It was a historic day on Tuesday when the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) approved a resolution introduced by Pakistan on behalf of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to proclaim March 15 as International Day to Combat Islamophobia.
Prime Minister Imran Khan had been the first to raise the problem of Islamophobia at the United Nations in his historic 2019 address to the General Assembly
The resolution was co-sponsored by 57 members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as well as eight other countries, including China and Russia.
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Abolish any acts of violence against persons on the basis of their religious or philosophical beliefs, as stated in the resolution. However, a number of member states expressed reservations about the resolution.
Among those who voiced concerns were India, France and European countries, who stated that religious intolerance was a global phenomenon, but that the document singled out Islam while excluding other religions.
In his presentation to the 193-member Assembly, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Munir Akram, acknowledged that Islamophobia was a fact and that the issue was rising and that it needed to be tackled.
The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, had been the first to raise the problem of Islamophobia at the United Nations in his historic 2019 address to the General Assembly, and he had consistently urged for world attention and measures to solve the issue.
Soon after the development was announced, Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed his congratulations to the Muslim world.
According to him, “I would want to express my congratulations to the Muslim Ummah today because our voice against the rising tide of Islamophobia has been heard, and the United Nations has adopted a landmark resolution submitted by Pakistan.”
I want to congratulate the Muslim Ummah today as our voice against the rising tide of Islamophobia has been heard & the UN has adopted a landmark resolution introduced by Pakistan, on behalf of OIC, designating 15 March as International Day to Combat Islamophobia.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) March 15, 2022
“Today, the United Nations has finally recognised the terrible challenge that the world is facing: Islamophobia, respect for religious symbols and traditions, and the suppression of systematic hate speech and discrimination against Muslims,” the prime minister continued, adding: