Saturday, September 11

2010 Qur'an-burning controversy

The 2010 Qur'an-burning controversy arose when pastor Terry Jones of the small, non-denominational Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, United States, planned burning copies of the Qur'an on the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, which he called International Burn a Koran Day. The planned event was widely condemned by politicians and religious groups. Jones eventually declared the book-burning canceled and announced his intention to fly to New York to meet with the imam of Park51, Feisal Abdul Rauf. On the set day he relented, saying "We will definitely not burn the Quran... Not today, not ever." 
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Beit Al Qur'an


Main article: Dove World Outreach Center


Background

Dove World Outreach Center, where the Qur'an burning was to occur, is a small congregation in Gainesville, Florida, with approximately 50 members. The church is led by pastor Terry Jones and his wife, Sylvia. The church gained notoriety in the late 2000s for its anti-Islamic and anti-homosexual messages. In 2009, Dove World posted a sign on its lawn which stated in large red letters "Islam is of the Devil". Members of the church have also sent their children to the new school year with T-shirts saying on the back "Islam is of the Devil".
Pastor Terry Jones

It has been suggested that some content from this article or section be split into a separate article titled Terry Jones (pastor). (Discuss)
Terry Jones (born in 1952 or 1953) has been the senior pastor of Dove World Outreach Center in Gainsville, Florida since 2001.In 2010 Jones published Islam is of the Devil, a polemic denouncing Islam as a violent faith.
He attended Cape Girardeau Central High-school in Missouri where he graduated alongside Rush Limbaugh, working for a while as a hotel manager,
Jones worked as a missionary in Germany for over 30 years. Jones founded and led the Christliche Gemeinde Köln (CGK), a church in Cologne, Germany, from 1981 to 2008 which was initially a branch of the Maranatha Campus Ministries and a sister church to Dove World.
A leader of the Cologne church said “He (Jones) didn't project the biblical values and Christianity, but always made himself the center of everything." German press agency Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported that church members said Jones ran the Cologne church like a sect leader and used psychological pressure on members, “subordinating all activities to his will.”
Although he received an honorary degree from the unaccredited California Graduate School of Theology, in 2002 he was fined $3800 by Cologne courts for using the title “doctor”. In 2008, he was ejected by the congregation in Cologne for being a Christian fundamentalist, and due to untenable theological statements and craving for recognition, according to the German Evangelical Alliance, amid allegations of financial impropriety. Following Jones' departure, the CGK closed, then reopened under new, independent, leadership.
His first wife died in 1996. His second wife is Sylvia Jones, with whom he runs TS and Company, a vintage furniture outlet on E-bay.
Jones believes Islam promotes violence and that Muslims want to impose sharia law in the United States. He became widely known after announcing plans to burn copies of the Koran.
Reactions

Protests
Local
A Gainesville Interfaith Forum which was established in November 2009 in response to earlier anti-Islam activities of the church requested for the declaration of September 11 as "Interfaith Solidarity Day", a request that was honored by current mayor Craig Lowe.The Forum scheduled a "Gathering for Peace, Understanding and Hope" at Trinity United Methodist Church on the day before the planned burning. Mayor Lowe referred to Dove World as a "tiny fringe group and an embarrassment to our community".
Twenty local religious leaders gathered Thursday, September 2, 2010, to call for citizens to rally around Muslims “in a time when so much venom is directed toward them.”
Non-local


