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Tag Archives: Marine Le Pen

The New Yorker on the French Election

07 Sunday May 2017

Posted by michelinewalker in French Election 2017

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Cyber Attack, Emmanuel Macron, Marine Le Pen, President Obama, The European Union, The New Yorker

After Sunday’s victories for Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen, neither of France’s traditional leading parties will have a candidate in a Presidential election for the first time in sixty years. PHOTOGRAPH BY FRANCOIS NASCIMBENI / AFP / GETTY

“The French election is very important to the future of France and the values that we care so much about,” the former President Barack Obama says in a video [at the foot of this post] endorsing the front-runner, Emmanuel Macron. PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY EMMANUEL MACRON / TWITTER

The New Yorker

In its recent issues, The New Yorker has published several articles on the French election. I was busy buying a new apartment and wasn’t as vigilant regarding the future of France and of the European Union as I should have been.

Preface by the author of this post

In this analysis, we must think locally and globally. If Marine Le Pen is elected, we could lose Europe to extremists. We cannot do this as we have to put an end to terrorism. If France elects extremist Marine Le Pen, both France and Europe would live the nightmare created by those who believe that keeping immigrants out, or getting rid of them, will stop terrorism. That is not how it works.

Polarization

Extremism feeds polarization, which is a terrible danger and one that may lead to a high degree of division and, possibly, war. Extremists won the American election. Too many people were of the opinion that forbidding Muslims from entering the United States would keep the United States safe.

An appropriate reading of the words “great again” could be that America will not use the money levied through taxation to serve everyone. Besides, Mr Trump has been acting like an autocrat. The United States is a democracy which is how it is great.

Nepotism

I like Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, but their appointment to the highest level of Mr Trump’s administration is nepotism. More importantly, members of Mr Trump’s own family think he must be watched. Mr Trump cannot control his emotions. Yet, as commander-in-chief, he can push the wrong button. I am quoting President Obama.

A forgotten middle class and poverty

Mr Trump’s great America is a country where the poor and the middle-class support the wealthy and where the poor die in pain because they cannot afford the high premiums demanded by Insurance Companies. The Republicans may destroy Obamacare, the Affordable Health Care.

Can Obama’s Hope Sway the French Election

http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/can-obamas-hope-sway-the-french-election
Alexandra Schwartz

Former American President Barack Obama has endorsed Monsieur Macron’s candidacy. He knows very well that a Le Pen victory is a loss for France, for Europe, and for the world.

In an article published in The New Yorker, Alexandra Schwartz wonders whether President Obama can sway public opinion in France. That is very difficult. However, Barack Obama’s opinion carries considerable weight. Marine Le Pen wishes to “send them home,” which reminds me that Hitler believed killing Europe’s Jews would save Germany. How naïve! When the poor German nation realized that Hitler had a genocide in mind, it was too late. Dissenters had to kneel down and were shot in the back of the neck.

The Future of Europe hinges on a Face-Off in France

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/05/08/the-future-of-europe-hinges-on-a-face-off-in-france?intcid=popular
Lauren Collins

Fortunately, the United States is located on the other side of the Atlantic. The French, however, live in continental Europe and it is easy to peddle fear. Scaring the people into electing Marine Le Pen could lead to the dissolution of the EU. Europeans need the European Union and so does the world. Power has to be distributed. Poor German Chancellor Angela Merkel would have to negotiate Frexit. Poor German Chancellor Angela Merkel would have to negotiate a Frexit!

Marine Le Pen’s Memoir: a Dutiful Daughter’s sanitizing of far-right Politics

http://www.newyorker.com/books/second-read/marine-le-pens-memoir-a-dutiful-daughters-sanitizing-of-far-right-politics?intcid=popular
Moira Weigel

Vive l’Europe! A Macron win would give the E. U. a Life Line

http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/vive-leurope-a-macron-win-would-give-the-e-u-a-lifeline
John Cassidy

Everyday of the Trump Presidency bring another outrage or embarrassment

Below, I have inserted an article and, perhaps, a video by David Remnick of The New Yorker. It is about President Trump. He’s dangerous, but it would be my opinion that Marine Le Pen is more dangerous.

Every day of the Trump Presidency brings another outrage or embarrassment, David Remnick writes:… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…—
The New Yorker (@NewYorker) May 06, 2017

A Cyber Attack

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/3495285/emmanuel-macron-cyber-attack-hacked-emails/

Emmanuel Macron who is expected to be France’s next President was the victim of a cyber attack. What happened during the United States electoral campaign is happening in France. Will hackers sabotage democracy?

