A French court found former President Jacques Chirac guilty of embezzling public funds to illegally finance the conservative party he long led, in a historic verdict Thursday with repercussions for his legacy and France's political elite.
Showing posts with label french pm. Show all posts
Showing posts with label french pm. Show all posts
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Carla Bruni parades her burgeoning bump after her father-in-law reveals she IS pregnant with Sarkozy's child
* Her dark-coloured outfit failed to hide ther obvious condition
* Pal Sarkozy, 82, is 'sure it's a girl who'll be as beautiful as Carla'
* Earlier television presenter 'congratulated' Bruni who did not deny her pregnancy
Carla Bruni proudly displayed her burgeoning bump in Paris on the same day her father-in-law finally confirmed that she is pregnant.
As the wife of French president Nicolas Sarkozy made her way into the launch event for her illiteracy foundation she had quite a task hiding the obvious.
The 43-year-old wore a fitted dark jacket with a navy shirt and trousers - the dark colours failing to disguise her obvious condition.
* Pal Sarkozy, 82, is 'sure it's a girl who'll be as beautiful as Carla'
* Earlier television presenter 'congratulated' Bruni who did not deny her pregnancy
Carla Bruni proudly displayed her burgeoning bump in Paris on the same day her father-in-law finally confirmed that she is pregnant.
As the wife of French president Nicolas Sarkozy made her way into the launch event for her illiteracy foundation she had quite a task hiding the obvious.
The 43-year-old wore a fitted dark jacket with a navy shirt and trousers - the dark colours failing to disguise her obvious condition.
Monday, April 11, 2011
UN, French attack Gbagbo heavy weapons in Ivory Coast
UN and French helicopters attacked forces loyal to incumbent Ivory Coast leader Laurent Gbagbo late last night, damaging the presidential residence and destroying heavy weapons that UN chief Ban Ki-moon ordered silenced.
Gbagbo has refused to step down since UN-certified elections last November showed his rival Alassane Ouattara won, reigniting a civil war that has claimed over a thousand lives and uprooted over a million people.
“The operations are on going,” Hamadoun Toure, spokesman for UN mission in the country said late yesterday.
“We had targeted and hit several different places where we found heavy weapons, not only the areas around Gbagbo’s residence, but all places where we know that there are heavy weapons,” Toure said.
“We will review the situation tomorrow (Monday).” he added.
Ban said UN headquarters in Ivory Coast, Ouattara’s base and two civilian districts had been hit by machinegun, sniper and rocket-propelled grenade fire in recent days.
“These actions are unacceptable and cannot continue,” said Ban, authorising UN peacekeepers to use “all necessary means” to suppress the use of heavy weapons by Gbagbo’s troops.
UN forces had launched military operations “to prevent the use of heavy weapons which threaten the civilian population of Abidjan and our peacekeepers,” he said.
Pro-Gbagbo sites including a naval base and several military bases around Abidjan were targeted, witnesses said.
Gbagbo’s spokesman Ahoua Don Mello said by telephone that thick smoke billowed from the presidential residence after the combined French-UN strikes, but he declined to say whether Gbagbo was inside at the time.
“UN and French helicopters continue to fire at President Gbagbo’s residence which has been partially destroyed,” he said by telephone.
Residents near the presidential palace and Gbagbo’s residence, where he is said to be holed up with his family, close advisers and about 1,000 militiamen, said they heard heavy cannon fire and shooting on Sunday afternoon.
Ouattara’s government said it had asked the United Nations to carry out its mandate after its base in the UN-protected Golf Hotel and civilians came under heavy weapons attack from the Gbagbo camp.
They have launched a counter-attack against Ouattara’s troops, who had swept from the north to coastal Abidjan almost unopposed more than a week ago in a drive to install Ouattara as the top cocoa producer’s leader.
Gbagbo’s defeat had appeared imminent last week and talks took place between the two sides. But Gbagbo’s soldiers have dug in, holding on to swathes of the city and frustrating hopes of a swift end to the conflict.
