National identity debates in France, started with the Minister of Immigration, Integration, National Identity and Solidary, Eric Besson, has been gaining momentum as time passes. As it is remembered, the remarks of the Minister Besson during an interview in channel TF1-LCI at the last days of October, became the first signs of the crisis. (Click-1) At the interview, Eric Besson argued that the burqa, which the Muslim women wear as a casual dress, was a threat to the national culture and in clash with the French identity. Eric Bessen, who mentioned that the young should sing the national anthem of France, Marseillaise, at least for once in a year, emphasized that France gave them an “opportunity”. These remarks of Eric Besson were highly criticized especially by the liberals. The liberals, indicating that the identity soup is wanted to be brought on the agenda of France, argued that the Muslims are wanted to be stigmatized through the symbols like the burqa.
While fading away as time passed, the identity crisis became one of the current issues in France again with the Swiss minaret crisis. The Elysee Palace supported the ban and at a meeting with the officials of the UMP the President of France Nicolas Sarkozy, said that he could understand the anxieties of the Swiss who voted for the minaret ban. (Click-2) Some French themselves also react against the attitudes of the French government. A group of world-famous intellectuals came together under the leadership of Philosopher Etienne Balibar, Sociologist Luc Boltanski, Anthropologist François Héritier, Gérard Noiriel, Tzvetan Todorov, and Patrick Weil, launched a petition campaign in order to disassemble the Ministry of National Identity. This is not merely a reaction of a group of intellectuals. The prudent people in France regardless of their origins and their support of a political party, could realize that this debate is a sinister plan and these people react against this.
It is not possible to explain the identity crisis and debate in France only on the basis of “national identity”. The debates can be seen both as an investment of the Union for Popular Movement for the coming election and as a means of power conflict in France itself.
While the internal feud has been going without slowing down, as it is remembered the French courts concluded the case of Angola for the illicit arms sale which is also known as the “Angolagate” investigation in the public opinion as of October 29, 2009. (Click-3) In this case, the President of Angola Eduardo dos Santos was accused of having get a commission from the arms dealer at $790-million arms sale by using the authority of some French politicians while he was fighting with the Unita rebels between 1993 and 1998. Among the prominent French politicians Charles Pasqua, who was the ex-interior minister and who is now a senator, was also accused of having get a commission from the arms dealer and was sentenced to three year prison term (and two year of it was deferred adjudication). The court was also sentenced the son of ex-president François Mitterrand, Jean-Christophe Mitterrand while he was working as his father’s consultant of Africa, for his having get $2-million commission from the illicit arms sale, to two year deferred adjudication and imposed a fine of 375-thousand euro. On the other hand, the ex-president Villepin was condemned of the Clearstream case. Dominique de Villepin, accused of conspiring against the president Nicolas Sarkozy before the elections, was sentenced to 18-month deferred adjudication and imposed a fine of 45-thousand euro. This case strengthens the positions of the anti-Sarkozians in the UMP. And the political power aims to keep the power conflicts with the identity debate out of the agenda.
And another reason for the remarks of Sarkozy and the UMP on the identity crisis is the results of the poll carried out by the “opinonway” company under the authority of the Le Figaro and LCI Tv. (Click-4) At this poll, they asked the question of “If there were an election on the following Sunday, who would you vote for?” According to the votes based on the replies, the UMP (Union for a Popular Movement-Nicolas Sarkozy) with the rate of %30, the Socialist Party-Martine Aubry with the rate of %21, the Greens with the rate of %15, and the Front National with the rate of %9 caught the attention. While the current ruling political party (the UM) with the rate of %2 and the Greens with the rate of %1 are seen to lose power, the Socialist Party with the rate of %2 and the Front National with the rate of %3 gain power. Because of losing power, the ruling political party is seen to be using extreme right jargon in its remarks recently. And as a result of being successful as the opposing party, the Socialist Party has achieved to rise its vote ratio in the amount of %2. In the following days, it is very probable that the ruling party will take the roles of the extreme right. It should be expected that the ruling party will raise their voice more on the refugee, identity debate, and Turkey’s membership to the EU issues which are appealing to the extreme right voters.
Cemil Doğaç İpek, Asistant