Le point de vue du président du LYMEC sur la campagne électorale Française
I believe that those who tried to present us Sarkozy –the apparently favourite candidate- and Royal –the candidate of the socialist party- as the renewal force of French politics and its political life are far from reality. Sarkozy and Royal represent the most cruel face of the decadence of the Vth French Republic. They represent the other side of Chirac’s coin. Undoubtedly the dress has changed with some new textiles and new colours, but the background is the same:
• the chauviniste arrogance and nationalist rhetorics of Chirac have been inherited by Sarkozy who did not surprise us when he proposed the establishment of a new Ministry of Education and National Identity or when he stands for the classical UMP position in favour of protecting the French economy from the globalised wild world.
• On the other hand, Royal has also inherited the most ultra-social and anti-liberal façade of Jacques Chirac by proposing a famous set of one hundred proposals that increases social expenditure and bureaucracy, public debt and social protectionism and that even most of the communist parties around Europe would not dare to propose at present.
Sarkozy has built a true populist and neocon profile as a desperate attempt to make a clear difference with his predecessor Chirac. From this perspective he went too far. Royal has built no profile whatsoever because she has demonstrated to be weak towards her party and towards those who have slightly different opinions, even if these are from the same party. She has been forced and shaped by her own party to change opinions several times on the same subject. She went too close.
What is happening then? In my humble opinion as foreign observer the problem resides on the reluctance of French citizens to accept the current French political system. As I have said, both Sarkozy and Royal are products of the decadence which has pushed France into this crisis of identity and confidence. It is not possible for France to overcome this period without someone new and different who is able to release France’s potential in the globalisation process without any drastic break, and someone who is able to undergo a profound process of internal reforms in all sectors of public administration and society, progressively.
François Bayrou, UDF leader, is a person who has the ability to generate confidence and trust to the French citizens. He does not create the animosity of Sarkozy or the indifference of Royal. A committed Euro-federalist, Bayrou comes from the French centrist tradition and he is the most clear exponent of social-liberalism (the progressive change) nowadays in France. Bayrou is a person who is out of the old French system, ready to go beyond the outdated rigid right-left division to speak of values, to speak of ideas. He is a real state man and he is what France needs. I would even go further to state that I believe that Bayrou is needed in Europe too. So far, he is the only candidate who is committed to reducing the public debt, one of the main problems of the French economy.
I am sure that when some socialists and conservatives read my article will agree with me. He goes beyond Sarkozy’s populism and he goes beyond Royal’s superficiality.
I believe that now we as liberals can make the difference in France by supporting Bayrou and by extension making liberalism stronger in that country. If I were able to vote on next French presidential elections, I would have no doubt and would support François Bayrou. He is the second man, but with your support he can become the first One on May 6th.
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