The US State Department condemned the attack on Ouattara’s hotel and said in a statement Gbagbo’s attempts at negotiation last week were nothing more than a ruse to regroup and rearm.
LOUD EXPLOSIONS
A Reuters correspondent at the French military base near the airport, about 15km from Gbagbo’s residence, said loud explosions could be heard coming from the direction of the fighting yesterday. Four helicopters, two UN and two French, carried out operations.
A resident of Cocody neighbourhood where Gbagbo’s residence is located said he could see thick black smoke coming from the building.
Earlier, a lull in fighting had allowed residents to come out in numbers not seen in the past 10 days to buy food and other supplies.
Even if Gbagbo relinquishes power, Ouattara’s ability to unify the West African country may be undermined by reports of atrocities against civilians since his forces charged into Abidjan. Ouattara’s camp has denied involvement.
NGO Human Rights Watch said on Saturday that forces loyal to Ouattara had killed hundreds of civilians, raped over 20 women and girls perceived as belonging Gbagbo camp and burned at least 10 villages in western Ivory Coast.
Those loyal Gbagbo, in turn, killed more than 100 alleged supporters of Ouattara in March.
Relief agency Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), said yesterday that the battle for Abidjan is pushing its four million residents ever closer to a health disaster.
French ban on full veil goes into force
A Muslim property dealer, who is urging women to keep wearing the veil if they want to, has urged supporters to go to Notre Dame cathedral in central Paris for a silent prayer during the day, and is also offering to help people pay the fines.
The five million Muslim minority in France is the largest in Western Europe, but fewer than 2,000 women are believed actually to wear a full-face veil.
Many Muslim leaders have said they support neither the veil nor the law banning it.
The timing is all the more sensitive after France’s ruling political party, President Nicolas Sarkozy’s UMP, called a debate on the place of Islam in France, a move that some say risked stigmatising a portion of the population.
Police received a guide last week to help implement the ban. It tells them not to remove veils by force. It also notes that the ban does not apply inside private cars but reminds policemen such cases can be dealt with under road safety rules.
Rachid Nekkaz, the man who called for the Notre Dame prayer, said in a webcast that he was putting a property worth about €2 million up for sale to help fund his campaign.
“I am calling on all free women who so wish, to wear the veil in the street and engage in civil disobedience,” he said.
French police arrested 59 people on Saturday who turned up for a banned protest over the veil ban, one of them on arrival in France from Britain, according to a police spokesman.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Gbagbo digs in as Abidjan siege intensifies - France Flexing Military Muscles in Libya, Former Colony Ivory Coast
For four long months Ivory Coast's internationally recognized president was confined to a besieged Abidjan hotel, at the mercy of United Nations troops for protection.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Chirac corruption trial suspended
Paris judge delays long-awaited trial of former French president following a constitutional challenge by the defence. A Paris judge has suspended the long-awaited corruption trial of Jacques Chirac, France's former president, after a constitutional ...
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Russia agrees to buy French helicopter carriers
Russia has agreed to buy two helicopter carriers from a French-led consortium, the French and Russian governments said yesterday, in Moscow’s first major foreign arms purchase since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Under the long-discussed deal, the Mistral-type amphibious assault ships will be built by French shipyard companies DCNS and STX along with Russia’s state-run United Shipbuilding Corporation, known as OSK.
Some of France’s NATO allies had voiced concern, urging Paris not to sell Moscow high-tech systems that could be used against Russia’s former communist neighbours, especially since Russia’s brief 2008 war with neighbouring Georgia.
Here is some background to the deal.
MISTRAL CAPABILITIES
The Mistral-class ships can carry up to 16 helicopters such as Russia’s Ka-50/52. They also carry landing barges and hovercraft, allowing vehicles, tanks and soldiers to be taken ashore — an important capability if Russia had to fight a war similar to the one it waged with Georgia in 2008.
The Mistral can carry 450 troops for up to six months, but that number can rise to 700 for shorter periods.
