Several Pakistani expatriates living in the Kingdom condemn the protests taking place back home in response to the anti-Islam film “Innocence of Muslims”. The Pakistani government declared a holiday to let people take to the streets. “Whatever is happening is sad, because our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) never taught violence,” says Mohammed Haseeb, IT manager at a reputed company in Jeddah.
According to media reports, Lahore and Islamabad had peaceful protests, in contrast to the ones in Karachi and Peshawar. Haseeb, however, thinks the media only covered the violent protests in Karachi and Peshawar. “My friends who live in Karachi say the protests were peaceful throughout the city, except for a few places that the media covered.”
“I don’t think anyone was expecting this kind of violent backlash against such a low-profile film, but I guess that’s the power of the Internet,” says Rehman Akhtar, a British national of Pakistani origin who works as a communications consultant in the Eastern Province and has performed stand-up comedy in many countries in the Middle East and the West.
Akhtar says the protests have shown the world, once again, how sensitive Muslims are about any attacks on their religion and Prophet. “The current situation makes me wonder two things: Firstly, are certain elements in the West exploiting this sensitivity to provoke Muslims into a predictable reaction and thereby causing instability? Secondly, are all the protesters really just protesting about this one film, or do they treat this as a convenient excuse to vent their anti-Western feelings? I’m not sure what the right answer is, but there is some degree of manipulation happening on both sides.” Akhtar thinks Muslims are absolutely right to show their anger at this situation, but there is a difference between proportionate protest and uncontrolled violent protest.
“For example, in the murder of Ambassador Chris Stevens in Libya, we lost a good man who, by all accounts, was working to improve the lives of ordinary people in the Middle East. He died for something with which he had absolutely no connection. How can this possibly be justified in Islam or by any other rationale? If we complain about our treatment as Muslims, then we need to try and lead by example,” says Akhtar.
“There are other, more subtle ways of protesting,” Akhtar continues. “I try to provoke people into thinking through certain situations through my comedy, using tools such as irony and sarcasm. You can actually make people think more deeply about something without confronting them head on. I regularly poke fun at issues such as racism and sexism, and I enjoy the healthy debate this often provokes.”
Akhtar explains that most major changes in the world have their seeds in mass protest. He says that in the short term, it certainly helps to vent anger. However, “when protests involve the death of scores of people – as they did in Pakistan –one has to wonder whether, in the long run, is it worth losing one’s life over an insignificant film made by someone who would never have dreamt of getting this kind of publicity were it not for the protests themselves.”
According to Alam Musthaq, a senior marketing executive at a construction company in Jeddah, it is very barbaric to act violently toward such a situation.
“It is true that we, as Muslims, have the right to be angry about someone creating a film against Islam,” says Musthaq. “But I think doing things that are against what the beloved Prophet Muhammad taught us will portray a wrong picture about our religion.” Some expatriates, on the other hand, believe that protesting against the anti-Islam film can make a difference.
Speaking on the topic, Lubna Sohail, a housewife, says that Muslims protesting from each and every country can get the filmmaker punished.
“Like they say, the majority always wins,” says Sohail.”The filmmaker has no right to hurt the sentiments of any religious group, and if he does he should be punished.”
Sohail explains that protesting doesn’t mean being violent and killing people in the name of Islam. “When something is said or done against our Prophet, we as Muslims must take some action. The protest in Lahore was calm, and that sort of protesting is what I support.”