ISLAMABAD - The Senate Wednesday adopted a unanimous resolution condemning the blasphemous act of desecration of Holy Quran by US pastor while the divided opposition, PML-N and JUI-F, staged separate protest walkouts from the House primarily on the same issue of recent US drone strikes inside Pakistani territory. Senator Farhatullah Babar of PPP moved the resolution after Chairman Senate Nayyer Hussain Bokhari suspended the Rules of Business of the House. The resolution condemned in the strongest possible terms the recent act of desecration of Holy Quran by US pastor Terry Jones and called upon the UN Secretary General to work out plans for promoting religious harmony before “rationality was completely destroyed”. The resolution expressed concerns that religious intolerance was increasing across national boundaries and geographical divides and cautioned against making exceptions and selectivity in condemning one set of intolerance and tolerating another. “This House has noted with grave concern that religious tolerance is fast eroding across national boundaries and religious divides, that this disharmony is increasing and it seemed to corroborate the ominous theory of a clash of civilizations,” says the text of the resolution.It says that the House believes that values of tolerance and harmony cannot be fragmented and compartmentalized into Islamic or Christian etc. “This House also cautions against making exceptions and selectivity in such cases as it will shake faith in the universal norms of the UN Charter and the House further believes that it is time to save the UN Charter and in this context calls upon the Secretary General of the UN to play his role,” the resolution adds. The House through the unanimous resolution called upon the United Nations to works out special plans for promoting cultural and religious harmony so that sanity and rationality were not completely destroyed.PML-N, from the start of House proceedings during question hour session, continued its protest walkout from the House for the second consecutive day over the issue of conviction of Prime Minister by Supreme Court in contempt of court case. However, the major opposition party added another issue of drone attacks in its Wednesday’ boycott of the entire House proceedings when Raja Zafarul Haq said that US had started conducting drone strikes even after the adoption of unanimous resolution by the joint sitting of the Parliament regarding stopping such strikes. He said that after April 26 verdict of the apex court, no federal cabinet exist, as the Prime Minister stood disqualified after the verdict.Later, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal (JUI-F) also staged a separate protest walkout from the House on the issue of drone attacks after Moulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, the party’s senior leader spoke about it. A member of the House from FATA, Senator Saleh Shah also jointed the protest walkout with JUI-F. Moulana Haideri said that US was carrying out drone attack inside Pakistan’s territory despite the fact that a unanimous resolution of the Parliament had recommended for the stoppage of such attacks. . He criticized that even the government had not notified such resolution. “US had violated the resolution that defines the future parameters of the country’s foreign policy,” he added. He also condemned the desecration of Holy Quran by US pastor. Senator Mian Raza Rabbani also condemned the drone attacks inside Pakistan’s territory in the strongest possible terms and at the same time paid tributes to the labourers of Chicago on the eve of International Labour Day of May 1. He said that US was paying lip service to the sovereignty of Pakistan and it had failed to honour the voice of Parliament. “ We except that Us will respect the will of the people and it has been made abundantly clear that Pakistan considered drone attacks as violation of its sovereignty,” he said adding that he was taken a back that US officials tried to validate drone attacks which were violation of UN charter. “US should see the report on drones and they hey should respect our red lines. If they have some red lines, then Pakistan also has some red lines,” he further said and assured the House that the government would implement the resolution at any cost. Senator Robina Irfan from Balochistan questioned the House that who would answer the killings, kidnappings and enforced disappearances in Balochistan. “We cannot close our eyes on the issue and it is high time that government should deeply look into the matter that who was responsible in Balochistan for such bad incidents,” she added. The presiding officer Senator Mushahid Ullah Syed endorsed her remarks before he adjourned the House till Thursday at 5 pm.
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