COASTAL CONTROL
Russia failed to gain control of Georgia’s Black Sea coast in its five-day conflict with Tbilisi. It currently depends largely on helicopters and unmanned planes to control its coastal regions on the Baltic and Black Seas. The Mistral will give Moscow much greater command of its coastlines.
FOREIGN PURCHASES
The Mistral purchase of is the first major defence import deal since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, showing Russia’s need for foreign technology in the sector. The deal was a surprise as Moscow’s defence procurement strategy to 2015 did not include construction or purchase of any large combat ships.
BOON FOR NAVAL DEFENCE INDUSTRY
One of the main sticking points in Russia’s negotiations over the Mistral is whether it will get access to the same technology used on French ships, giving Russia a glimpse of more advanced naval weapons and defence systems.
The reputation of the Russian naval defence industry had been tarnished by an Indian order of the Admiral Gorshkov heavy aircraft carrying cruiser. Moscow-based defence analysts Cast say Russia has nearly tripled the price and delayed delivery of the cruiser by four years since signing the contract in 2004.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Tension as Italian students protest education law
Thousands of Italian students marched in protest against a new university reform law yesterday as police blocked off large parts of central Rome to stop a repeat of violent clashes at a similar march a week ago.
Last week’s demonstration saw cars torched, shop windows smashed and dozens injured in street battles between protesters and riot police after the initially peaceful march descended into some of the worst violence seen in Rome for years.
No trouble was reported yesterday in a rainy Rome but there were clashes at a demonstration in Palermo and reports of other incidents in Naples, Milan and Turin.
The law, which the government says will strengthen Italy’s crumbling university system but which critics say will merely cut funding without solving real problems, was due for Senate approval yesterday though a vote may be delayed to today.
In Rome, the march avoided the so-called “Red Zone” created by police blockades, instead occupying part of the A24 highway that runs east to the city of L’Aquila, whose residents have long complained bitterly of broken government promises to clear up the damage from last year’s earthquake.
“You all alone in the Red Zone, us free in the city” read one mocking banner, addressed to the government ministries and parliament buildings in the historic centre.
With an official youth unemployment rate of around 25 per cent in the country overall and as high as 35 per cent in the poorer south, the battle over university reform has crystallised discontent over the future of Italy’s young people.
“We will certainly continue mobilising,” Rome student Claudio Rizzo told Reuters Television.
“It’s not only a mobilisation against university reforms but of a generation that is making itself heard again over the politics of the country, the issues we face and the precarious situation in which we live,” he said.
Education Minister Mariastella Gelmini, who has piloted the new law through parliament, said the measures were urgently needed to equip Italian students for employment.
“It is essential to restore dignity and usability to Italian university degrees,” she said in an open letter to the Corriere della Sera newspaper.
The reform cuts the number of university courses and faculties and reduces funding for grants. It also sets time limits for research, overhauls the admissions system, increases the role of the private sector in university governance and limits the duration of rectorships.
The government, under pressure to cut public debt, says spending cuts are necessary but the reform will create a more merit-based system which is closer to employers’ needs.
Supporters of the bill say Italy’s overcrowded universities produce too many social science graduates who are ill-fitted for employment, and not enough qualified engineers or English speakers, and the system needs radical overhaul.
Critics, many of whom also support the principle of reforming the universities, say the system has been systematically starved of funds and further cuts will seriously endanger Italy’s research capacity.
“We are asking for this bill to be blocked and for the whole public education system to be refinanced,” the Student Network, which groups different associations, said in a statement
Monday, October 18, 2010
French strikes force petrol stations to shut
Police and protesters clash in Nanterre as vehicles are set on fire
About 1,500 petrol stations in France have run dry or are about to close as fuel supplies are hit by strikes over government pension reforms, officials say.
A blockade of oil refineries is into its seventh day and the body that supplies most supermarkets says one in four petrol stations is affected.
President Nicolas Sarkozy has called a crisis cabinet to protect supplies.
Oil company Exxon Mobil has described the situation as "critical".
The exact number of France's 12,000 petrol stations affected by the strikes is unclear, but an Exxon spokeswoman said that anyone looking for diesel around Paris or in the western area of Nantes would face problems.