I hope sincerely that this will not jeopardize Emmanuel Macron’s candidacy. The attack may be a good sign. Emmanuel Macron was targeted, not Marine Le Pen’s Front national. This may indicate that the hackers believe Monsieur Macron is likely to be the next President of France.

“Ne vous trumpez pas !” Don’t make a mistake.

Emmanuel Macron is leading …

RELATED ARTICLES

  • France on my mind … (3 May 2017)

I will say no more.  It’s late, but it’s not too late.

Love to everyone ♥

http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/can-obamas-hope-sway-the-french-election

President Obama endorses Emmanuel Macron

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/05/04/obama-endorses-macron-in-french-election-taking-a-side-in-europe-again/?utm_term=.72b714095fc3

Eugène Delacroix (wikiart.org)

© Micheline Walker
7 May 2017
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France on my mind…

03 Wednesday May 2017

Posted by michelinewalker in France, French Election 2017, Terrorism

≈ 23 Comments

Tags

Brexit, Extremism is not a choice, French election, Marine Le Pen, terrorism, US election

Eugène_Delacroix_-_Le_28_Juillet._La_Liberté_guidant_le_peuple

La Liberté guidant le peuple, Eugène Delacroix, 1830 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Above is Eugène Delacroix‘ Liberty leading the people. Eugène Delacroix is associated with Romanticism. He is, almost undoubtedly, the son of Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, a brilliant aristocrat who survived the French Revolution, was Napoléon’s second-in-command, orchestrated his defeat at Waterloo, and fared well under Louis XVIII, the King of France from 1815 until 1830. 

Sunday, April 23rd and in its last week of campaigning the contest is a toss-up. The race is coming down to four candidates – the far-right Marine Le Pen [Front National], the independent Emmanuel Macron, the centre-right François Fillon and the left-leaning Jean-Luc Mélenchon who has mounted a late-stage comeback to pull within striking distance of the other three.
Análises & Previsões – Blogs de Traders

Le Pen reinforced: Nicolas Dupont-Aignan

As you have just read, last Sunday, it seemed that independent Emmanuel Macron would be the next President of France. Matters have changed. On Friday, 28 April 2017, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, the President of far-right party Debout la France (Stand up France) reached an accord de gouvernement with Madame Le Pen. (See Le Monde.) Members of Madame Le Pen’s Front national could therefore be elected into office. My poor “douce France” (La Chanson de Roland)!

Members of Marine Le Pen’s Front national may have influenced the results of the Brexit referendum, held on 23 June 2016. The Brexit referendum did not indicate a clear willingness among Britons to sever their ties with the European Union. For all practical purposes, half of Britons voted in favour of leaving the EU, and the other half opposed a separation. The results were too close to be acceptable.

We, Canadians, are veterans in the murky territory of referendums. We’ve experienced a 49% versus 51% “victory.” We have therefore eliminated 50% referendums through the Clarity Act. Such 50% referendums show division and in the case of Brexit, a few voters feared the Migrants. That decision had to be “walked back.”

Since migrants began flooding Europe, nativists, i.e. the extreme right, have been given a voice. It is a repli sur soi. In other words, a number of Britons went into fetal position. And the United States elected Donald J. Trump. Britain is the former and foremost colonial power and the United States has welcomed several generations of immigrants from all over the world. It was a symbol of freedom.

At any rate, last Sunday, it seemed that independent Emmanuel Macron would be the next President of France. As you probably know, on Friday, 28 April 2017, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, the President of far-right party Debout la France (Stand up France) reached an accord de gouvernement with Madame Le Pen, the leader of the Front national. (See Le Monde.) This partnership could result in a victory for Marine Le Pen’s Front national, and we could expect a purge, the return of the death penalty, no tolerance of “otherness.” In short, the Age of Enlightenment would seem an error, or a movement, a mere movement. Voltaire, Rousseau, Diderot, etc. never envisaged 1793, the “populist” Reign of Terror.

Although Madame Le Pen has avoided using the word Frexit recently, Frexit is on her agenda. Brexit was harmful, but Frexit could deal a death-blow to the European Union. Together, European nations are a force. If Frexit occurs, the European Union may be irreversibly weakened and peace in the world threatened. A United Europe is one of the conditions of global peace.

It other words, we cannot allow ISIL to rule the world. A victory based on a fear of terrorism would not be a victory. On the contrary, it would empower extremists, and extremism is always a mistake. One chooses a middle path, Molière’s “modération.”

