Your editorial about jihadis’ attack on Paris and Alpesh Patel’s sketchbook have covered the Paris tragedy well. Alpesh optimistically concluded that rule of law be respected and ballot used to change the laws. This is negated by your remark: scourge of jihadi terrorism is aided/abetted by US as statecraft in the cold war, and by its client states eg Saudi Arabia, Gulf Shiekhdom and Pakistan.
Expecting moderate Muslims to take drastic steps to reinvent image of Islam/contain jihadi terrorism becomes futile and worldwide sympathy becomes charade.
Yet, we must pray for the dead and also for suffering relatives.
Following points need cogitation. Why did Charlie Hebdo team repeatedly mocked Islam/provoked terrorists, in spite of global fury, murders and fire bombings? The West has gifted pleasant civic sense to the world, but why such practice is discarded to hurt religious sentiments of Muslims?
Freedom of speech and expression is cited as defence, then would the same freedom will be indulged to abuse/hurt LGBT, sexism, ageism, disability, taste/ decency, law/ order etc? Does right of expression become right to hurt and duty to hurt?
Therefore it becomes ill of best of us to abuse/ shoot the rest of us.
Ramesh Jhalla
By email
