International
France Denies Claim That It Planned to Track Muslim Children After Misinformation Goes Viral
Published
2 months agoon
By
Cory Ray
- Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Human Rights, Shireen Mazari, repeated a false claim on Saturday that went viral after French President Emmanuel Macron proposed a new law last week.
- That law is meant to help eradicate terrorist radicalization by restricting homeschooling and by assigning all children ID numbers that allow their attendance in school to be tracked. The false claim states that only Muslim children will be given ID numbers and tracked.
- On Sunday, Mazari retracted her comment and admitted that it was inaccurate.
- Macron’s recent comments regarding terrorism and Islam, as well as his attempts to use the law to crack down on “Islamic separatism,” have drawn strong condemnation from Muslim-majority countries and Islamic groups.
France Propose ID System for Students
France’s foreign ministry had to clarify a proposed law on Sunday after a false claim regarding it went viral and was later propped up by Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Human Rights.
That claim alleges France is proposing to identify and track only Muslim children in the country. In reality, the law France has proposed would not single out Muslim students.
Instead, it would give every child a student identification number that would then be used to track their attendance in school. According to French President Emmanuel Macron, who outlined the details of the law last week, this is meant to help eradicate terrorism in the name of Islam, which he described as “Islamic separatism.”
Public school students already receive an identification number in France. If this bill were to become law, it would expand the system to include private school students, as well as homeschool students.
Another provision of this bill would place major restrictions on homeschooling, so much so that it would only be granted in limited exceptions. Macron has justified this portion of the bill by saying that children who are homeschooled are in danger of being radicalized.
He’s also said that children from super conservative Muslim families are being removed from school, as well as being indoctrinated at sporting and cultural associations.
In October, France suffered three major terrorist attacks — including the beheading of a teacher, the killing of three at a church in Nice, and the shooting of a priest in Lyon. Since 2015, in total, 276 people have been killed in 72 terrorist attacks in France. That includes 12 who were killed in a 2015 attack on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo after it published cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
False Claim Goes Viral
The facts behind this proposed law were already fairly controversial, even among non-Muslim groups; however, the matter quickly escalated once the false claim concerning Muslim children hit the internet.
Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Human Rights, Shireen Mazari, contributed to that spread on Saturday when she claimed on Twitter that, “Macron is doing to Muslims what the Nazis did to the Jews – Muslim children will get ID numbers (other children won’t) just as Jews were forced to wear the yellow star on their clothing for identification.”
In that tweet, Mazari also linked to an article that backed up the false claim.
On Sunday, Mazari continued to condemn France and Macron, despite the French foreign ministry’s attempts to correct the misinformation she had tweeted.
Read link 4 source of story – if fake then get retraction of story published which I gave as link @FranceinPak instead of calling my tweet "fake"! Btw why are nuns allowed to wear their "habit" in public places but Muslim women not their hijab? Discrimination, n'est ce pas? pic.twitter.com/C7ApMN92EJ
— Shireen Mazari (@ShireenMazari1) November 22, 2020
Earlier, it had denounced her comments as full of “blatant lies, imbued with an ideology of hatred and violence.”
“Such slanderous comments are disgraceful at such a level of responsibility,” it added. “We reject them strongly.”
“Pakistan much rectify this statement and return to the path of dialogue based on respect.”
Statement of the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, France@ForeignOfficePk @ShireenMazari1 @GovtofPakistan pic.twitter.com/wr2mUUJCCK
— France in Pakistan (@FranceinPak) November 22, 2020
France Sets the Record Straight
On Sunday, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs explained that the bill is not targeted at Muslim children.
“Any so-called information pertaining to alleged intent to register children being schooled in France based on religion, belief or origin, is absolutely false,” it said on Twitter.
“It is, if anything, a mean to combat any sort of discrimination which has no place in France,” it added.
The French Constitution guarantees access to education for all children, without any distinction, both as a right (public education is free and open to all) and as an obligation for the families.
— France Diplomacy🇫🇷 (@francediplo_EN) November 22, 2020
It is, if anything, a mean to combat any sort of discrimination which has no place in France.
— France Diplomacy🇫🇷 (@francediplo_EN) November 22, 2020
Following a letter from the French Envoy to Pakistan, which included an updated correction in the article Mazari had cited, Mazari finally walked back her claims. In addition to noting that the article has now been updated to reflect the fact that this bill is aimed at all children, not just Muslim ones, she also deleted her original tweet.
The French Envoy to Pak sent me the following message and as the article I had cited has been corrected by the relevant publication, I have also deleted my tweet on the same. pic.twitter.com/mgOS5RFYwm
— Shireen Mazari (@ShireenMazari1) November 22, 2020
France’s Relationship With the Muslim World
As Business Insider noted, this is just “the latest episode in a tense feud between France and the Muslim world that has been brewing for the past five years.”
In fact, just last month, Macron called Islam “a religion in crisis all over the world.” He said the introduction of new laws would help prevent radicalization.
