The
Algerian War of Independence lasted from 1954 to 1962. That was so long ago
that most Americans don’t know much about it or that there ever was such a
conflict. However, the two brothers (Saïd
Kouachi and Chérif Kouachi),
who killed 12 people in the attack on the Charlie Hebdo (satirical magazine)
headquarters, remembered.
[I pause here to offer my prayers to these brothers, who were doing what they thought was right. They, in their early 30's, were too young to die.]
This source
(Wikipedia) summarizes that war quite nicely and includes the following quote:
QUOTE:
Historians,
like Alistair Horne and Raymond
Aron, state that the actual number of Algerian Muslim war dead was
far greater than the original FLN and official French estimates… Horne
estimated Algerian casualties during the span of eight years to be around
700,000. Uncounted thousands of Muslim civilians lost their lives in French
Army ratissages, bombing raids, or vigilante reprisals. The war uprooted more
than 2 million Algerians, who were forced to relocate in French camps or to
flee into the Algerian hinterland, where many thousands died of starvation,
disease, and exposure.
:UNQUOTE.
I
don’t know about you, but I would be inclined to nurture a grudge against the
French nation that was responsible for this genocide. It’s true that France has
contributed greatly to the world’s culture. But these deaths and that war were
definitely a black mark on their reputation.
I
mean, France itself had been liberated from German occupation about 10 years
prior to Algeria’s attempt to gain its independence. You would think the French
would have been more sympathetic with the yearning for freedom felt by the
Algerians.
“Freedom,”
specifically the right to freedom of expression, is highly prized by the French
and has been rallied around at recent demonstrations as something the French
will rabidly defend against alien elements. I don’t know if French law bans the
act of (falsely) yelling “Fire!” in a crowded theater or permits physical
assaults against those guilty of using “fighting words.” But, setting that
aside for a moment, those same demonstrators don’t think much of the right of
Muslims in France to maintain their Islamic identity. A good example was the
ban in 2011 against women wearing a burqa in public – a ban which was upheld in
2014 by the European Court of Human Rights.
Hey,
no problem right? This only affects French Muslims, not real human beings.
As
for tolerance, if someone among those demonstrators had hoisted a sign saying
“Vive la Algeria,” the self-righteous (tolerant) crowd would have probably torn
him to pieces. I guess the limits of tolerance depend on whose ox is being
gored.
Concerning blasphemy
against the Prophet
By
now, and for some time, it’s clear that Muslims disapprove of “slandering the
Prophet” or even lampooning him. Knowing this, I would suggest that writers and
cartoonists stop doing so, keeping the “fighting words” doctrine in mind.
If
anyone wants to question the tenets of the Islamic faith, that can be done
respectfully by means of interfaith (or inter non-faith) dialogue. Even a
fanatic can be approached if we take the time and trouble to find the right
words to use. To reduce the level of fanaticism, I suggest that the French –
and the Americans – simply stop waging war against Islamic countries. All that
war-making will end up doing is creating more people who will nurture a
decades’ long grudge – people like these two brothers. People who will strike
back decades after the end of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
All
I can hope for, is that the victims of such reprisals don’t knee-jerkingly ask,
“Why me?” But they will ask, simply because they will have lost any clear
memory of what we did to the attackers and why.
Of
course, the Western powers won’t cease and desist their wars, simply because
they wish to prevent the rise of a unified Caliphate. That’s what these wars
are all about – the prevention of the rise of a new power center, especially
one strong enough to resist Western exploitation of its resources.
In
short? The rich and powerful don’t like competition, which is what a Caliphate
would offer.
As
for blasphemy, I sincerely hope that the Prophet (and his followers) would have
a thick enough skin to ignore any slights. I can’t see killing someone for being
disrespectful. Within the world of Buddhism, slandering the Buddha to his face
(for example) for a million years would invite karmic retribution. But from
what I’ve read, the Buddha would silently and calmly endure insults and pray
for the enlightenment of the offender. And, as importantly, any of the Buddha’s
followers who witnessed such blasphemy would not have attacked the offender.
Maybe
that’s because they don’t have an ox that’s being gored, but because they know
the offender has deep-seated issues that need to be overcome – and that takes
time.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Steven
Searle, just another member of the
Virtual
Samgha of The Lotus Sutra and
a former
candidate for US President (in 2008 and 2012)
Contact
me at
bpa_cinc@yahoo.com
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