Severe shortages have been reported in Brittany in north-west France and the International Energy Agency says that France has begun tapping into its emergency oil reserves.
Workers at France's 12 oil refineries have been on strike for a week and entrances to many of the country's fuel distribution depots have been blocked.
Panic-buying has been blamed for a 50% increase in fuel sales last week.
The head of the Leclerc chain of supermarkets, Michel Edouard Leclerc, warned that at the current rate his company's petrol stations would be empty within two to three days if the blockade of refineries remained and fuel imports were paralysed.
Go-slow
Strike action against the government's reform plans is being ramped up, with lorry drivers starting the week by staging a go-slow on motorways around several major cities including Paris, Lille and Lyon.
A further day of strikes is scheduled for Tuesday, on the eve of a key Senate vote on the pensions bill.
Half of flights to and from Paris's Orly airport and one in three flights at other airports are being cancelled, according to aviation officials.
Airport operator ADP said there were already some delays at the capital's largest airport, Charles De Gaulle, on Monday because of strikes by oil workers.
Street protests have been planned in a number of cities and disruption is also expected on public transport and in schools.
The government wants to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62 and the full state pension age from 65 to 67.
Burning cars
There was already demonstrations outside 261 schools on Monday, which the education ministry said had been blockaded.
In the western suburb of Nanterre in Paris, dozens of students clashed with riot police who fired rubber bullets.
Shop windows were reported broken in the Saint-Denis suburb, where education officials said more than half the areas secondary schools had been blockaded.
In Lyon, several cars were burned and one teacher whose car was badly damaged by fire complained: "They want to fight [against the pension reform]. OK, but they have to understand the meaning of what they are doing".
In other developments:
* Outside the Grandpuits refinery, east of Paris, strikers burned tyres in defiance of a government order that the facility should be reopened.
* In some cities, such as Toulouse (south-west) or Saint-Etienne (centre), public transport depots were blocked on Monday morning, preventing buses and tramways from operating for several hours.
* Rail traffic was being disrupted with one in two fast TGV trains running, and one in three normal-speed trains running.
* Although the Eurostar train service between Paris and London is normal, there is no Eurostar service between Brussels and London on Monday due to a strike in Belgium.
* A key fuel pipeline that supplies the two airports in Paris has been restored, but the civil aviation authority is warning airlines operating at Charles de Gaulle to arrive with enough fuel to make the return journeys.
Crisis cabinet
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has ordered key ministers to form a crisis cabinet with the role of ensuring the continuity of fuel supplies.
Three departments are being charged with coordinating the state's services to maintain the supply: the interior and economy ministries as well as the energy and environment department.
Prime Minister Francois Fillon has insisted he will not allow the refinery strikes to hit the French economy.
Several other figures have said the country is not at risk of fuel shortages.
"The government is in control," Industry Minister Christian Estrosi told French radio on Monday.
"There will be no blockade for companies, no blockade for transport and no blockade for road users."
The head of the French Petrol Industries Association, Jean-Louis Schilansky, has said fuel shortages are not yet at crisis point.
"If the lorry drivers go on strike, if people block the refineries, then we will have a very big problem. But we're not at that stage yet," he said.
France has a strategic fuel reserve which holds up to three months of supplies, the government says.
According to the latest opinion polls, more than 70% of French people continue to support strike action.
On Saturday, a fifth day of protests brought 825,000 people on to the streets, police said, although unions put the figure at 2.5 million to three million.
The pension reforms have already been approved by the National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament.
The upper house, the Senate, has endorsed the key articles on raising the retirement age, and is due to vote on the full text on Wednesday.
About 1,500 petrol stations in France have run dry or are about to close as fuel supplies are hit by strikes over government pension reforms, officials say.
A blockade of oil refineries is into its seventh day and the body that supplies most supermarkets says one in four petrol stations is affected.
President Nicolas Sarkozy has called a crisis cabinet to protect supplies.
Oil company Exxon Mobil has described the situation as "critical".
