By
Hadi Yahmid, IOL Correspondent
PARIS,
May 8, 2006 (IslamOnline.net) – Introducing Prophet Muhammad (peace
and blessings be upon him) to the French people and speaking out against
spiraling Islamophobia in the country are taking central stage in this
year's Paris-le-Bourget conference.
"It
was high time for our annual conference to have know-the-prophet as a
central theme, especially in view of the derogatory Danish cartoons that
were reprinted by several European newspapers," Lhaj Thami Breze,
chairman of the Union of French Islamic Organizations (UOIF), told
IslamOnline.net.
"They
depicted our Prophet in the most despicable manner because they are
unaware of his noble characteristics. Our answer is to show them that he
was indeed a mercy for mankind."
Last
September, Denmark's mass-circulation daily Jyllands Posten
commissioned and printed 12 caricatures of the Prophet, including
one showing him with a turban shaped like a bomb strapped to his head.
The
images, considered blasphemous under Islam, were later reprinted by
European newspapers.
The
cartoons controversy has motivated world Muslims to champion local
know-Prophet campaigns to introduce Islam to non-Muslims.
In
March, Muslim scholars decided to establish an international
organization and a fund to defend the Prophet against defamatory attacks
in the West.
IslamOnline.net
has also launched a multi-lingual website to acquaint non-Muslims with
the Prophet.
Exhibition
 |
|
One
of the things on display is a maquette of the Cave of Hira' where
Angel Gabriel came to the Prophet Muhammad with the Noble Qur'an.
|
An
exhibition featuring works and paintings introducing the Prophet is
attracting thousands of visitors.
One
of the things on display is a maquette of the Cave of Hira' where Angel
Gabriel came to the Prophet Muhammad with the Noble Qur'an.
Paintings
of the Muslim holy city of Makkah as well as of Qura'nic verses about
the Prophet's manners also showcased.
Many
books, both in Arabic and French, about the Prophet are on sale in the
conference.
Muslim
reverts have also sought to raise funds for printing and distributing
400,000 copies of a new book about the Prophet.
"The
move aims to introduce the Prophet to the French people," Hasan
Farsado, leader of the Union of Muslim Associations in the
Seine-Saint-Denis district, told IOL.
The
Bourget conference, the biggest Muslim convention in Europe, was opened
on Friday, May 5, and runs until Monday, May 8.
Last
year, more than 150,000 Muslims from across Europe attended the
conference, up from the previous year's 120,000.
Islamophobia
The
Bourget conference also addressed the troubling phenomenon of rising
anti-Muslim campaigns in France.
It
saw the release of a new album by French Muslim rap singer Jamal about
anti-Muslim discrimination.
The
album urges respect of the Muslim belief and denounces Islamophobic
campaigns in the European country.
French
officials and MPs who attended some of the conference proceedings have
also spoken out against anti-Muslim campaigns by many far-rights
politicians.
Opening
his presidential campaign on April 23, Philippe de Villiers, the head of
the Movement for France (MPF) party, warned against what he termed
"Islamization of France".
He
claimed in a new book, "Les Mosquees De Roissy" (The
Mosques of Roissy), that the Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport was
infiltrated by "Muslim radicals."
This
has scared away Muslim workers from the airport's prayer room fearing
that they might be tracked by police as "potential
terrorists."
The
number of Muslims in France exceeds six millions, representing 10% of
the population, the largest Muslim minority in Europe.
