Jordan Times
Thursday, February 9, 2006
King, Bush reject violent response to prophet drawings
WASHINGTON (Agencies) — His Majesty King Abdullah
and US President George W. Bush on Wednesday rejected the violent response to
newspaper cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad.
“Those that want to protest should do it thoughtfully, articulately, express
their views peacefully. When we see a protest, when we see destruction, when we
see violence, especially if it ends up taking the lives of innocent people, is
completely unacceptable,” King Abdullah was quoted as saying at a White House
meeting with Bush.
“With all respect to press freedoms, obviously, anything that vilifies the
Prophet Mohammad, peace be upon him, or attacks Muslim sensibilities needs to be
condemned... I too often hear the word used as, tolerance. And tolerance is such
an awful word. If we are going to strive to move forward in the future, the word
that we should be talking about is acceptance. We need to accept our common
humanity and our common values. And I hope that lessons can be learned from this
dreadful issue, that we can move forward as humanity, and truly try to strive
together, as friends and as neighbours, to bring a better world to all.”
Bush called on “the governments around the world to stop the violence, to be
respectful, to protect property, to protect the lives of innocent diplomats.”
“We believe in a free press, and also recognise that with freedom comes
responsibilities, that with freedom comes the responsibility to be thoughtful
about others.”
On the Middle East peace process, King Abdullah said he appreciated Bush's
desire to achieve peace and stability in the region.
The Monarch reiterated that the international community, including the US,
should deal with the new realities created by the Hamas victory in the
Palestinian elections and continue their support for the Palestinians.
Talks between the King and Bush also included Iraq and bilateral relations.
Earlier, King Abdullah and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice discussed
Middle East developments and means to enhance bilateral ties.
Also yesterday, the King held talks with Congress leaders on Mideast issues as
well as economic relations between the US and Jordan.
King Abdullah told members of the appropriations committees of the Senate and
the House that it was important to increase the US aid to Jordan because of
Kingdom's special economic situation, aggravated by the hike of international
oil prices.
The US annual aid to Jordan stands at $450 million, $250 million of which are in
military assistance.
King Abdullah also met with a group of the House's minority leaders, headed by
Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS), Senator Christopher J. Dodd (
D-Connecticut), Harry Reid (D-NV), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), John Warner (R-VA),
Carl Levin (D-MI), Richard J. Durbin (D-IL), Richard G. Lugar (R-IN), Joe
Lieberman (D-CT), John D. Rockefeller (D-WV), Pat Roberts (R-Kansas), Joe Baiden
(D-Delaware), Jim Kolbe (R-AR), Jerry Lewis (R-CA) and Bill Young (R-FL).