Those comments then led to a number of majority-Muslim countries calling for a boycott of French goods.
“What is Macron’s problem with Islam?” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. “What is his problem with Muslims?”
Erdogan added that Macron needs “mental [health] checks.”
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said Macron had “attacked Islam” and “hurt the sentiments of millions of Muslims in Europe and across the world.”
Macron is an ardent defender of secularism (i.e. the separation of church and state). While he said that he understands Muslim people’s frustration and anger over physical depictions of the Prophet Muhammad, he’s stressed that such depictions are fully legal.
“I will always defend in my country the freedom to speak, to write, to think, to draw,” Macron said earlier this month.
The French cabinet will hear the school identification bill on Dec. 9.
See what others are saying: (Aljazeera) (Business Insider) (NBC News)
International
Russia Orders Social Media Sites To Block Calls for Navalny Protests
Published
2 days agoon
January 22, 2021
- Shortly after his arrest on Sunday, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny called for protests to take place on Jan. 23 and was met with a wave of support online.
- In response, the government ordered tech giants like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, and Russian-centric VK to “block all publications with calls to demonstrate on the 23rd.”
- TikTok has already deleted 38% of posts with such calls while VK and YouTube have deleted 50%, and Instagram has removed 17%.
Navalny Calls for Protests
Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny’s return to Russia and subsequent arrest earlier this week has set off a chain of events in the country.
Since his arrest, Navalny has called for protests to occur on Jan. 23. Now, Russian authorities are taking precautions and arresting his allies in an effort to slow down the momentum of the looming demonstrations. Among their many demands are that Navalny be released.
Throughout the week, thousands of posts shared by younger Russians have raged across social media asking that people partake in the protests. The reach of those posts, however, have been curtailed by the government.
Social media tech giants like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, and the Russian-centric VK were ordered by the Russian government to “block all publications with calls to demonstrate on the 23rd.”
Roskomnadzor, the Russian communications watchdog, later stated, “Internet sites will be brought to administrative responsibility in connection with the dissemination of information prohibited by law and aimed at attracting minors to participate in unauthorized mass public events.”
“Participation in such events is in violation of the established procedure, including in a pandemic, and carries risks of harm to life and health,” it added.
Censorship Payoff Unknown
For many of the sites, which are often seen as a way to promote free speech in regimes that are far more restrictive, the order puts them in an awkward position. Still, many have already complied, at least to some extend.
According to Roskomnadzor, Tiktok has deleted 38% of videos calling for minors to attend the protests. VK and YouTube have both deleted 50% of similar posts, while Instagram has removed 17% of posts that violate the regulations.
It’s unclear to what extent this censorship will have on stopping Russians from attending tomorrow’s protests; however, some of the nation’s largest protests in modern history have been organized by Navalny.
See what others are saying: (Moscow Times) (Associated Press) (Reuters)
International
Accusations Against Chinese Actress Shine Light on the Nation’s Surrogacy Laws
Published
3 days agoon
January 21, 2021
- Chinese actress Zheng Shuang is facing major backlash after her former partner, Zhang Heng, accused her of abandoning her two children born through U.S.-based surrogates.
- Beyond public outcry and losing brand deals, Zheng is likely facing legal consequences after a Chinese government agency said that using a legal loophole to obtain a surrogate from abroad was “definitely not innocent.”
- Zheng denies the claims and hasn’t confirmed if the children are actually hers, although she’s listed as their mother on their birth certificates.
- As for the children in question, Zhang has been taking care of them in the U.S.
American-Based Surrogacy Cause Controversy
Chinese social media users have launched into debates surrounding how the rich and elite circumvent domestic laws in order to obtain surrogate services.
The latest controversy is surrounding actress Zheng Shuang. Though she has never confirmed this publicly, Zheng allegedly went to the U.S. with her-now-ex Zhang Heng and had two children with the help of American surrogates. However, on Monday, Zhang accused Zheng of abandoning the children and leaving him to take care of them in the U.S. The couple reportedly broke up before the babies were born due to Zhang’s alleged infidelity.
According to the South China Morning Post, Zhang’s friend released a voice recording on the Chinese platform NetEase Entertainment. In it, Zhang and Zheng are allegedly having a discussion with their parents over what to do with the then-unborn children. Zheng’s father suggested that they abandon the children at the hospital, while Zheng reportedly expressed annoyance that they could not be aborted so late in pregnancy.
Legal Grey Zone Likely Won’t Help
Beyond public outcries, Zheng lost a recent brand deal with Prada that she signed just eight days before the accusations were made. Additionally, other brand partners, such as Aussie, have distanced themselves from the actress. She also faces multiple awards she has won being revoked as well as potential legal consequences.
Currently, surrogacy is illegal in China; however, the laws have a legal grey zone. Technically, providing surrogacy is what is illegal, but obtaining one from abroad is not explicitly mentioned, even if it goes against the spirit of the law.
The Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission of the Communist Party commented on the situation in a Weibo video post, saying that using this legal loophole to get a surrogacy was “definitely not innocent.”
“Surrogacy is banned in China as it uses women’s uteruses as a tool and sells life as a commercial product.,” it continued. “As a Chinese citizen, the act of traveling to the US on a legal loophole is not abiding the law.”
Following the post, companies like Blued, a gay dating app in China, took down sections of their apps that helped users set up services with surrogacy firms overseas.
Surrogacy is a controversial subject in China, with many actors and actresses obtaining them overseas, but many social media users across the country are against the practice. Officially, the government claims that it “overlooks life” and “tramples the bottom line [of human morality].“
Zheng has denied claims that she abandoned any children, and has never confirmed whether or not she actually has any, although she is listed as the mother on the children’s birth certificates.
As for the children in question, even though Zheng’s father suggested abandoning them in the hospital, her ex has been taking care of them in the U.S.
See What Others Are Saying: (South China Morning Post) (Straits Times) (New York Times)
International
American Influencer Kristen Gray To Be Deported From Bali
Published
4 days agoon
January 20, 2021
- In a viral Twitter thread, influencer Kristen Gray encouraged people to move to Bali like she did while promoting her eBook and other resources on how to do so amid COVID-19 restrictions.
- Many criticized her for encouraging an influx of travelers during the pandemic. She also sparked conversations about gentrification and was slammed for falsely characterizing Indonesia as queer-friendly.
- The local government promised to deport her Tuesday, arguing that selling her book and offering paid consultations on traveling to Bali violated the purpose of her visitor stay permit. They also say she was “spreading information that could unsettle the public.”
- “I am not guilty. I have not overstayed my visa. I have not made money in Indonesian rupiah in Indonesia,” Gray told reporters. “I put out a statement about LGBT and I am being deported because of LGBT.”
Kristen Gray Goes Viral
Officials in Indonesia said Tuesday that they will deport Kristen Gray, an American influencer who has caused international outrage in the last week.
Gray moved to Bali with her girlfriend in 2019 with plans to stay for six months. In reality, the couple ended up staying much longer because of the coronavirus pandemic, and in a viral Twitter thread, Gray shared how positive their experience has been.
For anyone curious about the deleted/hidden Bali thread pic.twitter.com/FYA3mRcMNf
— Salt chip (@gastricslut) January 17, 2021
Gray pointed to several benefits of moving to Bali in her posts, like its safety, low cost of living, luxury lifestyle, as well as its queer-friendly and Black communities.
She also encouraged others to make the same move and promoted their $30 eBook “Our Bali Life Is Yours” for tips on how to do it. “We include direct links to our visa agents and how to go about getting to Indonesia during COVID,” she even wrote in one post.
Backlash
The thread sparked outrage for encouraging an influx of travelers to a country that has closed its borders over the worsening pandemic. On top of that, it sparked conversations about the gentrification of neighborhoods there.
Bali is a major tourist destination for Americans, Europeans, and Australians in particular, and like areas all over the world, it has suffered from the loss in visitors this year.
However, many online noted that locals have been steadily priced out of certain areas of the island as foreigners open businesses to cater to tourists. Others argue that poorly regulated development is also destroying industries that Balinese people have historically relied on.
Aside from those criticisms, many people also took issue with Gray characterizing Bali as a queer-friendly when the reality for locals is far different.
“It well may be the case for you. However, please recognize that it is because a) you’re a foreigner and b) you have economic leverage since the Indonesian local community is financially dependent on keeping you happy so they don’t mess with you,” a user named Kai Mata said in a viral TikTok.
“Please realize for the rest of us Indonesians on the island, this is not a queer-friendly place. Our gay communities are often shut down and raided by authorities and Indonesia at large has tried to mandate conversion therapy for us the LGBTQ+ Community.“
For those averse to reading, here is a succinct video regarding this for your heart’s desires. pic.twitter.com/fEgspkHyJY
— Kai Mata🏳️🌈 (@kaimatamusic) January 18, 2021
Government Responds
The local government responded to the public outrage over Gray’s thread Tuesday. In a statement, it said selling her book and also offering paid consultations on traveling to Bali violated the purpose of her visitor stay permit, which was valid until January 24.
Gray was also accused of “spreading information that could unsettle the public” by saying Bali is queer-friendly and suggesting foreigners travel there during the pandemic.
According to Reuters, she was being held at an immigration detention facility Tuesday and was to be deported as soon as a flight was available.
In a brief statement to the Balinese press, Gray defended herself. “I am not guilty. I have not overstayed my visa. I have not made money in Indonesian rupiah in Indonesia. I put out a statement about LGBT and I am being deported because of LGBT,” she explained.
Many of her fans believe her and also argue that she is seeing this level of criticism because she is a Black woman.
See what others are saying: (New York Times) (Reuters) (Vulture)

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