(MENAFN) Islamophobia must be recognized as a crime, a senior Malaysian official stated on Friday, urging for "firmer" response by Muslim nations towards incidents of burning of the Muslims' holy book, the Quran.
"Anything that is Islamophobic can actually be regarded as something which is criminal in nature. So, much like anti-Semitism is a criminal offense in many other countries," Abdul Razak Ahmad, a special representative of Malaysia's foreign minister, updated Anadolu in an interview.
"We should also make Islamophobia a criminal offense, especially in Muslim countries," on the words of Ahmad, who praised the role of Türkiye for its strong response to a recent spate of Quran burnings in Europe that caused the anger of Muslims worldwide.
Mentioning one such try in Norway in which experts withdrew an authorization formerly given for a Quran burning after a threat from Ankara, Ahmad stated the episode demonstrated the effectiveness of Turkish diplomacy.
"It shows that, you know, Turkish soft power works. And I think this is what we should do to actually be confronting these people and to engage with them and to tell them that, 'look we are offended and this is not the right way to do things and this is not a manifestation of an egalitarian society. And they should stop'," as stated by special representative on peacebuilding and countering Islamophobia.
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