In the midst of a boycott of French products, Morocco condemns...

Tensions with Islam in France are becoming a problem for France with the Muslim world. After calls to boycott French products in several Muslim countries, the tone rose between Ankara and Paris following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s remarks, causing a diplomatic crisis with the recall of the French ambassador to Turkey.

This Sunday, it was Morocco’s turn to “vigorously condemn the continued publication of insulting caricatures of Islam and the Prophet Sidna Mohammed, Peace and Salvation be upon Him,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Without pointing the finger at France or its president, “the Kingdom of Morocco denounces these acts that reflect the immaturity of their authors, and reaffirms that the freedom of some stops where the freedom and beliefs of others begin.”

While condemning the continuation of the publication of the cartoons, Morocco reaffirms its “condemnation of all obscurantist and barbaric violence allegedly perpetrated in the name of Islam”, in reference to the beheading of the teaching Samuel Paty by a young Chechen in Parisian region.

Inscribing its position in that shared by the peoples of Muslim countries “the Kingdom of Morocco, like other Arab and Muslim countries, calls for ceasing to stir up resentment and to show discernment and respect for otherness , as a prerequisite for living together and for a serene and salutary dialogue between religions ”concludes the press release.

A position that joins that of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which brings together 57 Muslim states, denouncing “the speech of certain French politicians, inciting hatred and serving only partisan political interests”. The condemnation of the OIC and Morocco is a blow to the French president who recalled his determination to continue publishing the controversial cartoons. “We will not give up caricatures, drawings,” he hammered in a speech delivered on October 23 during the tribute ceremony to teacher Samuel Paty.

Le Drian and Macron react to the campaign to boycott French products

In addition to international political tensions, it is French economic interests that are threatened by the campaign to boycott French products in Muslim countries. A threat taken seriously by Paris, which reacted with a statement from the Quai d’Orsay this Sunday, October 25. “These calls distort the positions defended by France in favor of freedom of conscience, freedom of expression, freedom of religion and the refusal of any appeal to hatred”, writes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“Consequently, the calls for boycott are without any object and must cease immediately, as well as all the attacks directed against our country, instrumentalized by a radical minority”, enjoins the department of Le Drian, which has departed from the diplomatic tone. of circumstance.

After the text of French diplomacy, Emmanuel Macron chose Facebook to send messages in French, English and Arabic to Muslims: “Nothing will make us back down, ever. Freedom, we cherish it; equality, we guarantee it; fraternity, we live it with intensity. Our history is that of the struggle against tyrannies and fanaticisms. We will continue. We respect all differences in a spirit of peace. We do not accept hate speech and stand for reasonable debate. We will continue. We will always stand on the side of human dignity and universal values. ”

This authoritarian communication by the French state with regard to sovereign Muslim peoples risks further fueling the campaign to boycott French products.