The second point relates to the excessive and unjustified violent reactions witnessed in a number of cities that sadly resulted in the loss of innocent lives in Libya, Tunisia, Pakistan and elsewhere. To protest peacefully is certainly a fundamental right cherished in democratic societies, yet to act violently was totally unwarranted and paradoxically defeated the purpose of trying to correct the inaccurate depiction of Islam in the blasphemous ‘clip’. Sadly, an enduring and deep sense of injustice and a perception that ‘Western’ governments have themselves engaged in anti-Muslim policies and practices (think the War in Iraq, the Palestinian issue and so on…), means that the demonstrators were not only protesting against this particular ‘trailer’ which most had not even watched, but were looking for any excuse to express their anger and affirm their Muslim identity which they believe has been under attack for some time. One cannot underestimate the extent to which some leaders across the Arab and Muslim world have manipulated this event, and the frustrations of the demonstrators, for domestic political gains.

Still we need to put these events in some kind of perspective: out of the 1.4 billion Muslims worldwide, only a few hundreds took to the streets in cities like Tunis and perhaps a few thousands in places like Benghazi and Islamabad. So, to label these protests as reflecting the whole of the ‘Muslim world’ is an exaggeration of considerable proportions.

Muslim ‘leaders’ domestically but also in the West should not simply react to such events by offering apologies on behalf of all Muslims, but should be more proactive in identifying these radical elements within their communities and engage them in meaningful dialogue and education programs. It is heartening to hear that some within the Muslim community are admitting that they had been remiss in the past and were planning to do more of this bridge building in the future. Otherwise, the same ugly scenes will be dominating our TV screens sooner than we would like to think.

Reporduced in Syndicate with our global partners UNAOC’s The Global Experts

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