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Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 24 2011
Why France is so illiberal?
by Mustafa Akyol
`I do not think I have ever met a Frenchman who was a liberal,' the
late French literary critic Émile Faguet once ironically remarked. If
he lived today, he could have preserved his pessimism, especially in
the light of the latest work of the French National Assembly: A new
law which penalizes `the denial of the Armenian Genocide' with a year
in prison and a heavy fine.
Before getting into the trouble with France, though, let me tell you
what I think about what really happened to the Ottoman Armenians in
1915. I do not go as far as using the G word, but I think that this
tragic episode well deserves being called an `ethnic cleansing' - and
a very gruesome one which killed at least half a million innocent
souls. I also think that we Turks have made a big mistake for decades
by refusing to see the great suffering of the Armenians, who used to
be our good neighbors for centuries before the venom of ethnic
nationalism befell all of us. I therefore not only believe in, but
also push for, a more honest and compassionate attitude in Turkey to
what is called here `the Armenian issue.'
That is why I would not be offended by any declaration by the French
National Assembly, or any other parliament in the world, that
expresses grief for the Great Catastrophe of 1915. I in fact hold that
parliaments should not legislate history, but if they wish to express
an opinion, that would be their call, and I would not object.
Now let's come to France. Here, the first thing I would say is that it
is only hypocritical for this county give lessons to others about the
sanctity of human life: the more than 1.7 million innocent souls that
the French colonizers brutally killed in Algeria is enough of a reason
for France to remain shamefully silent when it comes to history and
humanity. But countries do have double standards, and nations tend to
see other's crimes rather than their own. So, let me be lenient on
that.
What I am not lenient on, though, is the shocking illiberalism that
lies behind the new French law. It not only proclaims that 1915 was
genocide, but it also penalizes all other opinions, launching a clear
attack against freedom of speech.
Needless to say, such laws about `genocide denial' (including the most
unacceptable of all, Holocaust denial) exist in France and some other
continental European states, but not in the United Kingdom or the
United States. For the latter Anglo-Saxon countries are the beacons of
classical liberalism, while France certainly is not. (For the same
reason, France has recently imposed a ridiculous ban on the burqa,
which would be unthinkable in Britain and America.)
The roots of this illiberalism lie, I believe, in the two main pillars
of French political thought, as it evolved since the bloodbath called
the French Revolution: rationalism and laicite. These two principles
can well curb individual freedom. For rationalism gives the state the
power to figure out and impose `the truth,' whereas laicite gives it
the power to oppress religion. Hence comes thought-policing and
burqa-policing.
British thinker Tony Judt once expressed this problem well, noting,
`To speak of natural rights, or rights against society, or about
rights against state interference, was never a favorite topic in
France.' He also observed that the French `displayed a strong
propensity toward a strong executive power that in turn engendered a
particular type of liberalism through the state, not against the state
as in the Anglo-American liberal tradition.'
Unfortunately, we Turks can't do much to help heal these problems in
French political thought. We just need to de-Frenchize ourselves, by
further expanding freedom of speech and freedom of religion, which
were both tragically shrunk during our past French-wannabe century.
And, of course, we need to reach out to the Armenians to establish a
historic reconciliation in which no arrogant third party can
interfere.
* For all of Mustafa Akyol's works, including his recent book, `Islam
without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty,' visit his blog,
TheWhitePath.com. On Twitter, follow him at @AkyolinEnglish.
December/24/2011
Dec 24 2011
Why France is so illiberal?
by Mustafa Akyol
`I do not think I have ever met a Frenchman who was a liberal,' the
late French literary critic Émile Faguet once ironically remarked. If
he lived today, he could have preserved his pessimism, especially in
the light of the latest work of the French National Assembly: A new
law which penalizes `the denial of the Armenian Genocide' with a year
in prison and a heavy fine.
Before getting into the trouble with France, though, let me tell you
what I think about what really happened to the Ottoman Armenians in
1915. I do not go as far as using the G word, but I think that this
tragic episode well deserves being called an `ethnic cleansing' - and
a very gruesome one which killed at least half a million innocent
souls. I also think that we Turks have made a big mistake for decades
by refusing to see the great suffering of the Armenians, who used to
be our good neighbors for centuries before the venom of ethnic
nationalism befell all of us. I therefore not only believe in, but
also push for, a more honest and compassionate attitude in Turkey to
what is called here `the Armenian issue.'
That is why I would not be offended by any declaration by the French
National Assembly, or any other parliament in the world, that
expresses grief for the Great Catastrophe of 1915. I in fact hold that
parliaments should not legislate history, but if they wish to express
an opinion, that would be their call, and I would not object.
Now let's come to France. Here, the first thing I would say is that it
is only hypocritical for this county give lessons to others about the
sanctity of human life: the more than 1.7 million innocent souls that
the French colonizers brutally killed in Algeria is enough of a reason
for France to remain shamefully silent when it comes to history and
humanity. But countries do have double standards, and nations tend to
see other's crimes rather than their own. So, let me be lenient on
that.
What I am not lenient on, though, is the shocking illiberalism that
lies behind the new French law. It not only proclaims that 1915 was
genocide, but it also penalizes all other opinions, launching a clear
attack against freedom of speech.
Needless to say, such laws about `genocide denial' (including the most
unacceptable of all, Holocaust denial) exist in France and some other
continental European states, but not in the United Kingdom or the
United States. For the latter Anglo-Saxon countries are the beacons of
classical liberalism, while France certainly is not. (For the same
reason, France has recently imposed a ridiculous ban on the burqa,
which would be unthinkable in Britain and America.)
The roots of this illiberalism lie, I believe, in the two main pillars
of French political thought, as it evolved since the bloodbath called
the French Revolution: rationalism and laicite. These two principles
can well curb individual freedom. For rationalism gives the state the
power to figure out and impose `the truth,' whereas laicite gives it
the power to oppress religion. Hence comes thought-policing and
burqa-policing.
British thinker Tony Judt once expressed this problem well, noting,
`To speak of natural rights, or rights against society, or about
rights against state interference, was never a favorite topic in
France.' He also observed that the French `displayed a strong
propensity toward a strong executive power that in turn engendered a
particular type of liberalism through the state, not against the state
as in the Anglo-American liberal tradition.'
Unfortunately, we Turks can't do much to help heal these problems in
French political thought. We just need to de-Frenchize ourselves, by
further expanding freedom of speech and freedom of religion, which
were both tragically shrunk during our past French-wannabe century.
And, of course, we need to reach out to the Armenians to establish a
historic reconciliation in which no arrogant third party can
interfere.
* For all of Mustafa Akyol's works, including his recent book, `Islam
without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty,' visit his blog,
TheWhitePath.com. On Twitter, follow him at @AkyolinEnglish.
December/24/2011