OIC calls for memorial day for the massacres of Muslims
17-05-2008
ISTANBUL, Turkey, (Turkish Daily News):
There needs to be a day to commemorate the massacres of innocent Muslims
that can be observed
by as many people throughout the world as possible, said the director
general of the Islamic
Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) at a conference
Friday.
The Organization of the Islamic Conference's (OIC) "Inter-Governmental
Meeting of Experts on
Memorial Day for Massacres Perpetrated Against Muslim Communities in the
20th Century" in
Istanbul brought together delegations from several Islamic countries to
establish a day on
which all Muslims who have died by violence against their communities can
be remembered.
“We are lagging behind as an Islamic umma (community) in remembering our
martyrs and our
massacres. The fact that we haven't stood together allows people to
continue massacring us,"
said Dr. Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri.
But the effort to establish a memorial day is perceived by the West as an
attempt to entice
war, he said, noting that the purpose of the memorial day is to strengthen
Islamic solidarity
and to show the world the suffering of Muslims. "Zionists use every media,
every newspaper,
every TV show, every movie, every do***entary, every song to share their
plight," said Dr.
Altwaijri, "Let us, too, use every op****tunity to remind people of what we
have suffered."
Many nations proposed April 9 to be declared the memorial day, arguing
that Palestinians in the
village of Deir Yasir were massacred by Israelis on April 9, 1948. The
Palestinian delegation
strongly objected, proposing May 15 instead with the argument that the
declaration of Israel on
May 15 had effects that resonated throughout the Islamic world. Hosted by
the Turkish Culture
Ministry, the participants will present their recommendation to their
respective culture
ministries at the end of the two-day conference.
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com
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