The exact number of France's 12,000 petrol stations affected by the strikes is unclear, but an Exxon spokeswoman said that anyone looking for diesel around Paris or in the western area of Nantes would face problems.
Severe shortages have been reported in Brittany in north-west France and the International Energy Agency says that France has begun tapping into its emergency oil reserves.
Workers at France's 12 oil refineries have been on strike for a week and entrances to many of the country's fuel distribution depots have been blocked.
Panic-buying has been blamed for a 50% increase in fuel sales last week.
The head of the Leclerc chain of supermarkets, Michel Edouard Leclerc, warned that at the current rate his company's petrol stations would be empty within two to three days if the blockade of refineries remained and fuel imports were paralysed.
Go-slow
Strike action against the government's reform plans is being ramped up, with lorry drivers starting the week by staging a go-slow on motorways around several major cities including Paris, Lille and Lyon.
A further day of strikes is scheduled for Tuesday, on the eve of a key Senate vote on the pensions bill.
Half of flights to and from Paris's Orly airport and one in three flights at other airports are being cancelled, according to aviation officials.
Airport operator ADP said there were already some delays at the capital's largest airport, Charles De Gaulle, on Monday because of strikes by oil workers.
Street protests have been planned in a number of cities and disruption is also expected on public transport and in schools.
The government wants to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62 and the full state pension age from 65 to 67.
Burning cars
There was already demonstrations outside 261 schools on Monday, which the education ministry said had been blockaded.
In the western suburb of Nanterre in Paris, dozens of students clashed with riot police who fired rubber bullets.
Shop windows were reported broken in the Saint-Denis suburb, where education officials said more than half the areas secondary schools had been blockaded.
In Lyon, several cars were burned and one teacher whose car was badly damaged by fire complained: "They want to fight [against the pension reform]. OK, but they have to understand the meaning of what they are doing".
In other developments:
* Outside the Grandpuits refinery, east of Paris, strikers burned tyres in defiance of a government order that the facility should be reopened.
* In some cities, such as Toulouse (south-west) or Saint-Etienne (centre), public transport depots were blocked on Monday morning, preventing buses and tramways from operating for several hours.
* Rail traffic was being disrupted with one in two fast TGV trains running, and one in three normal-speed trains running.
* Although the Eurostar train service between Paris and London is normal, there is no Eurostar service between Brussels and London on Monday due to a strike in Belgium.
* A key fuel pipeline that supplies the two airports in Paris has been restored, but the civil aviation authority is warning airlines operating at Charles de Gaulle to arrive with enough fuel to make the return journeys.
Crisis cabinet
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has ordered key ministers to form a crisis cabinet with the role of ensuring the continuity of fuel supplies.
Three departments are being charged with coordinating the state's services to maintain the supply: the interior and economy ministries as well as the energy and environment department.
Prime Minister Francois Fillon has insisted he will not allow the refinery strikes to hit the French economy.
Several other figures have said the country is not at risk of fuel shortages.
"The government is in control," Industry Minister Christian Estrosi told French radio on Monday.
"There will be no blockade for companies, no blockade for transport and no blockade for road users."
The head of the French Petrol Industries Association, Jean-Louis Schilansky, has said fuel shortages are not yet at crisis point.
"If the lorry drivers go on strike, if people block the refineries, then we will have a very big problem. But we're not at that stage yet," he said.
France has a strategic fuel reserve which holds up to three months of supplies, the government says.
According to the latest opinion polls, more than 70% of French people continue to support strike action.
On Saturday, a fifth day of protests brought 825,000 people on to the streets, police said, although unions put the figure at 2.5 million to three million.
The pension reforms have already been approved by the National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament.
The upper house, the Senate, has endorsed the key articles on raising the retirement age, and is due to vote on the full text on Wednesday.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Thousands of protesters take to the streets as French unions battle pension reforms
French ports in Marseilles remained closed today as more than three million people were expected to join striking workers in protests against plans to raise the country's retirement age.