Marine Le Pen came to Quebec thinking she would have an audience. Not at all! The Québécois birthrate is so low that we need immigrants and they are Canadians as soon as they arrive. The Quebec shooter (29 January 2017) was an admirer of Madame Le Pen and Donald Trump, the newly inaugurated President of the United States. The cost of housing is very high in Canada, but, if Quebec builds affordable homes and I have anything to do with the process, these homes will be for everyone.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/quebec-city-mosque-shooting-what-we-know-so-far/article33826078/

At this point, Marine Le Pen has a chance of being elected to the presidency of France. She’s clever. People may believe she will protect them from terrorist attacks. No! Kindness, acceptance, humility and a smile go a very long way. I’ve inserted an Avaaz video. One has to click on Facebook if need be.

Love to everyone ♥

If necessary, please click on Watch on Facebook ↓ to see the video.

800px-Le_Départ_des_Volontaires_(La_Marseillaise)_par_Rude,_Arc_de_Triomphe_Etoile_Paris

The Marseillais volunteers departing, sculpted on the Arc de Triomphe (Wikipedia)

Hector Berlioz‘ la Marseillaise (Rouget de Lisle)

800px-Pils_-_Rouget_de_Lisle_chantant_la_Marseillaise

Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle sings la Marseillaise for the first time by Isidore Pils (1813-1875) (Wikipedia)

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3 May 2017
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Algeria: second-class citizens

29 Friday Jul 2016

Posted by michelinewalker in Middle East, Migrant Crisis, Terrorism

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Évian Accords, De Gaulle, Genocide, Harkis, Marine Le Pen, Second-class citizens, The Algerian Civil War, The Algerian War, The Code of the Indiginate, The Crémieux Decree

800px-La_prise_de_Constantine_1837_par_Horace_Vernet

La Prise de Constantine, 1837, Horace Vernet (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Code de l’indigénat: Algerian Muslims

  • Tocqueville’s Report (1847)
  • the Code of the Indiginates (Indigenous; 1887
  • two classes

The Crémieux decree had an adverse effect on the inhabitants of Algeria. Muslims could apply for French citizenship, but most of these applications were rejected. A previous Code de l’indigénat was implemented in Algeria on 14 July 1865, but the naturalization regime in French Algeria was confirmed in the Code de l’indigénat, Decree 137, in 1887, an official date. In 1887, it applied to all native citizens of French colonies.(See Indigénat, Wikipedia.)  One wonders. What had happened to Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité? A text authored by Alexis de Tocqueville, dated 1841, may have influenced the French government. In 1841, Alexis  s reported that He reported that Algeria’s Muslims were cruel, as cruel as the Turks, a view that may have spread, except that he looked upon the French as the greater barbarians. (See French Algeria, Wikipedia)

Tocqueville submitted a Report FR, dated 24 May 1847. This text is online. It was posted by Simon Pierre in Culture d’Islam (see Sources and Resources). In Algeria, a first Code de l’indigénat went into effect in 1865, before the disastrous Franco-Prussian War.

The Code de l’indigénat was equally disastrous as it created a lower class in French Algeria. Sephardi Jews were model citizens, but not in a million years should France have declared Muslim Algerians, native Algerians, second-class citizens. This was a prelude to war, the War of Independence. If native Algerians were cruel, the Code de l’indigénat, could only result in resentment and greater cruelty. However, a certain group, called évolué (evolved) were Europeanised because of education and assimilation. They were an élite. The aim of French colonialism was assimilation.

Prise de la Smalah d’Abd el-Kader, 1843, Horace Vernet

Évian Accords

A cease-fire leading to independence

Assassination attempt at Clamart, France

Mistakes were made in Algeria, but de Gaulle ruled in favour of self-determination. When he first went to Algeria, French Algerians thought de Gaulle would save them. Algeria was part of France. His first speech was misleading. He seemed to favour the French colonists. However, Charles de Gaulle changed his mind. It is as though he suddenly realized that colonialism was a thing of the past, not to say a mistake, but no one expected de Gaulle would act as he did.

The Évian Accords are the context within which a cease-fire was declared. It took place on 18 March 1962 and, in a referendum held on 8 April 1962. The French approved self-determination, or the Évian Accords, with almost 91% in favour. On 1 July 1962, a second referendum took place in Algeria, with nearly everyone approving. As I wrote in an earlier post, Algeria was pronounced independent on 3 July 1962 and celebrates its independence on 5 July, Algeria’s National Day.

