Rushdie Haunted by his unholy Ghosts — Page 175
Rushdie: Haunted By His Unholy Ghosts 175 The Prince called on religious leaders to play their part in en- couraging tolerance. “We must foster, encourage and act upon that which embodies the divine attributes of mercy and compassion. That calls for calmness and the exercise of restraint. And, if I may say so, it requires all those who are in positions of authority in our different faiths to preach clearly and consistently to others the eter- nal values of these divine attributes. ” From the Muslim world the most emphatic and meaningful response came from Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, the fifth successor and present leader of the 200-million strong worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim Association. He started by congratulating the UK media for the responsible response to the cartoon controversy that had shocked the Muslim world by not printing any. He also said faith leaders should stand united against assaults on religious sensitivities. He said: “I would like to condemn unreservedly the behaviour of some of the newspapers portraying the Holy Prophet of Islam, Mohammad (peace be on him) in an offensive and uncouth man- ner. “It is a sad day when the media – that is supposed to inform, educate and create understanding and harmony among different races and religions – deliberately provokes and aggravates the reli- gious sensitivities by insulting the Founder of the great religion of Islam. Although the freedom of speech has been used as an excuse, the media has a responsibility to respect the spiritual sensitivities of all religions. We live in a multi-religious society in this world and it behoves us all to understand each other, to respect each other’s belief and to live in peace and harmony. “I am sure my co-religionists will join me in condemning this unnecessary and un-called for provocation. This is the time for all religious leaders to stand together and condemn this profanity. “I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the British Press and media for the responsible manner in which they have