Ms. Petronin’s Conversion Spoils Mr. Macron’s Plan

By M. Burhanuddin Qasmi

A sane human cannot oppose everything and anything, nor can he or she support something all the time. No one is saying everything in France is wrong, or everything in the USA, UK, India, or any Muslim majority country is just right and fair. We are humans, and humans do error. All people are not bad, and all cannot be equally good too.

Muslims don’t like the Prophet’s and the Qur’an’s disrespect; it’s a matter of faith of nearly 2 billion people from around the world. It’s a big deal; Muslims love their Prophet (saws), their Book, and their belief in monotheism is very, very dear to them. They love these things more than even their souls, and everything belongs to them. A non-Muslim may not be able to figure out how precious and adoring these things are to every practicing Muslim – male and female, from all corners of the world.

France doesn’t understand it and doesn’t respect these things by it’s social and cultural openness or whatever reason – fair enough. Unfortunately, a notorious newspaper carried scathing cartoons of the Prophet (saws), a few years ago, there was bloodshed in France. The whole world was upset; the Muslim world too condemned that attack. Later on, this much sense must prevail in every educated and wise society that it is a serious thing for our Co-citizens in France and Muslims from all over the world- one agrees or disagrees- it may create trouble and even may cost human lives. Thus, better avoid playing with guns and live bullets or burning fire, which may harm us and others.

Human lives are no joke and not a thing to amuse with and showcase your “art.” An art can not create trouble; if it does, it is not art but a political tool in disguise. Yet a member of the French far-right group repeated this notorious provocation in a planned manner because he announced to do that, and he was suggested to avoid it.

However, he did what he wanted, the first wrong. A young man – a teenager, went too violent following this incitement and killed that man, which was a crime, and nobody justified it; that was the second wrong. Police shot-dead that boy on the spot without arrest and trails against the standard norm of a free, democratic and secular system. Okay, be gone be bygone, a crime was punished, let’s move on, but that was the third wrong to note.

We know Mr. Macron is upset because recently, when he received Mrs. Sophie Petronin, the four-year-long captive in Mali and a very high profile lady, things went wrong for him at the airport. Petroni was released voluntarily by her kidnappers on Christian religious leaders and Church’s request because she was a missionary, doing humanitarian work there in Mali and is 70-year-old.

Nevertheless, Macron invited media cameras and received her from the aircraft to showcase that he has done it and is a strong “Christian” leader. Everything was being recorded, and some channels were even live on-air.

This author was also following that developing story. It was supposed to be a big political achievement for Macron and his party. He could not perform up to his voters’ expectations, gain some points from the communal front, and boast in front of his opponents. But to everyone’s surprise and Macron’s utter disappointment, Ms. Petronin came out from the aircraft while her head was covered as Muslim women do. She waved everyone presents down therefrom within the craft, came down, met Macron just at the aircraft stairs, stopped for a while, looked at his face, and said in French, ‘… I have converted to Islam, I am no longer the previous Sophie Petronin but I am Maryam Petronin now. I did not make this announcement before so that people should not misunderstand that I might be forced to Islam. I wanted to announce this only when I am free by my own will…and my captors have treated me well…’

This unexpected announcement was something extraordinary for the whole of the world and for the extreme rightists in the West, a bitter pill to swallow. It may have been a painful shocker for Mr. Macron and a most unfortunate experience, to say the least.

Therefrom, media cameras gradually went off, the breaking, the exclusive, and the big news story was played down, blacked out, and all Macron’s marketing plans were ultimately devasted. He never expected in his wildest dream that was going to happen with Petronin’s spicy story. He went to gain; he lost; it was unplanned and unexpected by all means.

He might take that negatively in his heart, and within days he announced that he is going to ban Muslim women’s headscarves in France, reason – “democracy,” “freedom,” and “values” of the West. He said he is going to change Islamic narratives because it is in “crises”.

We know Mr. Macron, you are in pain, things are hard for you to digest – but we can’t help. This was an accident for you, and things went wrong. But you can’t punish your whole Muslim population and abuse the whole Islamic world because you are angry for no mistake of 70-year-old Ms Maryam Petronin. Her conversion was her choice and that’s the freedom her French Constitution provides.

Following this recent uncalled for series of wrongs in France, the state’s head would generally try to keep cool and bring the situation under control. Macron, on the contrary, fueled it further, threw his poisons out in public. He put those highly objectionable cartoons with big screens over public buildings and locked masjids in Paris. He Made a fresh series of inflammatory and too objectionable statements about Islam, Muslims, and their Prophet (saws). This was the fourth and most gruesome blunder that you can imagine from the head of a democratic secular state!

Muslims cannot endorse all these wrongs and remain silent over one person’s gross injustice and fanaticism. Macron can’t fool people in the name of “freedom” and keep spitting his poison to make this world a hell for all to live.

Enough is enough. Every human life is valuable; every human deserves a free, peaceful, and respectable life. Every culture, race, colour, gender, language, and religion is respectable to its respective people. Nobody should interfere in other’s domain. Live and let live. Give respect, take respect. There is no way out other than this, and we all need to understand it.

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This write-up was primarily addressed to Ms. Elena Baliotti, London, UK while replying to her comments over one of my earlier Facebook posts.