However, the French Algerians, the Pieds-Noirs, loved their homes, and Algeria was part of France. I doubt that French Algerians had the time to prepare. We saw that the Organisation de l’armée secrète (OAS) fought de Gaulle. I have also referred to assassination attempts. There were approximately ten, but the attentat most people remember took place on 22 August 1962, at Clamart, France. Le grand (tall) Charles claimed that his Citroën DS 19 had saved his life. Bullets from machine guns hit the car, but de Gaulle and his wife Yvonne were not hurt.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/citroen-helps-de-gaulle-survive-assassination-attempt

The Évian Accords are the context within which a cease-fire was declared. It took place on 18 March 1962 and, in a referendum held on 8 April 1962. The French approved self-determination, or the Évian Accords, with almost 91% in favour. On 1 July 1962, a second referendum took place in Algeria, with nearly everyone approving. As I wrote in an earlier post, Algeria was pronounced independent on 3 July 1962 and celebrates its independence on 5 July, Algeria’s National Day.

However, the French Algerians, the Pieds-Noirs, loved their homes, and Algeria was part of France. I doubt that French Algerians had the time to prepare. We saw that the Organisation de l’armée secrète (OAS) fought de Gaulle. I have also referred to assassination attempts. There were approximately ten, but the attentat most people remember took place on 22 August 1962, at Clamart, France. Le grand (tall) Charles claimed that his Citroën DS 19 had saved his life. Bullets from machine guns hit the car, but de Gaulle and his wife Yvonne were not hurt.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/citroen-helps-de-gaulle-survive-assassination-attempt

The Crémieux Decree, 1870

  • France and Sephardi Jews
  • France and native Algerians
  • Algerian Islamism

On 24 October 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War, the Crémieux decree granted  French citizenship to 35 thousand Sephardi Jews living in French Algeria. The decree was named after French-Jewish lawyer and Minister of Justice Adolphe Crémieux. The Crémieux decree was abolished by the Vichy government from 1940 to 1943 but it benefited Algerian Jews when Algeria won its independence. They were French citizens and most chose to move to France. (See Crémieux Decree, Wikipedia.) However, initially, Sephardi Jews hesitated to accept double citizenship. They lived in a Muslim country and feared being accused of apostasy, but native Algerians were, as Ahmed Ben Bella described himself, Islamist of a “mild and peace-loving flavour.”

During the Algerian Civil War (1992-2002), which began when the Islamic Salvation Front appeared to be winning an election causing the election to be cancelled, the government believed it had disabled the Islamic movement, but armed groups emerged to fight jihad. (See Algerian Civil War, Wikipedia.) 

In 2003, Ben Bella was elected President of the International Campaign Against Aggression on Iraq. At its Cairo Anti-war Conference,“[h]e described the militant voice rising in the Islamic world as having developed from an incorrect and faulty interpretation of Islam (my bold characters).” (See Ahmed Ben Bella, Wikipedia.) It seems Ben Bella was a moderate Muslim. Islam was his faith. I should also note that Algeria did not participate in the Arab Spring (2010).

The Code de l’indigénat: Algerian Muslims

  • Tocqueville’s Report (1847)
  • the Code of the Indiginates (Indigenous; 1887
  • two classes

The Crémieux decree had an adverse effect on the inhabitants of Algeria. Muslims could apply for French citizenship, but most of these applications were rejected. A previous Code de l’indigénat was implemented in Algeria on 14 July 1865, but the naturalization regime in French Algeria was confirmed in the Code de l’indigénat, Decree 137, in 1887, an official date. In 1887, it applied to all native citizens of French colonies.(See Indigénat, Wikipedia.)  One wonders. What had happened to Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité? A text authored by Alexis de Tocqueville, dated 1841, may have influenced the French government. In 1841, Alexis  s reported that He reported that Algeria’s Muslims were cruel, as cruel as the Turks, a view that may have spread, except that he looked upon the French as the greater barbarians. (See French Algeria, Wikipedia)

Tocqueville submitted a Report FR, dated 24 May 1847. This text is online. It was posted by Simon Pierre in Culture d’Islam (see Sources and Resources). In Algeria, a first Code de l’indigénat went into effect in 1865, before the disastrous Franco-Prussian War.

The Code de l’indigénat was equally disastrous as it created a lower class in French Algeria. Sephardi Jews were model citizens, but not in a million years should France have declared Muslim Algerians, native Algerians, second-class citizens. This was a prelude to war, the War of Independence. If native Algerians were cruel, the Code de l’indigénat, could only result in resentment and greater cruelty. However, a certain group, called évolué (evolved) were Europeanised as a result of education and assimilation. They were an élite. The aim of French colonialism was assimilation.

