15th September 2012, Male'; The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Abdul Samad Abdullah has said that ‘the Government of Maldives rejects and condemns the burning of the flag of the United States of America by a group of protesters in Malé yesterday'. The Foreign Minister also said that ‘burning of another country's flag is not, and has never been, a Maldivian way of showing our anger and protest. While the Government of Maldives understands the feelings and emotions of Maldivians about the activities of certain individuals attempting to defame Prophet Muhammad, the Government had called on the people to show restrain and calmness in dealing with the issue'.
Minister Samad noted that the Government of Maldives has already condemned in the strongest terms, the blasphemous video, which insults the Prophet Muhammad. He also noted that the video was neither produced, nor approved by the Government of the United States, and in fact, the US Secretary of State has already condemned the video. Therefore, showing anger and creating hatred towards America undermines the Islamic values of tolerance and respect.
End.