United Nations, Jan 14: Secretary-General Kofi Annan used Scottish poet Robert Burns' prayer for brotherhood to plead for an end to bigotry - especially against Muslims and Jews. Delivering the inaugural Robert Burns memorial lecture last night, Annan noted that the poet was not only an advocate for political and social change but also a champion for the poor and above all for a world where all people live together in peace.
Annan said prejudice remains widespread, especially against Muslims and Jews.
“One of the most disturbing manifestations of bigotry today is Islamophobia, a new word for an old phenomenon,'' he said.
Since the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, many Muslims especially in the west have become ``the objects of suspicion, harassment and discrimination,'' Annan said.
“And too many people see Islam as a monolith, and as intrinsically opposed to the west, when in fact western and Islamic peoples have a long history of commerce, of inter-mingling and inter-marrying, and of influencing and enriching each other's art, literature, science and much else besides,'' he said.
Bureau Report