President Sarkozy caused outrage in the France last month after plans to cut the deficit by raising retirement age from 60 to 62 were announced.
Strikes across France on September 23 sparked widespread chaos as work stoppages disrupted schools, international flights and public transport.
Now a fourth round of rallies is predicted to bring the country to a standstill as angry families, students and private sector workers join dockers at France's main Southern port of Marseilles.
Unions are on a war footing across Europe as governments slash spending to dig their way out of debts run up during the global recession of 2008-09, the worst since World War Two.
Tens of thousands of people marched through Brussels in a protest against spending cuts in the European Union.
In Barcelona, a general strike turned violent, with officers firing rubber bullets after being attacked by a mob who set police cars on fire.
Thousands of Britons were caught up in the chaos as the Spanish strikers grounded hundreds of flights.
Unions in France have braced themselves for further strike action as Sarkozy refused to change an of the key features of the pension reforms which are to be debated in the Senate from October 5.
Xavier Petrachi, a delegate at the CGT union in Toulouse, said: 'There are a lot more of us today than during the week.
'The demonstration's got a real family feel, buggies are out. France is protesting.'
Jean-Claude Mailly, head of the more radical Force Ouvriere union, added: 'We need a show of strength.
'The government is frozen. They are committed to meeting Brussels' three per cent target and are under the thumb of financial markets.'
The day of protest is the fourth round of rallies in as many months against a controversial bill that would raise the retirement age.
Stoppages have spread to other docks as protests over liberalisation in the shipping sector joined other protesters who are unhappy with pension reform.
Several cities have introduced diesel rationing amid fears that fuel that is usually transported by sea could run low.
About 230 more protests are scheduled across the country as a survery published by French daily newspaper L'Humanite showed more than 70 percent of people backed the day of action.
The government says its legislation is essential to erase a growing deficit in the pay-as-you-go pension system, curb rising public debt and preserve France's AAA credit rating, which enables it to borrow at low financial market rates.
The unions hoped that earlier strikes on September 23 would force the government to back down on the flagship reform of Sarkozy's five-year term.
But the Senate has said it will offer concessions, but has ruled out any changes to its key features to the policy as France already has the lowest retirement age in Europe.
The plan is said to be a major part of the government's plan to balance the system's finances by 2018.
Sarkozy said on Friday: 'I am listening to the protesters, I understand their anger, but the role of the head of state is to fulfill his responsibilities.
'The pension reform and budget cuts are essential for our competitiveness.'
President Sarkozy caused outrage in the France last month after plans to cut the deficit by raising retirement age from 60 to 62 were announced.
Strikes across France on September 23 sparked widespread chaos as work stoppages disrupted schools, international flights and public transport.
Now a fourth round of rallies is predicted to bring the country to a standstill as angry families, students and private sector workers join dockers at France's main Southern port of Marseilles.
Unions are on a war footing across Europe as governments slash spending to dig their way out of debts run up during the global recession of 2008-09, the worst since World War Two.
Tens of thousands of people marched through Brussels in a protest against spending cuts in the European Union.
In Barcelona, a general strike turned violent, with officers firing rubber bullets after being attacked by a mob who set police cars on fire.
Thousands of Britons were caught up in the chaos as the Spanish strikers grounded hundreds of flights.
Unions in France have braced themselves for further strike action as Sarkozy refused to change an of the key features of the pension reforms which are to be debated in the Senate from October 5.
Xavier Petrachi, a delegate at the CGT union in Toulouse, said: 'There are a lot more of us today than during the week.
'The demonstration's got a real family feel, buggies are out. France is protesting.'
Jean-Claude Mailly, head of the more radical Force Ouvriere union, added: 'We need a show of strength.
'The government is frozen. They are committed to meeting Brussels' three per cent target and are under the thumb of financial markets.'
The day of protest is the fourth round of rallies in as many months against a controversial bill that would raise the retirement age.
Stoppages have spread to other docks as protests over liberalisation in the shipping sector joined other protesters who are unhappy with pension reform.
Several cities have introduced diesel rationing amid fears that fuel that is usually transported by sea could run low.
