professor also slammed Western countries’ double standards when it comes to freedom of expression, saying that they consider criticizing homosexuality or burning the flag of a country as crimes but allow burning of the Holy Book of Muslims.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Shami condemned international organizations and human rights bodies for remaining silent on the Israeli regime’s barbaric attacks on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which are in stark violation of international laws and necessitate prosecution in the International Criminal Court.

Human Rights Day is celebrated annually on December 10, commemorating the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.

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