Prise_de_la_smalah_d_Abd-El-Kader_a_Taguin_16_mai_1843_Horace_Vernet (1)

Prise de la Smalah d’Abd el-Kader, 1843, Horace Vernet

Évian Accords

A cease-fire leading to independence

Assassination attempt at Clamart, France

Mistakes were made in Algeria, but de Gaulle ruled in favour of self-determination. When he first went to Algeria, French Algerians thought de Gaulle would save them. Algeria was part of France. His first speech was misleading. He seemed to favour the French colonists. However, Charles de Gaulle changed his mind. It is as though he suddenly realized that colonialism was a thing of the past, not to say a mistake, but no one expected de Gaulle would act as he did.

The Évian Accords are the context within which a cease-fire was declared. It took place on 18 March 1962 and, in a referendum held on 8 April 1962. The French approved self-determination, or the Évian Accords, with almost 91% in favour. On 1 July 1962, a second referendum took place in Algeria, with nearly everyone approving. As I wrote in an earlier post, Algeria was pronounced independent on 3 July 1962 and celebrates its independence on 5 July, Algeria’s National Day.

However, the French Algerians, the Pieds-Noirs, loved their homes, and Algeria was part of France. I doubt that French Algerians had the time to prepare. We saw that the Organisation de l’armée secrète (OAS) fought de Gaulle. I have also referred to assassination attempts. There were approximately ten, but the attentat most people remember took place on 22 August 1962, at Clamart, France. Le grand (tall) Charles claimed that his Citroën DS 19 had saved his life. Bullets from machine guns hit the car, but de Gaulle and his wife Yvonne were not hurt.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/citroen-helps-de-gaulle-survive-assassination-attempt

Second-Class Citizens

When it became independent, Algeria had been under foreign control for more than a thousand years[1] and the Code de l’indigénat had made Muslim Algerians second-class citizens in their own country (territory). Such classification is humiliating, and it lingers. The Algerian War liberated the mostly Muslim Algerians, but did anyone apologize for the Code de l’indigénat, so it coud be put to rest. Muslims may have forgotten, but not necessarily the French. If elected to the presidency of France in 2017, Marine Le Pen will not accept immigrants, which probably means that she will not let Muslims enter the country. On 14 May 2012, under Nicolas Sarkozy, France recognized its “historical responsibility” for leaving its Harkis behind.[2] (See Harki, Wikipedia.)

Again, one wonders. What does Marine Le Pen plan to do with Muslims who have lived in France for decades? The Nice attack was a victory, albeit gruesome, for France’s Front National because Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel was a Tunisian and a Muslim. Marine Le Pen can use the attack as “proof” that Muslims are “cruel.” Doesn’t cruelty also reside in rejecting Muslim migrants. Being rejected could lead to despair and it could also lead to radicalization.

Muslims should not be treated as second-class citizens. They are victims and this cannot be said often enough. If Europe is too crowded to welcome migrants and Donald Trump locks them out of the United States, forgetting that the United States invaded Iraq in 2003 and did so illegally and with the help of Tony Blair, what will happen? The US may have an “historical responsibility.” It seems everyone has les mains sales (dirty hands, the title of a play by Jean-Paul Sartre).

Again, one wonders. What does Marine Le Pen plan to do with Muslims who have lived in France for decades? The Nice attack was a victory, albeit gruesome, for France’s Front National because Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel was a Tunisian and a Muslim. Marine Le Pen can use the attack as “proof” that Muslims are “cruel.” Doesn’t cruelty also reside in rejecting Muslim migrants. Being rejected could lead to despair and it could also lead to radicalization.

Muslims should not be treated as second-class citizens. They are victims and this cannot be said often enough. If Europe is too crowded to welcome migrants and Donald Trump locks them out of the United States, forgetting that the United States invaded Iraq in 2003 and did so illegally and with the help of Tony Blair, what will happen? The US may have an “historical responsibility.” It seems everyone has les mains sales (dirty hands, the title of a play by Jean-Paul Sartre).

Yet, the world must demand that the countries of the Middle East end the violence perpetrated by ISIL and end the Syrian Civil War, because both force Syrians to leave their country. I cannot think of another option. Moreover, all Middle East leaders should respect human rights (i.e. no torture, etc.) including King Salman of Saudi Arabia. Migrants are fleeing ISIL and autocrats, but Europe hesitates to take them in as refugees, and Islamophobia is spreading rapidly. It is well-known that, as President of the United States, Donald Trump will not allow Muslims to enter the United States. Does he not know the facts?

