The peace and mourning march for Imam Hussein’s martyrdom was held on Sunday in Gothenburg. The celebration of the mourning festival Ashura and the march takes place every year, but new for this year is that there is also a protest against the Koran burnings. The participants were therefore dressed in black, which symbolizes sadness, and they carried a Koran.
– I hope we don’t get any more hate against us, we just want to show that this book is our holy book and we don’t think it’s acceptable for us, says Zahra Salman, who is one of the organizers.
Haidar Abbas, who is also one of the organizers, believes that many Muslims come from countries with limited freedom of expression, and therefore it is protected.
– Freedom of expression is very important to us because many of us were once deprived of it. But we don’t want freedom of expression to step on our toes, says Haidar Abbas.
Zahra Salman says that the celebration of the mourning festival and the march means a lot to her and other Shia Muslims.
– We are doing this important march as a reminder that we must always stand up against oppression and hatred.
Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, is a martyr who was killed in 680 in a battle over who was the rightful successor of the Prophet.