In a grandstand at Young Africathe Cameroonian intellectual Achille Mbembe calls to vote for Emmanuel Macron in order to “to counter the project” of Marine Le Pen whom he qualifies as “ racist “. The leader of the National Rally, for her part, publishes a forum in several French-speaking and English-speaking media on the continent, to present her vision of the relationship between France and Africa.
It was about time… Three days before the second round of the presidential election, Marine Le Pen finally gives some clues as to what her African policy would be if she won the election on Sunday 24 April. A project that clearly stands out from that of its opponent. The far-right candidate says first of all that she does not want to register this relationship “ in a globalizing multilateral framework “, but create “ an adult relationship, based on taking into account realities and legitimate interests, starting with the search for stability on the continent “.
Stability and security are, in his view, “ the condition sine qua non of Africa’s development “. On the subject of the French military presence in the Sahel, Marine Le Pen affirms that she wants to stop to what she calls “ deadly bog down “.
Marine Le Pen, supporter of non-interference
At the same time, the candidate of the National Rally advocates non-interference in the internal affairs of States in order to stop what she perceives as “ diplomatic inconsistencies “. “ France, she writescannot at the same time accept the institutional situation created Chad after the death of President Idriss Débywhile condemning the Mali of Assimi Goita and recognizing the junta of Colonel Damiba in Burkina Faso “.
Promotion of the Francophonie, renovation of the French policy of cooperation, these would be the axes of its policy. The far-right candidate, who “ rejects both unfounded repentance and nostalgia for yesteryear “, visibly evolved on the question of the CFA franc. Very critical of this currency in 2017, she sees in it today “ a guarantee of stability for the economies of the franc zone “. As a result, if she is elected, it will be “ African States to decide whether they intend to continue this monetary cooperation with France “.
In this text sent to various media on the continent, Marine Le Pen does not address the relationship with the continent from the migratory angle. Yet this is the central part of his program. The far-right candidate wants to stop immigration from the continent. To do this, it proposes a whole set of radical measures: end of jus soli, abolition of family reunification, limitation of the right of asylum, hardening of access to French nationality. And, beyond that, national preference which would give priority to the French in terms of housing, employment and social benefits.
Faced with countries that refuse to readmit their nationals expelled from France, Marine Le Pen brandished the threat last week. “ Things will be very clearshe said on April 15 on BFM TV, as long as they do not accept the readmission of people who are undesirable on our territory, there will be nothing: there will be no more visas, there will be no more development aid, there will be no more there will be no more money transfers, there will not even be any more capacity for the leaders of these countries to be able to own property in ours “.
“Bar the road to constitutional racism”
The Cameroonian historian and political scientist Achille Mbembe, close to Emmanuel Macron, considers this project “ evil nature “. He sees it inspired from apartheid laws that were in force in South Africa “. Under these conditions, abstention cannot be, in his view, an option.
“ How, on the morning of April 25, will the abstentionist gesture protect those of us struck by the “misfortune of color” from the Lepenist fury? », he asks before calling to renew, “ without qualms “, the outgoing president. “ Except to afford the luxury of voluntary blindness, writes the intellectualthe one and only way to block the road to constitutional racism in France for the moment is to vote for Emmanuel Macron “.