New Delhi: Calls to boycott France and French products were in vogue on social media Monday following French President Emmanuel Macron’s comments on Islam
On October 16, an 18-year-old man of Chechen descent beheaded Samuel Paty, a teacher who had shown caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad in a course on free speech Paty was beheaded outside his school in a suburb of the French capital
In praising the professor on October 21, Macron said that « France will not give up cartoons »
Notably, Macron said earlier this month: « Islam is a religion in crisis around the world »
In the wake of Emmanuel Macron’s statement, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan accused the French president of « attacking Islam »
In a series of tweets on Sunday, the Pakistani prime minister said Macron’s remark would sow division
« This is a time when Pres Macron could have provided a touch of healing & denied space to extremists rather than creating additional polarization & marginalization which inevitably leads to radicalization, » Khan tweeted
« It is unfortunate that he chose to encourage Islamophobia by attacking Islam rather than terrorists who commit violence, whether they are Muslims, white supremacists or ‘Nazi ideologues « , he added
The Pakistani Prime Minister further declared: « By attacking Islam, obviously without understanding it, President Macron attacked the &, hurting the feelings of millions of Muslims in Europe & around the world »
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan again urged his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Sunday to do « mental checks » Also on Saturday, the Turkish leader urged Macron to do « mental checks » for treating « millions of members of different faith groups in this way «
French products are boycotted in some countries, including Qatar and Kuwait Photos on social media show Kuwaiti store workers removing French processed cheese Kiri and Babybel from shelves
Meanwhile, a number of Jordanians changed their Facebook profiles to add the message « Respect Mohammad the Prophet of Allah (God) »
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, protesters burned photos of Macron on Sunday in those areas of war-torn Syria that still escape government control
French authorities said on Sunday that calls to boycott French products were the work of a « radical minority »
Yesterday evening, the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement that its diplomats were mobilizing to ensure the safety of French citizens in countries where boycotts were organized or calls for hatred launched
« In many countries of the Middle East, calls to boycott French products and more generally, calls to demonstrate against France, in sometimes hateful terms, have been relayed on social networks, » said the ministry French Foreign Office, adding that such calls « distort » the position of the European country on freedom of expression and conscience
French President Emmanuel Macron
News from the world – CA – Emmanuel Macron’s comments on Islam lead to the #BoycottFrenchProducts trend – All about the controversy
