With a strong content and an unprecedented proposal, the British Muslim parliamentarian, Naz Shah, raised the issue of ridicule of Islam and the Prophet Muhammad – peace be upon him – in the British Parliament, during a session to discuss a new bill, toughening penalties for those who attack statues of British national symbols, against the background of the spread of this Appears in a number of cities in the United Kingdom.
The speech of the Labor Party representative has attracted a lot of attention, as it was characterized by strength and an unprecedented proposal to place the abuse of religious symbols – primarily the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him – in the category of insulting symbols that should not be ridiculed or offended.
The British MP’s claim comes in the context of a growing controversy in Britain, after a professor showed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad to the students, which led to the protests of parents, after which the school in the Batley area offered an apology for this “unintended mistake”, but the controversy has not been closed so far, which prompted MP Naz Shah to put it for the first time in Parliament.
The proposal of this topic received a great attention by the British parliament, due to many factors, the most important of which is the political weight of Naz Shah, who is considered one of the first-class spokesmen in the Labor Party, and occupies the position of Minister of Integration between Communities. She was also known for her strong and sometimes controversial positions, but it is certain that all her statements do not pass without causing a stir in the British political arena.
The British parliamentarian asked her colleagues in Parliament about the feelings of Muslims, the need to respect their association with the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and the values and importance of the Prophet in the life of every Muslim, speaking of her Muslim background “as a Muslim, millions of Muslims in this country and a quarter of the world’s population are Muslims, For every day and with every soul, there is no one we appreciate and whose life we salute like our beloved Prophet Muhammad.”
Naz Shah – who also works as a university professor – went on to quote the famous playwright George Bernard Shaw, who said of the Prophet, peace be upon him: “He was by far the most wonderful man who ever set foot on this earth.”
In her intervention, Naz Shah refused to belittle the depictions of the Prophet, saying that they are only drawings, “because no one can say that they are just statues, everyone knows the strength of British sentiments regarding history, culture and identity.
