Author:
Publication: Zenit.org
Date: March 16, 2001.
Destruction of Statues Leaves Neighbors
Nervous
LAHORE, Pakistan, MAR. 16, 2001
(ZENIT.org-FIDES).- After Islamic fundamentalists ordered the destruction
of Buddhist religious statues in Afghanistan, Hindus and Christians in
neighboring Pakistan are worried that their statues might be next.
Talking to the international agency
Fides, Father Emmanuel Yousaf, head of the Pakistan Catholic bishops' Justice
and Peace Commission, voiced concern for the "statues in churches, temples
and museums."
Peter Jacob, commission secretary,
said, "The sad incident creates a precedent for fanatics to wage similar
campaigns in our country." He emphasized the need for religious tolerance,
and hoped that the government of Pakistan will take a stand on the issue
and condemn the violence of the Islamic Taliban government in Afghanistan.
The destruction of the Buddhist
religious treasures caused dismay in the Muslim world, intensifying the
debate between conservative and progressive groups. Anwar Ahmad, columnist
for The News, a Pakistani daily, wrote: "This Taliban action endangers
Muslim majorities in other countries. What if the Japanese, Thai, Cambodian
or Sri Lankan Buddhists start destroying mosques?"
Muslim theologians in Egypt and
Iran have publicly condemned the deliberate destruction of the age-old
statues of Buddha. Mustafa Boroujerdi, the Iranian ambassador to the Vatican,
described the action as "a cultural crime."
Last month, the Taliban ordered
the destruction of pre-Islamic statues of Buddha, saying they were idolatrous
and had no place an Islamic society. Ignoring international outrage, the
Taliban demolished most of the statues over the past two weeks, including
two towering statues of Buddha hewn from a cliff face in central Bamiyan
in the third and fifth centuries.
The larger of the two, at 170 feet,
was believed to be the world's tallest standing Buddha. The other measured
120 feet.
