London: The British Government will air ads on Pakistani television urging terrorists to not attack Britain. Prominent British Muslims will star in the British Foreign Office-funded £400,000 (approximately Rs 2.9 crore)-campaign that is set to break on Pakistani television next Monday, 'The Guardian' reported on Tuesday.The three-month public relations offensive, called 'I Am the West', will also include high-profile events in regions such as Peshawar and Mirpur, 'The Guardian' said. Seven in ten British Pakistanis are Mirpuris.
According to 'The Guardian', the first three ads in the project will feature British Communities Minister Sadiq Khan, UK manager of Islamic Relief Jehangir Malik, former England Under-19 captain and promising Worcestershire allrounder Moeen Ali, and the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Chaudry Abdul Rashid, a Mirpuri.
The campaign, the paper said, will be targeted at '15-25-year-old males who are less than well-educated and worldly wise, but potentially susceptible to extremist doctrines'. Nine 30-second commercials, supported by ads on radio, will be aired on PTV, Geo TV and Khyber among other channels. If the Pakistani campaign is successful, it will be extended in Egypt, Yemen and Indonesia.
The central theme of the campaign, 'The Guardian' said, "is to assert that there is no contradiction in being a Muslim and being British." It has four key aims, the daily reported: 'to ensure Pakistanis realise the west is not anti-Islamic, that British society is not anti-Islam, to demonstrate the extent to which Muslims are integrated into British society and to stimulate and facilitate constructive debate on the compatibility of liberal and Muslim values'.