The horrific and disgusting events of war in the Middle East continue to generate many comments since October 7th, but the remaining space for expression in Europe, and in France in particular, is still limited for any kind of support for Palestinian rights.
With these words, the French website “Orient 21” summarized an article by researcher Laurent Bonnefoy from the National Institute for Scientific Research in which he tried to expose the position of the French authorities who, from the first moment, stigmatized any movements for Palestine, and went so far as to issue Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin instructions prohibiting demonstrations. The Minister of Justice issued a circular to expand the scope of restrictions imposed on freedom of expression whenever the Israeli-Palestinian issue is addressed, as the Minister believes that portraying the Islamic Resistance Movement “Hamas” attack on Israel as a form of legitimate resistance supports “terrorism.”
The writer pointed out the contradiction of the French Council of State, when it agreed to ban demonstrations in Paris, but allowed them in Marseille. He reviewed the issue of the expulsion of the Palestinian leftist activist, Maryam Abu Daqqa, and considered it a symbol of the drift of public authority in France. However, the most hideous example of restrictions is the request Right-wing Senator Valerie Boyer revoked French citizenship from football player Karim Benzema, due to a tweet in which he supported civilians in Gaza, after the French Interior Minister echoed allegations previously that the athlete residing in Saudi Arabia belongs to the Muslim Brotherhood.
The media is terrified
Thus, the space available for explanation, contextualization, and simple expressions of solidarity with the Palestinian people continues to shrink incomparably, to the point that noticing the shrinking space has become taboo, and impossible to explain publicly to the dominant media.
The writer went on to say that the media field itself, outside the strict scope of political authority, is engaged in reducing the remaining space for expression in support of Palestinian rights, to the point that many specialists in Palestinian society and academics refused to express themselves, despite their experience on radio and television, and some of them found that the calls that were directed They were suddenly canceled by the media, as if they had suddenly become a danger to overly cautious editorial teams.
They cut off the call and apologized to the listeners
The writer mentioned an incident that occurred on one of the public radio stations, when Palestinian director Firas Khoury expressed the need to consider a bi-national state and distance itself from the religious and ethnic nature of the Israeli state. This statement caused clear discomfort among the journalists on the radio, who cut off contact with the guest and then apologized for allowing such statements to appear on the air.
This reaction – according to the author – demonstrates pro-Israel positions among journalists, and also demonstrates a form of ignorance in a context in which the boundaries of discourse are changing. It also demonstrates that confronting these new red lines will be more difficult in the future, and thus the clear facts of the occupation will continue to be condemned. Injustice, crimes and racism have been limited to marginalized circles for a long time.
France and Germany
The large scale of the “Hamas attack” has raised concerns throughout Western societies, but the process of restricting freedom of expression in France and Germany is currently the most powerful, perhaps for historical reasons related to the Holocaust, in addition to the presence of large Muslim and Jewish minorities in France.
Although some political leaders publicly expressed their support for Israel, in Britain, Italy and Spain, demonstrations in support of the Palestinians and against the bombing of Gaza were not prohibited, and the media sometimes reported courageous stances there.
Aside from the direct impact on those who publicly defend the rights of Palestinians, this European retreat, German and French in particular, in the space of expression is worrying, especially since restricting analyzes affects understanding. “And who can – other than French President Emmanuel Macron – think that It is plausible that combating “Hamas violence” requires the same methods used by the international coalition against ISIS.”
The writer concluded that banning demonstrations in support of the Palestinians, and allowing speeches in support of Israel by European and American leaders, directly contribute to consolidating the impression that the West has stopped defending universal values, and therefore there is no surprise in its inability to communicate with its neighbors in the south, nor in ignoring… His calls to support Ukraine or any other cause.
#Gaza #France #retreating #greatly #defending #freedom #expression
2023-11-08 16:09:40
