We all make mistakes and everyone deserves a second chance but sometimes, people need to take responsibility for their actions, especially when said actions did or could impact the greater public. I’m with the British public and anyone opposed to Shamima Begum’s return to Britain after her stint with ISIS. Granted, she was only 15 when she run away from home to join the caliphate but still, that’s not something your typical teen would do. She made a conscious decision and must live with the consequences. The only reason she wants to return to the so-called home she fled in 2015 is because ISIS is cornered. She’s unapologetic and doesn’t regret her decision to join the group by marrying one of the fighters with whom she has had three children, two of whom died, sadly. It’s the innocent children I feel bad for because they didn’t choose any of this. Too bad we can’t choose our parents! If Begum’s surviving child does make it out alive, he’ll have to deal with the “sins” of his parents and no child deserves that. She says she wants to raise her son in peaceful and secure Britain. The irony, given the terror and destruction ISIS fighters have inflicted on innocent victims including women and children! She says her experiences in Syria have made her stronger and tougher. Well then, why not just over there? Seems like a lovely place! I feel like this is a typical case of not knowing what you’ve got till it’s gone. Thousands are drowning in the Mediterranean trying to get to Europe yet this girl who once lived a comfortable life decided to throw it all away! She could easily have finished school, got a job, started a family and had a nice quiet life. Instead, she’s been stripped of her citizenship and may never get to enjoy the freedoms and safe environment she took for granted. She doesn’t do herself any favours with revelations like being inspired by those chilling ISIS beheading videos which many of us still have nightmares over. I don’t know if she killed anyone but the fact that she only “fled” one of the last ISIS-controlled enclaves only recently speaks volumes. She wants the public’s sympathy “after everything she’s been through.” This is the same girl who ignored her parents’ pleas to return home. My sympathy is reserved for cases like the Chibok Girls and other kids abducted by Jihadist groups like Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab, and forced to commit atrocities. Begum flew all the way from Britain to become an ISIS Bride. My advice to her would be to stop giving interviews because the more she speaks, the more she alienates and opens herself up to criticism. Guess it’s too late!