One of the massive protests against International Burn a Koran Day held in India.
Shortly after the event was announced the National Association of Evangelicals recommended that the event be canceled. The World Evangelical Alliance "asks Muslim neighbors to recognize that the plans announced by a Florida group to burn copies of the Qu’ran on September 11 do not represent the vast majority of Christians." "It dishonors the memory of those who died in the 9/11 attacks and further perpetuates unacceptable violence." The event is broadly condemned by American religious leaders.
The German Evangelical Alliance formally dissociated itself from the proposed Qur'an burning, because of the widely circulated report that in his time in Cologne, Jones had been associated with the evangelical alliance. Jones had been expelled in 2009 from the Christian Community of Cologne, which he had founded, for alleged financial irregularities and for his radicalism as well as creating a 'climate of fear and terror'.
The Al-Falluja jihadist web forum threatened a bloody war against America in response to the burning of the Qur'an.
The head of Iran's Islamic Culture and Relations Organization labeled the Qur'an burning proposal a "Zionist" insult.
John Rankin, President of the Theological Education Institute in Connecticut, has started a "Yes to the Bible, No to the Burning of the Qur'an" effort. Also Jennifer Bryson is advocating Christian intra-faith dialogue and Christian rejection of "Burn a Koran Day".
Various other Muslims, such as the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community have argued that the Dove World Outreach Center is not following the true teachings of Christianity of tolerance and love. They quote Jesus: "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you..."(Gospel of Matthew 5:44-45). The Head of the Community, Mirza Masroor Ahmad, has stated that "Religious extremism, be it Christian extremism, Muslim extremism or any other kind, is never a true reflection of the religion".
Other critics include
the International Humanist and Ethical Union
the Organisation of the Islamic Conference