About 230 more protests are scheduled across the country as a survery published by French daily newspaper L'Humanite showed more than 70 percent of people backed the day of action.
The government says its legislation is essential to erase a growing deficit in the pay-as-you-go pension system, curb rising public debt and preserve France's AAA credit rating, which enables it to borrow at low financial market rates.
The unions hoped that earlier strikes on September 23 would force the government to back down on the flagship reform of Sarkozy's five-year term.
But the Senate has said it will offer concessions, but has ruled out any changes to its key features to the policy as France already has the lowest retirement age in Europe.
The plan is said to be a major part of the government's plan to balance the system's finances by 2018.
Sarkozy said on Friday: 'I am listening to the protesters, I understand their anger, but the role of the head of state is to fulfill his responsibilities.
'The pension reform and budget cuts are essential for our competitiveness.'
Monday, September 13, 2010
French Roma round-up draws more flak
French Roma round-up draws more flak
French President Nicolas Sarkozy's government was forced further onto the defensive Monday over its drive to deport Roma Gypsies, as more UN and European officials sharply criticised the policy.
The attack from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights came as France struggled to account for a leaked government memo which appeared to confirm that the Roma ethnic minority had been singled out for expulsion.
The order, circulated to police chiefs last month in the wake of a hard-line speech by Sarkozy, has undermined France's claim to be treating cases of illegal immigration on a purely case-by-case basis.
In particular, it has embarrassed Immigration Minister Eric Besson, who last week assured his European colleagues that Roma are treated no differently than other EU migrants who fail to meet French residency criteria.
"I was not aware of this circular," Besson told France 2 television. "It was not addressed to me and I did not need to know about it."
In Brussels, France's European affairs minister Pierre Lellouche, also faced criticism.
"Europe is trying to put France on trial over the way in which a circular was written," he complained, on the sidelines of a meeting colleagues from the other 26 member states, denouncing Brussels' "hypocrisy".
"France is a great sovereign nation. We're not at school here. We're applying our own law. I have no intention of being treated, in the name of France, like a little boy," he raged.
The controversial note, signed by Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux's chief of staff Michel Bart and dated August 5, was sent to police chiefs to outline "specific objectives".
"Three hundred camps or illegal settlements must be cleared within three months, Roma camps are a priority," it said.
"It is therefore up to prefects in every part of the country to undertake ... a systematic approach of dismantling illicit camps, as a priority those of the Roma," the circular, seen by AFP, said.
The circular contrasts with Besson's statement on Thursday that "France has not taken any measure specifically against the Roma, (who) are not considered as such but as natives of the country whose nationality they have."
France has deported almost 1,000 Roma migrants to Bulgaria and Romania since Sarkozy speech last month, and more than 8,000 Roma have been deported since the beginning of the year, after 9,875 were expelled in 2009.
Officials in the southern city of Marseille said 100 more Roma would be flown out of there on Tuesday, having agreed to accept 300 euro hand-outs rather than wait to be expelled by judicial order.
Evidence that officials took Sarkozy at his word and specifically targeted the Roma rather than any or all migrants living without means of support will heighten criticism from France's international partners.
"Such measures can only exacerbate the stigmatisation of Roma and the extreme poverty and exclusion in which they live," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay told the UN Human Rights Council on Monday.
"The often stereotyping and discriminatory rhetoric by officials and media when referring to the Roma in Europe is also an issue of great concern," she added, in what is only the latest jab at France from UN experts.
In France, the opposition Socialists seized on the memo to embarrass Besson, a former member of their party who left to join Sarkozy's right-wing cabinet.
Socialist spokesman Benoit Hamon mocked Besson's "undignified" denial, noting the policy is being jointly pursued by the interior and immigration ministries and insisting he must have known about the memo.
Human rights lawyers and pro-immigrant pressure groups piled in, claiming that the document amounted to an illegal order, since French and European law ban discrimination based on ethnic origin.
