'Flagrant Islamophobia'
"...Nearly three weeks have gone by since the beginning of this tragedy and "finally the UN and some international donors are taking note of the massive scale of the disaster," reports the Pakistani daily, The Nation, which notes that "while some states like the US are going on a publicity binge to show off their efforts, other old and steady allies of Pakistan like Saudi Arabia, Iran and China are quietly giving all the assistance they can. But the EU remains niggardly."
"Many Pakistanis are struggling to understand why the response in the West has been so inadequate," writes Pakistani historian Tariq Ali in the columns of Süddeutsche Zeitung. "Some among them," he explains, "argue that Europe and the United States are reluctant to release funds because their country is now viewed as refuge for terrorists. In fact the issue is more complex, but it is clear that the problem has not been solely caused by Pakistan. The reality is that the main factor limiting international aid is the flagrant Islamaphobia that has that has emerged in Europe and North America since Sept. 11. In a recent poll, more than 50 percent of respondents associated the word "Islam" with terrorism..."
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,712874,00.html50% view Muslims as terrorists? Is this really true?