Many people interacted on social media with the speech of the Muslim MP Naz Shah, in the British Parliament, in which she demanded the criminalization of insulting the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his progeny, within the discussion of the ‘emotional harm’ law on defacing historical symbols.
Tweeters commented using the hashtag #Notjustacartoon, which inspired the MP by comparing the emotional harm that occurs to Muslims when describing offensive cartoons as “freedom of expression” and the destruction of statues of British historical symbols such as Winston Churchill and others.
The Muslim League of Britain praised Naz Shah’s speech by saying, “A wonderful speech in which she successfully highlighted that if you argue that Churchill statues are more than just metal, then the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his progeny, are more than just drawings on paper.”
Maher Zain said on his account, “A strong word from a British Muslim parliamentarian that highlights the love of Muslims around the world for the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his progeny.”
British politician Lady Warsi rewrote a sentence from Naz Shah’s speech in which she said, “If the law aims to protect against the emotional harm associated with laws of historical figures, why not include symbols associated with other respected figures, there can be no hierarchy of feelings.”
MP Naz Shah had said in her address to the British Parliament, “For me as a Muslim and for the millions of Muslims in this country – and a quarter of the world’s population as well – with every day and every soul, there is not a single thing in the world that we celebrate and honor more than our Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.”
“When fanatics and racists denigrate, slander or abuse our Prophet as some people do with the statue of Churchill, the emotional hurt in our hearts is intolerable because for two billion Muslims he is the leader we celebrate in our hearts and honor in our lives and forms the basis of our identity and existence,” she added.
She pointed out that “while we are passing a law to protect statues and memorial sentiments, the emotional harm that attacks on the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him and his progeny, cause to a quarter of the world’s population is absolutely intolerable.”
She also quoted author and playwright George Bernard Shaw, who said of the Prophet Muhammad: “He was by far the most remarkable man that ever set foot on this earth.”
