The Death of Free Speach
The French government has been synonymous with social regression for some years, especially when it comes to individual liberties, like the freedom of expression which is more and more called into questions by our politicians. Indeed, the Sarkozy era seems to toll the knell of freedom of opinion. I am seriously wondering if nowadays France would not be synonymous with totalitarism. Totalitarism because of the monopolization of the different ways of communication, but also the rejection of all organised opposition. This is not harmless if France has the european record of searchs within the editorships and indicment of the journalistes, worse than Poland or the other new countries which have recently joigned the European Union. Sarkozy is a political and a media-related animal. His media-related appetite is insatiable. France is following Italy and Berlusconi’s example, through its media which is going downhill. Indeed between 1994 and 2005, Berlusconi reorganized the media system of his country which provoked a political and economic censorship. This explains why I use the term «social regression» . France is one of the countries which is popular in the world for its innovative ideas about individuals liberties confirmed by the Declaration of Human Rights of 1789. Besides, this idea of freedom of expression, point of view and opinions is also confirmed by the 19th of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948. It was a text against autoritarian doctrine, especially marxist and lenininist (concept created by Stalin after Lenin’s dead, which refers in fact to communism and not to to Marx and Lenin’s ideas) ; at this period in the world, owing to the cold war. Ideas and concepts which seem totally unknown to Sarkozy !
To get down to the facts, Sarkozy’s government is indeed trying to control and monopolize the means of communication. There are plenty of examples and the list is not exhaustive ! Since the general elections in 2007 and even before, Sarkozy has always had a paradoxical and pernicious relationship with the media in France. Recently a report about Sarkozy, realized by a Swiss channel, TSR (Télévision Suisse Romande), has been censorded in France. Certainly because this report undermined Sarkozy’s image in the media, and in so far as, right now he holds the full power to designate the directors managers of the french public channels, such as France Télévision (Fr 2, Fr 3 …) , these channels couldn’t give them the luxury of diffusing this kind of report. This is an infernal spiral. The later exerts an influence on the directors managers who exert an influence on their editor en chief, and then, on their own journalistes.
One of the most famous french channel is TF1 (Télévision Française 1) . This Channel, like so many others, is in favour of his government and the political party UMP, (Union pour un Mouvement Populaire) . In March 2009, a journalist from the channel decided to write a mail to Françoise de Pannafieu, a politician member of the UMP, to explain his point of view and his hesitations compared with the Hadopi law, a law against the illegal download. From now on, this mail was sent to the minister of culture, who was at this period, Christine Albanel. Under the pression of the minister, the journalist received a letter of dismissal. His only blame ?! To have been too honest, because that is right, from now one, he has been considered like a black sheap through an act, interpreted like an hostile act towards Sarkozy’s government. This is not worthy of a ministre of culture, especially when you are in France and when you are perfectly aware this country is synonymous with «Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité» . Where is the liberty, the liberty of opinions ? This liberty which has been time and time again mentionned for decades and centuries. It is like to flout the French History and its Declaration of Human Rights. It is all the more irritating as we are in the 21th century, under the V Republic. This kind of intolerance and silliness has reached its peak through the scandal of Sarkozy’s son. I think it is one of the most flagrant example. Indeed in October 2009, Jean Sarkozy 23 year-old, became popular or unpopular, it all depends, due to his candidature as manager at EPAD (Etablissment Public pour l’Aménagement de la région de la Défense) within la Défense in Paris, which is the biggest financial area in Europe. Every body remembers this scandal, thus provoking a well-documented row. Furher to Jean Sarkozy’s case, all the media in France decided to speak about that of course. In France there is a satirical television show, Les Guignols de l’info, famous for deriding politicians and political events, such as this one. Jean Sarkozy was at the heart of these caricatures, that is why his father was very irritated. It explains also why few time after, the president threatened the director manager of Canal + which broadcasts the televison show, Rodolphe Belmer considered as responsible for criticisms towards his son. Similar example concerning radio France. Each morning, Stéphane Guillon holds a humorisitc column which derides, like Les Guignols de l’info, politicians. One day his target was Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the french director of the IMF (International Money Fund). Sarkozy decided not to renew once again the mandate of Jean-Paul Cluzel, the director manager. A disguised lay off. Without forgetting recently another case with Stéphane Guillon concerning Eric Besson, minister of immigration and integration.
A journalist is someone who is paid to have the right of freedom of expression of the citizens. In France, censorship is totally against the national values «Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité» . This is incomprehensible in all democracies ! Democracy is based upon the notion of freedom. And freedom is based upon the notion of the right to explain your own point of view, the right to denounce, to keep citizens informed about what happens in society, to relate the truth, the facts, isn’it ?
And to crown it all, as if the resemblance with Napoléon Bonaparte was not enough, he shares a lot of common points with one of his predecessor, Napoléon III. Like him Sarkozy does not tolerate a press which seems to be more and more hostile towards his way of governing ! A way of governing closer to Poutine or Berlusconi than De Gaulle. The personality cult has a predominant place within Sarkozy’s government. When he was elected 3 years ago it was just to be at the head of the government. Nobody wants to see a «bling-bling» clan, a family getting its hands on power. And into the bargain it is against what he claimed a few time ago, about equality of opportunities at school.
All these problems reflect the unrest of the profession in France. In November 2009 the French union of journalistes wrote a letter to Sarkozy to denounce their way of working, claiming they had had enough with waiting for measures to improve their situation. Indeed too many lay off, too many searches and indictments within the French editorships, going against European law and justice. Indeed this is not anodin if France has this sad european record concerning searches and indictments of journalists. For example in 2006 and 2007, different searches were conducted in different newspapers like Le canard enchaîné or Le point. It was at time of the Clearstream scandal, a financial scandal implicating french industrials and politicians, and refering to Taïwan’s frigates scandal ( an armament agreement signed in 1991 between France and Taïwan, and expecting selling frigates to Taïwan) . A lot of politicians were concerned about this scandal : Sarkozy, de Villepin, Strauss-Kahn …) . The aim of these sarches was to find proofs, especially a note by a French general, general Philippe Rondot who was considered principal witness to the Clearstream scandal. It concerned the existence of a Chirac bank account in Japan. Unfortunately it is characteristic and symptomatic of the non protection of sources. Is it the liberalism-communism spectrum which hangs over our society ? Somehow, as Milton says «The freedom of the press is one of the great bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic government» .
SR