Archbishop of Canterbury don withdraw one award wey e give one Muslim cleric wey praise Osama Bin Laden.
Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi receive the award for reconciliation and interfaith cooperation from Dame Sarah Mullally last week, on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Lambeth Palace face backlash after e come out say Ashrafi praise Bin Laden – na him be architect of the 2001 attacks – as person wey ‘been fighting for Islam against the Russians, Americans and British’, inside comments from 2007.
Ashrafi also reportedly talk say he go give Bin Laden title Saifullah, wey mean ‘Sword of God’.
He tell BBC say dem take him remarks ‘totally out of context’.
Lambeth Palace now talk say ‘comments made by Imam Ashrafi have come to light that have led (us) to reconsider this award and we can now confirm that the award has been withdrawn’.
When dem present award last week, Archbishop office talk say Ashrafi dey honoured for ‘his outstanding work as an ambassador of interfaith harmony in Pakistan, known for his commitment to promoting religious tolerance’.
Dame Sarah present the award for ceremony wey coincide with 25th anniversary of 9/11 attacks for US where nearly 3,000 people die.
Ashrafi tell BBC say dem take him remarks ‘totally out of context’ and the backlash na ‘an unfair campaign’ against him.
He talk say he only dey speak about Bin Laden in 2007 to answer ‘the hurt felt by many Muslims’ over knighthood wey dem give Satanic Verses author Sir Salman Rushdie.
But he defend the comparison he make between an author and a man wey dey behind deaths of thousands of people.
Criticism of Ashrafi pass him comments about Bin Laden.
When dem give him award for promoting interfaith harmony last week, Lambeth Palace cite fact say Ashrafi intervene for 2012 case of Rimsha Masih, a young Christian girl in Pakistan wey dem falsely accuse of blasphemy.
But Ashrafi otherwise support Pakistan blasphemy laws wey lead to estimated 2,000 people being prosecuted since late 1980s.
Dem include disproportionately high number of Pakistan minority Christians and Ahmadis especially, but many majority Sunni Muslims too.
Ashrafi claim the blasphemy laws actually ‘save lives’, stopping people from taking matters into their own hands.
But Human Rights Watch talk last year say ‘the laws perpetuate religious discrimination and are used to target the poor and minorities in unlawful evictions and land grabs’.
The organisation call on Pakistani government to urgently reform the laws to prevent dem ‘being weaponised to [. ] attack marginalised communities’.
