On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed that the government’s decision to ban the abaya in schools aims to defend secularism and the principles of the republic, recalling at the same time the terrorist attacks in the country, especially the killing of Professor Samuel Paty, who was beheaded by a jihadist near his school.
In an interview with YouTuber Ugo Decrypt on his channel, Macron said, “We also live in our society with a minority, with people who change the direction of a religion and come to challenge the republic and secularism.”
The French President’s statement came in response to a question asked by the announcer about the government’s recent decision to ban the abaya in schools, high schools and institutes, noting that this garment worn by some Muslim girls is seen by many as a means of calling to Islam.
“Sometimes the worst happened. We cannot act as if there had been no terrorist attack and there was no Samuel Paty,” Macron added.
On October 16, 2020, Professor of History and Geography Samuel Paty (47 years old) was killed in front of his school in the Parisian region, stabbed by the Chechen jihadist, Abdullah Anzorov, who beheaded the teacher before the police killed him.
This professor was killed days after he showed his students, during a class on freedom of expression, caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. The jihadist said in an audio recording that he had committed his act “in retaliation for the Prophet.”
And the French President continued, explaining the justifications for the decision to ban the cloak, “I am just saying that this system exists.”
“It happened because a teacher was giving a lesson on secularism in his class, and then there was a frenzy on social networks, followed by people doing the worst,” he added.
In response to the broadcaster’s inquiry, Macron said, “I do not compare” between acts of terrorism and the dress worn by some Muslim girls.
“I am just telling you that the issue of secularism in our school is a fundamental issue,” he added.
In the same interview, Macron said that he supports conducting “experiments” and “evaluation” of wearing a school uniform in school, noting that he prefers in this context “uniform” as it is “more acceptable” by teenagers.
He explained, “There is the uniform, and there is also the uniform. That is, without having a uniform, we can say (to the students) + put on jeans, a shirt and a jacket +.”
He added, “The issue of uniforms is, in my opinion, more acceptable, and it may seem less strict from a disciplinary point of view.”
And the French President considered that this dress “solves many issues (…) first: secularism, and secondly: it provides some decency, as we do not want very eccentric clothes.”
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2023-09-04 20:24:30