Rights group Gisti said it would try to get the document "annulled" by the state council, France's highest court.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Britons caught in France strike chaos as public sector workers walk out over pension age rise
Britons caught in France strike chaos as public sector workers walk out over pension age rise
British travellers in France were facing travel chaos today as a general strike brought the country to a standstill.
As thousands prepared to take to the streets in a protest against President Nicolas Sarkozy’s plan to raise the retirement age, many transport services shut down.
The 24-hour strike also affected banks, postal services and colleges and schools.
Among those worst affected were England football fans making their way to the national side’s European championship game with Switzerland in Basel, just over the French border.
Many were travelling on planes and trains through Paris, but found services cancelled.
‘We were told it was just three-and-a-half hours to Basel from Paris but it may be that all the services are cancelled,’ said Ian Monroe, 28, from south east London.
‘I got to France late on Monday night but the strike had already started. Lots of other fans are in a similar position.’
Neil Prentice, 44, another fan due to be travelling from London, said: ‘Three of us were meant to be setting off this morning but we’ve now given up.
'It’s going to be absolute chaos, and isn’t worth the hassle.’ Less than half of inter-city and local train services were expected to run, said a spokesman for SNCF, France’s national railway.
Eurostar services from London to Paris were unaffected, however.
Air France, meanwhile, said it would cut almost all short and medium haul flights into and out of Paris – another move which would be disastrous for the England fans, as well as British holidaymakers on their way to sunnier climes.
The strike date takes place on the day that Mr Sarkozy’s government presents its pension reform bill to parliament.
Secondary school teachers were among the first to strike, with thousands withdrawing goodwill on Monday night in protest against plans to cut 7,000 jobs in education.
Meanwhile, thousands of police across the country began bracing themselves for a day of action.
The General Confederation of Labour, France’s largest trade union, said it expected some two million people to take to the street.
Its leader, Bernard Thibault, said: ‘We may have an exceptional day and, if it is exceptional, we will perhaps be at a turning point.’
Mr Sarkozy insists that he will not back down from his plan to raise the minimum retirement age from 60 to 62. Under the proposed law, the age for full pension payments would be lifted from 65 to 67.
British travellers in France were facing travel chaos today as a general strike brought the country to a standstill.
As thousands prepared to take to the streets in a protest against President Nicolas Sarkozy’s plan to raise the retirement age, many transport services shut down.
The 24-hour strike also affected banks, postal services and colleges and schools.
Among those worst affected were England football fans making their way to the national side’s European championship game with Switzerland in Basel, just over the French border.
Many were travelling on planes and trains through Paris, but found services cancelled.
‘We were told it was just three-and-a-half hours to Basel from Paris but it may be that all the services are cancelled,’ said Ian Monroe, 28, from south east London.
‘I got to France late on Monday night but the strike had already started. Lots of other fans are in a similar position.’
Neil Prentice, 44, another fan due to be travelling from London, said: ‘Three of us were meant to be setting off this morning but we’ve now given up.
'It’s going to be absolute chaos, and isn’t worth the hassle.’ Less than half of inter-city and local train services were expected to run, said a spokesman for SNCF, France’s national railway.
Eurostar services from London to Paris were unaffected, however.
Air France, meanwhile, said it would cut almost all short and medium haul flights into and out of Paris – another move which would be disastrous for the England fans, as well as British holidaymakers on their way to sunnier climes.
The strike date takes place on the day that Mr Sarkozy’s government presents its pension reform bill to parliament.
Secondary school teachers were among the first to strike, with thousands withdrawing goodwill on Monday night in protest against plans to cut 7,000 jobs in education.
Meanwhile, thousands of police across the country began bracing themselves for a day of action.
The General Confederation of Labour, France’s largest trade union, said it expected some two million people to take to the street.
Its leader, Bernard Thibault, said: ‘We may have an exceptional day and, if it is exceptional, we will perhaps be at a turning point.’
Mr Sarkozy insists that he will not back down from his plan to raise the minimum retirement age from 60 to 62. Under the proposed law, the age for full pension payments would be lifted from 65 to 67.
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