At any rate, the crisis in the Middle East is, to a significant extent, retaliation, and retaliation is permanent war. Since 2011, the year Bashar al-Assad did not listen to protesters, 250,000 Muslims have died and 11 million have fled their homes. They need help. If they are denied a refuge, they too could resort to violence. Or, there could be yet another genocide. We must put on the emergency brake. Muslims are not second-class citizens.

Putting on the Emergency Brake

I read yesterday that if Theresa May puts on the emergency brake (my bold characters), she would come back to Britain, a hero.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/letters/brexit-eu-referendum-theresa-may-letters-prime-minister-return-from-europe-heros-welcome-a7140806.html

Well, it seems that putting on the emergency brake is the order of the day. Bashar al-Assad should perhaps give it a thought…

RELATED ARTICLES

  • The Algerian War: the Aftermath (25 July 2016)
  • France in North Africa (21 July 2016)
  • Nice: a Carnage and Nativism (18 July 2016)

Sources and Resources

  • The Algerian War of Independence: Lessons for Today, 2015, Quintus Curtius
  • Algeria, a Human Rights Crisis is an Internet Archive publication
  • Barbarie française, Émile Pouget, 1890, Wikisource FR
  • Culture d’Islam, Aux Sources de l’Histoire, 1847 Alexis de Tocqueville FR
    (presented by Simon Pierre)
  • Les Grandes Heures de l’Algérie (Hérodote.net) FR

Love to everyone.♥
____________________

[1] Perhaps 2 thousand years. (Hérodote.net)

[2] De Gaulle was criticized for leaving the Harkis behind. The Harkis served during the Franco-Prussian War (1870), the two World Wars, the war in Indochine (Vietnam), and the Algerian War of Independence.

Horace Vernet Painter

Emile_Jean_Horace_Vernet_002

Horace Vernet, self-portrait (Photo credit : Wikipedia)

© Micheline Walker
29 July 2016
WordPress

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France in North Africa

21 Thursday Jul 2016

Posted by michelinewalker in Canada, France, Terrorism

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Algeria, Anne-Marie Dussault, Canada's Syrian refugees, Marine Le Pen, North Africa, Pieds-Noirs, terrorism, Tunisia

 

556965843_082428e029

Le Vendeur de peau, Jean-Léon Gérôme (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I edited parts of the article I posted on 18 July and did so a few hours after it was posted. I had sensed a connection between the result of the Brexit referendum and the 2016 Nice attack, but also felt there was a difference. The connection was the “send them back” printed on the shirts of certain British pro-leave voters. France’s Front National‘s is an anti-immigration political party. Britain does not have an anti-immigration or nativist political party, in which it differs from France. However, some leave voters thought, or we led to think, that leaving the European Union meant excluding immigrants.

The Runners of the Pasha, Jean-Léon Gérôme (New York Historical Society
The Runners of the Pasha, Jean-Léon Gérôme (New York Historical Society
Arnaut with two whippet dogs, Jean-Léon Gérôme (Pinterest)
Arnaut with two whippet dogs, Jean-Léon Gérôme (Pinterest)

French colonialism

One may wonder why France has been targeted by terrorists three times in the last two years:

  • Charlie Hebdo (15 Janvier 2015),
  • the Bataclan (13 November 2015),
  • and the Nice attack (14 July 2016).

These attacks cannot be explained in any satisfactory manner. They are barbaric and senseless. Let’s give love a chance.

However, these attacks may be associated with France’s history as a colonial power. It was in North Africa, Algeria especially. Algiers was captured in 1830, Tunisia was conquered in 1881, and Morocco was a French protectorate from 1912 to 1950.

A long time ago, these countries were inhabited by Berbers. However, Algeria fell to the Arabs (7th century CE) and then to the Ottoman Empire (1560-1830), often referred to as the Turkish Empire. The French captured Algiers in 1830 and walked out of Algeria under Charles de Gaulle. On 18 March 1962, de Gaulle declared the cease-fire that ended the Algerian War (1954-1962). Below is a video of his speech.

http://fresques.ina.fr/de-gaulle/fiche-media/Gaulle00076/declaration-du-18-mars-1962-cessez-le-feu-en-algerie.html FR

However, the violence continued after the cease-fire. Approximately 800,000 Pieds-Noirs had to flee to France. Pieds-Noirs (literally black feet) is the name given French settlers in North Africa. They had lived in Algeria for a long time, several generations. Moreover, many Algerians had been educated in France and identified with France. (See Algerian War, Wikipedia.)

