Allah & Prophet Defamed Once Again In Bangladesh - This Time By Poet
Daud Haider
http://www.e-bangladesh.org/2007/09/20/attack-against-freedom-of-speech-bang=
ladesh-cartoon-controversy-update/
Saptahik2000, a popular magazine=92s Eid supplement was taken off
shelves because of a memoir of exiled writer Daud Haider. The news
paper re****t was that he compared Kaaba Shareef of Mecca with a
Baiji=92s (female entertainer) house.
The Bangla blogosphere were quick to find out the truth. It was these
lines of Daud Haider:
=93I have come to Lukhnow, shouldn=92t I visit the Baiji=92s (female
entertainer) house? What will people say if I don=92t. If anybody
travels to Mecca, is it befitting not to visit Kaaba Shareef?=94
It seems some people can=92t read the fine prints and sniff religious
provocations everywhere.
Daud Haider, who is renowned for his phrase =93birth is my life-long
sin=94 is a renowned poet of Bangladesh. In March 1975 poet Daud Haider
published a poem in Daily Sangbad tiltled =93Kalo Shurjer, Kalo Jotsnai
Kalo Bonnai=94 which contained remarks against religious values. In
independent Bangladesh the fundamentalists first showed their strength
by protesting in front of Baitul Mukarrom Mosque and some fatwa was
declared against him declaring him Murtad. He is on self exile till
then and now living in Berlin, Germany.
It may be reminded here that the Shaptahik 2000 is a publication of
the Prothom Alo group. The Daily Amar Desh re****ts:
Shaptahik 2000 authorities apologized for the inadvertent mistake in
the publication and said that it has withdrawn the issue. There was
also a press note of Islamic Shashontontro andolon who said by
comparing Kaaba Shareef with brothel the magazine has attacked the
Iman of the whole Muslim nation. They demanded cancellation of the
declaration of Prothom Alo
Now we are getting somewhere. It seems that certain quarters are
targeting the Daily Prothom Alo and the Daily Star who were vocal
against the fundamentalists in the past decade.
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[It is strange that after the khatib had forgiven Matiur Rahman,
another concern of the same publi****ng house printed another article
that contains defamatory remarks about the Kaaba and the wives of the
Prophet. And the Daily Star=92s editor, Mahfuz Anam, is publisher of
both the newspaper and the periodical]
http://www.newagebd.com/2007/sep/26/front.html#11
New Age, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Islamist outfits to march towards Prothom Alo again on Friday
Islamist outfits will march towards the Prothom Alo office again this
Friday to demand its closure for publi****ng the =91blasphemous=92 cartoon
and defamation of the Kaaba by Saptahik 2000, a weekly of the
newspaper group.
Twelve Islamist organisations teaming up as the All Party
Resistance Committee on Tuesday gave the government an ultimatum
ending Thursday to cancel the declarations of Prothom Alo and Saptahik
2000 and arrest of the editors and publishers of the two newspapers.
If the demands are not met by Thursday, they will go out on
demonstrations at all the mosques of the country, including Baitul
Mukarram in Dhaka, after the jumma prayers on Friday, the leaders said
at a news briefing at the Dhaka Re****ters=92 Unity. They also demanded
enactment of a blasphemy law.
The briefing was attended by the secretary generals of the 12
organisations, including a Khelafat Andolan faction, two factions of
Jamiat-e-Ulamaye Islam, Hizb ut-Tahrir, Islamic Constitution Movement,
an Islami Oikya Jote faction, a Nezam-e-Islami faction, a Muslim
League faction and Jatiya Ganatatrik Party.
The ultra-rightist group, Hizb ut-Tahrir, announced fresh
programmes after the end of its three-day ultimatum to cancel the
declaration of Prothom Alo and Saptahik 2000 and arrest the Prothom
Alo editor, Matiur Rahman, the Saptahik 2000 editor, Golam Mortoza,
and the publisher, Mahfuz Anam.
Hizb ut-Tahrir leaders, at a news briefing in their office, said
they would hold a rally after the jumma prayers at Baitul Mukarram and
then march towards the Prothom Alo office. Rallies will also be held
at the divisional headquarters. The women=92s wing of the organisation
will form a human chain in front of the press club on Friday morning.
Rallies will also be held in different places in Dhaka on Wednesday
and Thursday in sup****t of the programmes.
The Islamist outfit leaders alleged that the publication of the
blasphemous cartoon and articles was part of the global crusade
against Islam, following the example set by Demark and Sweden.
=91No Muslim can accept the defamation of the Prophet (SM) and his
wives, and the Kaaba,=92 said the organisation=92s chief coordinator,
Mohiuddin Ahmed.
Mohiuddin also accused the government of taking a stance against
Islam and being in favour of the defamation of the Prophet (SM) by
attacking Hizb=92s last procession towards the Prothom Alo office and
injuring about 50 of its activists.
=91Article 41 of the constitution allows freedom of religion, so
staging peaceful protests against defamation of the Prophet (SM) and
the Kaaba do not violate the Emergency Powers Rules. It is rather the
Prothom Alo and the Saptahik 2000 that have violated the Emergency
Powers Rules by infuriating the people by publi****ng such a cartoon
and an article,=92 he said.
He said protesting against the defamation of the Prophet (SM) was
the obligatory duty of every Muslim.
Mohiuddin rejected the forgiveness extended to Prothom Alo editor,
Matiur Rahman, by the Baitul Mukarram khatib, Obaidul Huq, saying,
=91When Allah and His Prophet did not forgive defamation of Him or His
Prophet, who is the khatib to forgive them?=92
=91It is strange that after the khatib had forgiven Matiur Rahman,
another concern of the same publi****ng house printed another article
that contains defamatory remarks about the Kaaba and the wives of the
Prophet. And the Daily Star=92s editor, Mahfuz Anam, is publisher of
both the newspaper and the periodical,=92 said Mohiuddin.
He said Prothom Alo and its concerns were trying to prove the
theory that Bangladesh is a failed state and continued negative
propaganda against the armed forces which are the symbol of the
nation=92s sovereignty.
=91Now they are engaged in anti-Islamic propaganda which is part of
the anti-Bangladesh propaganda,=92 he said.
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