On August 27, approximately 100 people protested in Indonesia outside the U.S. Embassy. Roni Ruslan of Hizbut Tahrir, which advocates Islamic law, said, "No one will be able to control this reaction ... We urge the U.S. government and Christian leaders to stop the crazy plan from this small sect. It's an insult to Islam and to 1.5 billion Muslims around the world."[36] On September 4, thousands of Indonesians, mostly Muslims, took part in events across the country organized by Hizbut Tahrir. Rokhmat Labib, chairman of the group, called the planned book burning a provocation and predicted that Muslims would fight back should it take place. Lahib said that Muslims must not stay silent when their faith is threatened.
The Vatican's Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue also on September 8 issued a statement saying that the book burning would be "an outrageous and grave gesture," with a headline in L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, reading "No one burns the Koran."
In Jordan the country's powerful Islamist opposition on September 8 condemned the event and added that it would be be “a declaration of war.” The Islamic Action Front which is the political arm of Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood issued the statement that “Claiming that burning the Koran is a part of freedom of expression is ridiculous and does not make any sense.” The statement also insinuated that the U.S. Government was inciting people against Islam using 9/11 as a pretext.
The World Evangelical Alliance condemned the plans to burn the Qur’an.
On Friday, September 10 in the northern Afghan city of Fayzabad, thousands took part in a protest against the planned Qur'an-burning following Eid ul-Fitr prayers. Violent demonstrators threw stones at a German-controlled NATO base. Initial reports said troops inside opened fire, killing up to three people and injuring several others, but a local police official said that only local police, not the NATO troops, were involved in the shooting. According to the acting police chief of Badakshan the protesters broke down the first perimeter gate surrounding the base and beat Afghan security guards and police on duty with sticks. Before opening fire police allegedly fired warning shots and were also fired upon from the direction of the demonstrators, said the police official. A local police chief talking to the BBC gave his estimates of the number of protesters to around 1,500 but said that the incident that led to the shooting was a separate one with 150 people participating. This official also said that private security guards where the ones who fired at the people who tried to force their way inside the base. NATO has launched an investigation into the incident.
Protest rallies were held in several other Afghan provinces: Nimruz, Kunar, Nangarhar, Parwan, Baghlan, Kunduz, Balkh and Farah. The Afghan President Hamid Karzai also spoke out against the burning of Qur'ans saying, "By burning the Koran, they cannot harm it. The Koran is in the hearts and minds of one-and-a-half billion people. Insulting the Koran is an insult to nations."
Small rallies were reported in Pakistan in Karachi and the central Pakistani city Multan with around 200 protesters.There were also protests in Indonesia, Gaza, and India, a non-Muslim majority country.
Official protests
On September 6, the current commander of the allied (ISAF) and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus said, "It is precisely the kind of action the Taliban uses and could cause significant problems. Not just here, but everywhere in the world we are engaged with the Islamic community." On the same day hundreds of Afghans protested in Kabul against the planned Qur'an burning event, chanting "death to America" and throwing rocks at a passing military convoy. Military officials also expressed fears that the protests would spread to other cities. Military officers at the Pentagon consequently said they hoped the rare incursion into politics by a military commander would convince Pastor Jones to cancel his plans. The pastor responded to Petraeus' statement that, "We understand the General's concerns. We are sure that his concerns are legitimate. [Nonetheless] [w]e must send a clear message to the radical element of Islam. We will no longer be controlled and dominated by their fears and threats."
The US embassy in Kabul issued a statement condemning the plans. Robert Gibbs, White House Press Secretary, criticized the plans stating "any type of activity like that that puts our troops in harm's way would be a concern to this administration". NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said that the church's plans would violate NATO's "values" and may have a negative impact on the security of its soldiers.
On September 7 and 8, a barrage of high-level international leaders independently weighed in, condemning the book burning event, urging that Pastor Jones and the Gainesville, Florida church group step down from their plans. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "It's regrettable that a pastor in Gainesville, Florida with a church of no more than fifty people can make this outrageous and distressful, disgraceful plan and get, you know, the world's attention." She also said, "It doesn't in any way represent America or Americans or American government or American religious or political leadership," and she emphasized the hope of the U.S. Government that the church would not go through with their plans.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued his concern on September 8 that he was "deeply disturbed" and also asserted his belief that such a gesture would be intolerable by any religion.
Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel also denounced the Qur'an-burning at an awards ceremony honoring controversial Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard to defend freedom of speech. While speaking in defense of Westergaard who in 2005 angered Muslims worldwide with his satirical Muhammad cartoon she said of the planned Florida event that "[i]t is plainly disrespectful – even abhorrent. It's simply wrong."
On Thursday September 9, President Obama spoke out against the planned burning of Qur'ans at an American morning news and talk show saying the planned event was being used as an al-Qaeda recruitment tool.  He urged for the cancellation of the event which he said violated U.S. principles of religious tolerance. The president also expressed frustration that under the law nothing could be done to confront the book burning other than citing the church under local ordinance for public burnings.
US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates called Pastor Jones asking him not to go through with his Qur'an burning.
Political reactions
This section requires expansion.
Indonesia President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono warned in a televised speech that the plans to burn the Qur'an threatened world peace.
Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the plan a "Zionist plot that is against the teachings of all divine prophets. [The] Zionists and their supporters are on their way to collapse and dissolution and such last-ditch actions will not save them, but multiply the pace of their fall and annihilation."
Iraq Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani cautioned people to show restraint labeling the act "expression of hatred of Islam."
Lebanon President Michel Suleiman denounced the plans saying he "condemns the announcement of a religious group in the United States of its intention to openly burn copies of the Quran. [Burning Islam's holiest book] is a clear contradiction of the teachings of the three Abrahamic religions and of dialogue among the three faiths (Christianity, Islam and Judaism). [Christianity teaches] love and respect for one another [and people should reflect on that]."
Palestine In Gaza, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh called Terry Jones a "crazy priest who reflects a crazy Western attitude toward Islam and the Muslim nation."
United States President Obama said "I just want [Jones] to understand that this stunt that he is talking about pulling could greatly endanger our young men and women in uniform who are in Iraq, who are in Afghanistan."
Suppression of Dove World Outreach Center
The Gainesville fire department refused to grant the church a burning permit, stating that open burning of books is not allowed in the city due to fire hazards. Regardless, the church planned to proceed with the event despite the potential of being fined.
Since the announcement, the bank where the church has a $140,000 mortgage loan, has demanded immediate repayment of the balance and Jones has also had his property insurance canceled.
On September 8 Rackspace, the provider of hosting service to Dove World Outreach website, pulled the plug on the site, citing violation of their terms of use policy. A spokesman for Rackspace told news media that the shutdown was not "a constitutional issue", it was "a contract issue".
Death threats
Terry Jones has said that he hopes the event does not lead to violence. He says he regularly receives death threats since the event was announced. Evan Kohlmann of Flashpoint Global Partners, a firm that "tracks radical militant websites", said that a homicide bomber has threatened to drive a truck into the church and others have discussed setting the building on fire, though it was not known if the discussions were serious. The Wall Street Journal quoted an individual calling himself Abu Dujanah from a jihadist website, "Now, I wish to bomb myself in this church as revenge for the sake of Allah's talk ... And here I register my name here that I want to be an intended martyr."
When death threats directed against Jones were mailed to The Gainesville Sun in a letter postmarked from Johnstown, Pa.,the American Muslim Association of North America issued a statement signed by 15 imams including Ahmed Al Mehdawi of the Islamic Center of Gainesville condemning the death threats.During Jones' September 11 visit to New York, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said that police plan to keep a "close tab on him" for his own safety.
Cancellation and abandonment
On Thursday September 9 Jones announced the cancellation of the event, and a plan to fly to New York to meet with the Imam of Park51, Feisal Abdul Rauf. In an interview on the morning of September 11, the day of the intended 6 p.m. protest, he said, "We will definitely not burn the Quran ... Not today, not ever."
Media reactions
Some in the media attributed the event to silly season and sensationalism.
James Poniewozik, of Time magazine gave a few reasons for media coverage of the event: "tiny groups of fringe idiots" often get coverage, presumably because the vast majority of readers find them strange and different. The event also happens to coincide with a seeming American "Islamophobia" and concern over the "Ground Zero mosque;" he also added that "This is, unfortunately, one of those cases in which, by having become news, the story is now making legitimate news." Slate's David Weigel, said reporters should "Ignore This Idiot" (the title of his blog post on the controversy). "[Jones] gets to hold the country, or at least the part of the country that pays attention to such news, hostage, with reporters getting the secretary of state and our general in Afghanistan on the record to condemn this nobody. Instead of dying in obscurity, he'll die a has-been. Good work." ABC News' Chris Cuomo wrote that the "media gave life to this florida burning ... and that was reckless." Roger Simon, a columnist for Politico responded to David Petraeus' remarks saying "The issue is not the images; it is the acts."
The Associated Press and Fox News both stated their intention to ignore the event should it happen.
Other reactions
The conservative Powerline blog stated it was against the Quran burning, but also said that "what gives rise to this dilemma, of course, is the fanaticism of radical Muslims, who have, indeed, responded violently to real or perceived slights to their religion." John Hinderaker, a lawyer and freelance writer, argued that "Perversely, the crazier radical Muslims behave, the more it benefits them (those burning the Korans). Today it is burning Korans, but the broader objective is to outlaw, de facto, any criticism of Islam." Another conservative writer Michelle Malkin, echoed an article by Christopher Hitchens, when she bemoaned "the eternal flame of Muslim outrage. When everything from sneakers to stuffed animals to comics to frescos to beauty queens to fast-food packaging to undies serves as dry tinder for Allah's avengers, it's a grand farce to feign concern about the recruitment effect of a few burnt Korans in the hands of a two-bit attention-seeker in Florida."
Within hours of Jones' cancellation announcement on September 9, Westboro Baptist Church member Megan Roper announced via Twitter that the church will proceed with its own Qur'an-burning ceremony in the case that Dove World will not do so; Roper's mother, Shirley Phelps-Roper commented before the cancellation that she was angry about the lack of similar intensity of press coverage for WBC's own 2008 Qur'an-burning ceremony. Phelps announced his intention to "burn the Koran and the doomed American flag at 12 p.m. on September 11th".
The event is being followed by thousands (fans, critics and others) on an eponymical Facebook page. A Facebook page support the pastor's plan got more than 16,000 fans by eve of the event, while fans opposing the event numbered in the hundreds of thousands. Video of a Qur'an being burned in support of the event was posted to YouTube. A small group of Christian activists including Randall Terry and Andrew Beacham read passages from the Koran urging hatred toward Christians and Jews, then ripped up the pages, carefully placing them into a plastic bag to avoid littering. According to Beacham, "The only reason I will not burn [the Qur'an] at the White House is because to burn anything on the Capitol grounds is a felony."


(source:wikipedia)
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