France remained a target. You may remember Air France Flight 8969. The anti-terror unit of the National Gendarmerie killed all four hijackers without further loss of life among passengers and the plane’s crew. Three passengers had been killed by the hijackers. France has been attacked several times. (See List of Terrorist Incidents in France, Wikipedia.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_8969

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Gendarmerie

There are Berbers to this day in North Africa, in the Atlas Mountains in particular, but the population of Algeria was Arabised and so was, to a greater or lesser extent, the population of Tunisia and, less so, the population of Morocco. However, North-African terrorists are Arabised Berbers. The Arab Spring began in Tunisia, on 18 December 2010.

Although ISIL has claimed responsibility for the 2016 Nice attack, the attacker, Mohamed Lahouaief-Bouhlel, lived in France, but was born in Tunisia. The Kouachi brothers (Charlie Hebdo, January 2015) were born in Paris of Algerian parents, but they were radicalized in the Middle East. In France, colonialism and terrorism may therefore be related.

http://www.euronews.com/2016/07/16/isil-claims-responsibility-for-nice-truck-attack-which-killed-at-least-84-people-during-bastille-day-celebrations-amaq-news-agency

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3697480/Smiling-just-hours-attack-Bastille-Day-killer-takes-SELFIE-terror-truck-used-murder-84.html

Therefore, when members of the Front National claim that France cannot be multicultural, i.e. nativism, they are expressing their determination not to admit Muslim immigrants into France. At the moment Muslim migrants are flooding Europe. Therefore, Muslims are the immigrants. ISIL and the Syrian Civil War have wreaked havoc on the Middle East and these conflicts are taking a toll on Europe.

The result of the Brexit referendum may reflect the nativism advocated by the Front National. 

Marine Le Pen in Quebec

Marine Le Pen visited Quebec recently. A large number of Canadians are refugees or the descendants of refugees, and many are immigrants or the descendants of immigrants. Consequently, although it can only welcome a limited number of Syrian refugees, 25 thousand, the majority of Canadians do not see Syrian refugees as potential terrorists or as persons who will drain Canada’s social programmes. That has not been the Canadian experience so far.

Such is not Marine Le Pen’s opinion. She believes immigrants are impoverishing France and, in an interview with Ici Radio-Canada‘s Anne-Marie Dussault, Madame Le Pen stated that terrorists had entered France with the flow of migrants. She was warning Canadians.

http://ici.radio-canada.ca/audio-video/media-7464448/entrevue-danne-marie-dussault-avec-marine-le-pen-a-2460 FR

Canadian civil servants flew to Jordan to screen the Syrians who have entered my country and it picked them up in refugee camps. In fact, Quebec is attempting to transform its immigrants into French-speaking Québécois. It may or may not work, but meanwhile Quebec is building bridges.

Conclusion

France has been attacked because of its former colonial empire, which included Indochine (Vietnam). So it has trained personnel to deal with crisis, its Gendarmerie’s Intervention and crisis management unit (GIGN). It is its SWAT team. France is otherwise protected, but terrorist attacks are difficult to prevent. Who would have thought that someone would rent a 19-tonne truck and drive it through a crowd watching a fireworks display?

This act of hate did however bring grist to Marine Le Pen’s mill. I listened to several interviews last weekend. Members of the Front National seemed disturbingly pleased to add this grim trophy to their collection.

Marine Le Pen could be the next President of France.

Love to everyone. ♥

RELATED ARTICLE

Nice: a Carnage and Nativism

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© Micheline Walker
21 July 2016
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Nice: a Carnage and Nativism

18 Monday Jul 2016

Posted by michelinewalker in France, Middle East, Terrorism

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Front national, Islamic fundamentalism, Marine Le Pen, Nativism, Safety measures, terrorism

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People gather in front of a memorial on the Promenade des Anglais for the victims of the Bastille Day attack. Photograph: Ian Langsdon/EPA

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/15/bastille-day-attack-motive-investigation-nice-victims

Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel CREDIT: MATRIXPICTURES.CO.UK

Mohamed Lahouij Bouhlel CREDIT: MATRIXPICTURES.CO.UK

It happened again. France has been attacked.

On Bastille Day, 14 July 2016, France’s National Day, Mohamed Lajouif Bouhlel, who was born in Tunisia, but emigrated to France, drove a rented 19-ton lorry through a crowd watching a fireworks innocent display along the Promenade des Anglais. His victims could not flee easily, so as the truck careened down its path, it killed l84 innocent individuals and wounded 102. Many of the wounded have been released from hospital, but others were critically injured. France has been attacked by terrorists associated with Isil. As for the Nice killer, who was shot by police, he was a Muslim who may (or may not) have been radicalized.

