Mention of Massacre During French Colonial Era on Twitter
Advocacy for Muslims Killing French People
▲Mahathir Mohamad, former Prime Minister of Malaysia [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Mahathir Mohamad (95), former Prime Minister of Malaysia, has sparked controversy by posting a tweet claiming that Muslims have the right to kill French people in relation to the beheading incident of a French history teacher.
According to AFP on the 30th, Mahathir, who holds significant influence in the Islamic community, posted a series of 14 tweets titled "Respect Others" on his Twitter account the previous evening.
Mahathir began by writing, "A French teacher was beheaded by an 18-year-old Chechen youth," adding, "The murderer was angry because the teacher showed cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad." It is known that the teacher showed the drawings with the intention of demonstrating freedom of expression.
He added that while murder is not an act that Muslims should support, he does not believe that freedom of expression includes insulting others.
He went on to describe the differences between Western societies and Muslims regarding respect for people of different races and religions, changes in women's clothing, and attitudes toward religion.
He criticized, "Macron (President of France) fails to show that he is civilized," and said, "He primitively blames Islam and Muslims in connection with the teacher's murder."
Mahathir wrote, "Regardless of religion, angry people commit murder," and "The French have killed millions of people throughout history, many of whom were Muslims." He further stated, "Muslims have the right to be angry about past massacres and to kill millions of French people."
Mahathir's tweet using the phrase "right to kill" was later deleted. AFP explained that it was removed due to Twitter's policy violation regarding glorification of violence.
Mahathir said, "Because one angry person committed the act, all Muslims and their religion were blamed, so Muslims have the right to punish the French," and added, "Boycotts cannot compensate for the wrongs committed by France."
He concluded, "Most Muslims do not apply the 'eye for an eye' law," and said, "France should not do so either, but instead teach its people to respect the feelings of others."
Many netizens posted critical comments on Mahathir's Twitter.
"Beheading someone because you were angered by cartoons is primitive," "Do other Muslims also condone such murder?" "Muslims do not respect that others do not believe in their religion," they argued.
Cedric O, France's Minister for Digital Affairs, warned, "Mahathir's account should be immediately blocked," and said, "If not, Twitter will be summoned as an accomplice to murder."
Some argue that "the main point of Mahathir's writing is mutual respect," while others posted photos of mass killings during the French colonial period.
In France, on the 16th, Samuel Paty, a middle school history teacher who used cartoons satirizing Muhammad as teaching material, was beheaded by an Islamic extremist youth. On the 29th, three people were killed when a Tunisian suspect wielded a weapon at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Nice.
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