WORLD: Iran, Pakistan protest Rushdie's knighthood

In brief: British government officials defend decision to honor noted author

By Juliana Kiyan
Asia Pacific Arts

Friday, June 29, 2007

The British government's decision to grant knighthood to author Salman Rushdie, 60, has prompted furor in Iran, Pakistan and many other Muslim communities. Rushdie was one of nearly 950 people included on Queen Elizabeth II's Birthday Honours List announced June 16; he will now be known as Sir Salman in Britain.

Iran condemned the knighthood, calling the decision to honor Rushdie a symbol of anti-Islam sentiments among British officials. The Associated Press reports that protesters In Pakistan burned effigies of Rushdie and the Queen. The Pakistani National Assembly unanimously passed a resolution calling on Britain to withdraw Rushdie's knighthood. Sher Afgan Khan Niazi, Pakistan's parliamentary affairs minister, said the honor would "encourage people to commit blasphemy against the prophet Mohammad."

British government officials expressed deep concern over a statement reportedly made by Pakistan's religious affairs minister, Mohammad Ejaz-ul-Haq, during a recent parliamentary debate. Various news agencies reported that Ejaz-ul-Haq said, "If someone commits suicide bombing to protect the honor of the prophet Mohammad, his act is justified." He later retracted his statement, saying he was not looking to incite suicide bombing but explaining that knighting Rushdie could foster extreme actions.

British officials have defended the decision to knight Rushdie, citing the author's contributions to literature and Britain's right to express opinions about his work. Home Secretary John Reid said no apology will be issued.

The British arts and media committee that recommended Rushdie for knighthood was stunned at the furious reaction. According to British newspaper The Guardian, the committee had not taken the political ramifications of honoring Rushdie into consideration. The writers' organization that lobbied for Rushdie's knighthood indeed had hoped it would improve relations between Britain and Asia.

The protests stem from the controversy that surrounded Rushdie's 1988 novel, The Satanic Verses. Many Muslims condemned the novel as blasphemous in its depiction of the Prophet Muhammad, and in 1989, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the then-spiritual leader of Iran, issued a fatwa ordering Rushdie's execution. In 1998, the Iranian government said it would no longer uphold the fatwa, but some groups have said it could not and would not be removed. A year later, Rushdie re-emerged into public life but under round-the-clock police protection.

Rushdie, an outspoken secularist, was born into a Muslim family in Mumbai and was educated in England at the Rugby School and King's College at Cambridge University.

Date Posted: 6/29/2007