KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 16 – Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak posted on his blog sskeruak.blogspot.com on Sunday said that muslims must condemn and send a strong message that violence, whether against fellow Muslims or non-Muslims, cannot be tolerated. He said that Muslims rejected all forms of violence whether by terrorists or state organised.
Salleh said violence begets violence and history has proven that violence has never been the way to solve conflicts. However, he said as long as the large silent majority remain silent and do not condemn such terrorist acts then it would be perceived that the silence means tacit support. He was commenting on the Paris attack which indicates that over 100 people were killed in the attacks Friday night at a concert hall, city-centre restaurants and near the Stade de France.
Salleh said the incident was the second terrorist incident this year after the Charlie Hebdo shooting and has brought back memories of the Madrid bombings in 2004 that resulted in 191 dead and 1,800 wounded. He pointed out that since the incident of Sept 2001, Islam is perceived as a violent religion and those giving Islam this negative image are Muslims themselves.
“Unfortunately, in all these tragedies it was the work of Muslims. And this is another tragedy because Islam is as much the victim as those killed and wounded. What the west may not realise is that there are more than a billion Muslims but just a small minority commit these terrorist acts while the majority of Muslims are peace loving and reject violence,” Salleh said.
