Iran ban ruled out

Press, 18 February 1989, Page 1

Iran ban ruled out

PA Wellington New Zealand would not take part in sanctions against Iran in response to threats to the life of the author; Salman Rushdie, the Prime Minister, Mr Lange, said yesterdayr The call for sanctions has come from the European Parliament after Iran posted a large reward for the killer of Rushdie, author of “The Satanic Verses,” which Iran says defames Islam and the prophet Muhammad. Mr Lange said it was “very nice of the European Parliament to destroy New Zealand’s lamb industry in the cause of a man who’s> not likely to get shot in Iran since he’s in England.” Mr Lange also said the visit of the Minister of External Relations and Trade, Mr Moore, to Iran in April would go ahead “unless there is any remote possibility of Mike Moore resembling the author of the book, then I’d advise against it” Meantime, threats have been levelled at Viking Press, Ltd, in Auckland, publishers of the controversial book. “There have been threats made,” said a spokesman yesterday. He would not identify himself, saying the situation had become “quite scary.” The book, billed as a fictional novel, has caused a furor overseas with the Iranian leader, the Ayatollah Khomeiny, calling for Rushdie’s immediate execution. Reuters reported Teheran Radio as saying a reward for a foreigner who kills the author of “The Satanic Verses” had been raised to $6.45 million, and a bank account would be opened for donations to swell the bounty. An Iranian carrying out the killing would get $9.6 million, The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand said yesterday the controversial novel could not be excused as a work of fiction and was clearly anti-Islamic. The federation claimed Rushdie’s novel contained “uncanny resemblances” to Islamic characters and situations. “As Muslims we believe the Qur’an (Koran) is the revealed word of Allah and that the role of the prophets have been exemplary in communicating the message of Allah,” said the federation’s secretary-general, Mr Abdur Razzaq Khan. Rushdie — “hiding under the false safety of calling his book a fiction” — called the prophet Ibrahim a bastard and. his wife a prostitute, he said.