IUMS condemns assassination of Tunisian opposition figure, and Bangladeshi sheikhs
All praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our prophet and leader, Muhammad, who was sent as a mercy to the worlds, and upon his brothers, the prophets and messengers, and those who follow them to the Day of Judgment.
The International Union of Muslim Scholars has followed with deep concern the utter shock resounding among the Tunisian political and popular circles due to the assassination carried out early Wednesday that targeted the Tunisian opposition figure Shoukri Belaid, the General Coordinator of the United Nationalist Party, and leader in the Popular Front coalition.
Similar consequences and wide-scale protests across the country have been caused by the Bangladeshi judiciary’s unfair verdict of death sentence to Sheikh Abul Kalam Azad, and life imprisonment to Sheikh Abdul-Qadir Mullah, two prominent leaders of the Jamaat-e-Islami in Bangladesh. The sheikhs were being tried for political crimes that took place forty years ago where no proof has been provided for any of the crimes. Based on the notion that each human is innocent until proven guilty, the IUMS – before this crime – views and asserts the following:
1- The IUMS condemns the crime of assassinating Tunisian opposition figure Shoukri Belaid, the General Coordinator of the United Democratic Nationalist Party, and demands concerned authorities to launch immediate investigations over the incident and seek to arrest the assailants, and bring them to justice speedily.
2- The IUMS warns the consequences of this heinous crime for the security and stability of Tunisia, as well the dangers of sedition and division which some sides inflame in order to drag the Tunisian people into a whirlwind of violence.
3- The IUMS calls for using reason, self-restraint and deliberation in analyzing this heinous crime and attaching responsibility to one side or another.
4- The IUMS demands the Bangladeshi government to retract these unjust, politically-motivated trials that show clear signs of exclusion and subterfuge using the sword of the judiciary to penalize their adversaries.
5- The IUMS asserts standing by all nations in their path to build an independent and free future where opposition figures are not killed by individuals nor governments and are not imprisoned or subjected to death sentences under bare excuses to halt the freedom of expression and threaten democratic practices. Prophet Muhammad – peace be upon him – said that "The passing away of the world is lesser for Allah than the killing of a Muslim with no right [to do so]” and said that "It is not permissible for a Muslim to terrorize [another] Muslim.”
All Muslims around the world stand by the oppressed and persecuted, against the murderers and criminals be they rulers or ruled.
{And Allah has full power and control over His affairs; but most among mankind know it not.} [Quran 12:21]
Doha: 26 Rabea Al-Awwal, 1434 H
Dated: 7 February, 2013
Dr. Ali Al-Qaradaghi Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
IUMS Secretary General IUMS President