The Front National: nativism

A member of the Front National, a nativist party, stated that multiculturalism could not work in France. The French had to be among the French. I was reminded of the Brexit referendum which was interpreted by many as a vote that would allow Britain “to send them back.” Britons were best left among themselves.

Marine Le Pen went further. She used the word “war.” I doubt that she meant war as in World War II. She was probably referring to manners in which her party, the Front National would eradicate “the fundamentalist Islamic scourge (l’islamisme radical).”

https://www.google.ca/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=marine+le+pen&tbm=nws

War is a word one should avoid. George W Bush used it after the 9/11 attacks on the United States. Fighting terrorism was essential but invading Iraq was war. It is now believe that the 2000s wars in the Middle East were instigated by then British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The wars waged in the 2000s were renamed wars against terrorism, but they were wars. These wars do not seem to have done anyone any good.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/07/15/who-is-the-nice-terror-attacker-everything-we-know-so-far/

Marine Le Pen

Marine Le Pen, the president of the Front National, stated the following:

La guerre contre le fléau du fondamentalisme islamiste n’a pas commencé, il est urgent maintenant de la déclarer. Nous l’engagerons vraiment en mettant en place une série de mesures que j’ai déjà détaillées et sur lesquelles j’aurai l’occasion de revenir, qui visent à s’attaquer à la source du phénomène.

[The war against the fundamentalist Islamic scourge has not begun. Declaring it is urgent. We will engage into war using measures I have already mentioned in details but to which I will have the opportunity to return. They aim at the source of this phenomenon.]

A la sidération et la compassion doivent désormais s’ajouter l’action, les nécessaires mesures de prévention et de répression, et la détermination la plus totale à éradiquer le fléau du fondamentalisme islamiste. C’est aujourd’hui la volonté profonde du peuple meurtri de France, je mettrai toute mon énergie à ce qu’elle soit entendue et les combats enfin menés.

[To shock and compassion, we must add action: measures to prevent and to repress, and the most total determination to eradicate the fundamentalist Islamic scourge. Today such is the profound will of the bruised people of France. I will devote my entire energy to ensuring that France is heard and the combats undertaken.]

Please click on the link below:

Réaction de Marine Le Pen à l’attentat de Nice

In Le Figaro provides the list of measures Marine Le Pen advocates: greater authority on the part of nations, the reinstatement of military service, the creation of a national guard to replace the current “Opération Sentinelle,” greater vigilance at borders, more weapons, the creation of a French agency fighting terrorism, the reinstatement of “renseignement [information] de proximité.”

Parmi les moyens évoqués, elle a plaidé pour l’affirmation de l’autorité de l’État, la restauration progressive du service militaire, la création d’une garde nationale pour «remplacer le dispositif sentinelle », l’augmentation des moyens militaires à 2% du PIB avec une évolution à 3%, le contrôle des frontières, la mise en place d’une agence française de lutte contre le terrorisme et le rétablissement du renseignement de proximité.

http://www.lefigaro.fr/politique/2016/07/16/01002-20160716ARTFIG00115-attentat-de-nice-marine-le-pen-denonce-la-responsabilite-du-gouvernement.php

Madame Le Pen is suggesting reinforced security on the part of France. Safety measures are indeed necessary. France has been attacked three times. But Isil is not Islam and it has not been established that the killer was radicalized. France’s Front National “hailed” the Brexit results which it may have misinterpreted. Some leave voters were misled by the campaign of  politicians who put into their service nativistic ideology and rhetoric. But the word nativism cannot be used to describe the majority of Britons, but members of the Front National advocate nativism.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/24/european-far-right-hails-britains-brexit-vote-marine-le-pen

But the problem is rooted elsewhere. Tunisia was a French colony. How can France send back those it colonized. As for the migrants, they are the homeless victims of Isil and autocratic leaders who are killing their own people. Syria’s Bashar al-Assad stands accused of genocide.

As I wrote in a recent post, we cannot roll back history, but there were and there are consequences to colonialism. There was a time when the sun never set on the British Empire and a time when the world spoke French.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/8697612/When-The-World-Spoke-French-by-Marc-Fumaroli-review.html

—ooo—

I grieve for the families who have lost a husband, a wife, a sister, a brother, a child, or other relatives. And I grieve for their friends.

This post has been rewritten. As previously worded, it was a slight distortion of my own views. I apologize.

Love to everyone. ♥

Frederick Delius – Over the Hills and Far Away – YouTube
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© Micheline Walker
18 July 2016
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