French History Teacher Beheaded, Thousands Of Citizens Hold Solidarity Action

Solidarity action with Samuel Paty at Place de la République, Paris, Sunday 18 October 2020 (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - Yesterday, Sunday 19 October, thousands of French citizens staged a solidarity action after a history teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded by his own student for showing a caricature of the Prophet Muhammad. The residents who held the peaceful demonstration demanded freedom of expression and gave support to teachers.

According to Reuters on October 19, Paty was killed in front of her school on the outskirts of Paris by her 18-year-old pupil. Earlier this month, the teacher showed students a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad in a class about freedom of expression. This has angered a number of students' parents who embrace Islam. Muslims believe that the depiction of the Prophet Muhammad is a form of blasphemy.

The suspect, known to be from Chechnya, was then shot dead by police after the attack. In addition, the authorities have also detained 11 people who are suspected of being involved in the murder.

The crowd, mostly teachers, filled the streets of Paris, Lyon, Marseille to Lille quietly. They stop regularly to clap their hands, hold minutes of silence or sing the national anthem. They also said they were shocked and devastated by the case.

"As a kindergarten teacher, I came here to defend my mission of educating, to hone the critical thinking skills of my students," said one demonstrator. "It makes me want to teach more often. There will be a before and after this terrible event."

Prime Minister Jean Castex immediately held a meeting at the Place de La Republique in Paris together with Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer and politicians from all factions. They showed solidarity after the killings that shocked the country.

“You don't scare us. We are not afraid. You won't divide us. We are France! " Castex said via his Twitter account.

Reject extremists

The people at the event wore masks as part of the protocol to suppress transmission of COVID-19. Crowds also carried posters reading such as "Teach ya, bleed no" or "I'm Charlie" referring to the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, whose office was attacked in a mass murder five years ago.

“We are here to defend the Republic, the values of the Republic: freedom, equality, brotherhood and secularism. We can feel that this nation is under threat, ”said Pierre Fourniou, one of the participants of the action in Paris.

Paty had previously been the target of outrage on social media before being assassinated. Castex said in an interview in the Journal du Dimanche newspaper that the government is working on a strategy to better protect teachers from threats.

Anger and sympathy also flowed from abroad. The secretary general of the 57-member Organization for Islamic Cooperation condemned the attack. They reiterated that they reject "all forms of extremism, radicalization and terrorism for any reason or motive."