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Summary The declaration strongly condemned the sacrilegious film.
The meeting of the OIC foreign ministers on Friday adopted a declaration introduced by Pakistan against the controversial movie.The declaration, introduced at a meeting of foreign ministers of Islamic countries on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, strongly condemned the recent incidents of a blasphemous film that denigrates Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), and called it a violation of freedom of expression.The international community needs to stand together to decry proponents of hatred working under the garb of freedom of expression, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar told the ministerial-level meeting of member states of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) while tabling the draft of the declaration. We must promote universal respect for all religions as religion should be used as a bridge, bringing nations together, not as a wall keeping nations apart, she said.Ms. Khar also called for the adoption of the declaration by consensus, and conference officials said that OIC foreign ministers will take action Friday evening. Expressing Pakistans outrage over the film, she urged all member states to take all member states to take all measure including implementation of necessary policies and legislation against such acts in line with their obligations under international human rights law.The declaration called the release of Innocence of Muslim, which triggered violent riots in the Muslim world, despicable, saying such Islamophobic acts stand in the way of religion and relief.It calls on all governments to take appropriate measures, including legislation, against these acts of that lead to incitement of hatred, discrimination and violence against persons based on their religion.The declaration underscores the importance of dialogue, understanding and cooperation among religions, cultures and civilizations for peace and harmony in the world.It welcomed efforts made by the media to promote inter-religious and intercultural dialogue and encourages them to disseminate the true image of religions and faiths focusing on their basic tenants of peace and tolerance.Later, FM Khar also attended a high level meeting at the UN on Countering Nuclear Terrorism. Addressing the meeting, she said Pakistan accorded the highest priority to ensuring a fool-proof safety and security mechanism for its nuclear programme.Over the years, we have put in place extensive physical protection measures, robust command and control structures, comprehensive export controls and wide-ranging regulatory regimes, she stressed.- Contributed by Awais Saleem, Dunya News correspondent in New York
