On October 18, French regional newspaper Nouvelle Republique republished a satirical drawing of the Prophet Muhammad from Charlie Hebdo magazine following the murder of French teacher Samuel Paty on October 16.
Chechen teenager Abdoullakh Anzorov attacked and decapitated Paty while he was walking home from the school where he taught. Anzarov tweeted an image of the teacher’s severed head on Twitter before he was shot dead by police.
Paty was targeted for having shown cartoons of the Prophet in a civics class discussion on free speech. Muslims believe that any depiction of the Prophet is blasphemous.
The murder reignited debates over free speech, secularism and the role of Islam in France, which had been shaken by a string of terror attacks in recent years, including the deadly Charlie Hebdo and Bataclan attacks.
French President Emmanuel Macron has defended Paty and his actions, vowing to crack down radicalism in the country, drawing calls of boycott of French goods from Muslim leaders around the world.
How did the Muslim majority nations respond?
Turkish President Recep Tayyib Erdogan said the French President needed ‘mental treatment’ over his views on Islam.
“What is Macron’s problem with Islam? He needs mental treatment,” Erdogan said when speaking at his Justice and Development Party meeting.
Erdogan has called for the Turks to boycott French goods while France recalled its ambassador to Turkey.
In Pakistan, its Prime Minister Imran Khan described Macron’s action as provoking the Muslims, attacking Islam without having any understanding.
Saudi Arabia condemned cartoons offending the Prophet and any attempts to link Islam with terrorism, but a statement from its foreign ministry did not call for boycotts of French products.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry summoned the French charge d’affaires and told the diplomat that Iran strongly rejects any insult and disrespect toward the Prophet.
In Kuwait, some supermarkets have pulled French products from their shelves. Qatar University has cancelled the French Cultural Week event.
Meanwhile in Malaysia, a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemns any provocative acts that seek to defame the religion of Islam..
Its minister, Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Hussein said Malaysia is committed to upholding the freedom of speech and expression as fundamental human rights for as long as these rights are exercised with respect and responsibilities.
"Such an act is provocative and disrespectful towards Islam and more than two billion Muslims all over the world," Hishamuddin said.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs), Datuk Seri Dr Zulkifli Mohammad Al-Bakri wrote a special letter to the French Ambassador to Malaysia.
“Referring to the latest issue of Charlie Hebdo's cartoon regarding Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), we are also disconsolate and disheartened about the incident," he said.
On his Facebook post, Dr Zulkifli said that the letter represents Muslims in Malaysia, and he believes that both countries have the same stance that acts of extremism and terrorism are not representative of any religion in the world.
Freedom of expression and respect for religious beliefs
In France, many citizens staunchly defend secularism, or laïcité, that separates the state and religion in the country.
Paty’s brutal murder and the 2015 Charlie Hebdo attacks (the trial commenced this year) have France debating freedom of expression and once again, testing the limit of the French’s strong secular values.
The situation also clashes with France’s new reality as the country is home to close to six million Muslims - more than any other country in Western Europe. For the Muslim communities, they feel their beliefs are not respected.
As freedom to practice one’s religion is important, Macron has also said that the right to mock and caricature, even religion, is an essential part of being French.
Earlier this month, Macron has outlined a legislative proposal to fight ‘Islamist separatism’. The goal, the president said, is “To build an Islam in France that can be compatible with the Enlightenment” - that can be at peace with the republic’s values.
What happens now?
France cautioned citizens living or travelling in several Muslim-majority countries to be vigilant and take extra security precaution, due to surging anger over the caricature of Prophet.
Its Interior Minister Gerald Damanin said that Turkey should not meddle in France’s domestic affairs.
In a radio interview, he said: “It should shock each one of us that foreign powers are meddling with what is going on in France,”.
Rallies against Macron’s statement are already happening in a few cities including in Istanbul, Palestine and Bangladesh.
