While Emmanuel Macron visits East Africa after spending 24 hours in Mayotte, ravaged by Cyclone Chido, a series of articles from the newspaper The World caused a stir in France. Journalists from the evening daily report comments perceived as racist, homophobic and misogynistic that the French president allegedly made. The Élysée formally denies it, but the episode comes at a bad time in a tense national and international political context.
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The exchange reported by The World dates back to fall 2023. At the time, immigration lawa source of strong tensions within the presidential camp, is emerging. The daily mentions a conversation between Emmanuel Macron, his secretary general Alexis Kohler and the Minister of Health, Aurélien Rousseau. The latter would resign a few weeks later, in particular because of the adoption of this law supported by the extreme right.
While the three men raise the question of State Medical Aid (AME), the abolition of which the National Rally is calling for, Emmanuel Macron would then have estimated that: “ The problem with emergencies in this country is that it’s full of Mamadous. » Generic nickname given by the Head of State to beneficiaries of the AME, a system targeting foreigners in an irregular situation.
Also readWhat is state medical aid, this system threatened by immigration law?
Comments judged “ racist “, ” an absolute shame “, ” an insult to the Republic », Immediately denounced Manuel Bompard, coordinator of La France Insoumise. Marine Tondelier, head of the Ecologists, reacted to another revelation from the French daily The World. Emmanuel Macron would have described the latter and Lucie Castets, former NFP candidate for the post of Prime Minister, as “ casseroles “. Pure and simple sexism according to the political leader who scathes on social networks: “ Emmanuel Macron claims that France no longer wants ecology or immigrants. What I especially learned from the elections was that they no longer wanted him. »
Other controversial comments attributed to the head of state, remarks considered homophobic, notably concerning his former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and his advisors, described as “ the crazy cage “.
Anger obviously at the Élysée, where the entourage of Emmanuel Macron, quoted by Agence France Presse “ firmly denies these reported remarks which were not subject to any verification with the presidency before publication. » The World maintains its information.
A tense national and international context
Beyond the political reactions to these articles, they also occur in a delicate context for Emmanuel Macron. The President of the Republic just spent 24 hours in Mayotteravaged by Cyclone Chido. The human toll of the disaster promises to be very heavy in the poorest French department in France and mainly inhabited by black and Muslim citizens.
Distrust is strong there towards the head of state, confronted on Thursday December 19 with angry demonstrations, crossed by calls for resignation. In 2017, during his first presidential trip to Mayotte, he had already joked about the “kwassa-kwassa”, traditional canoes, which according to him were mainly used for the perilous journey of migrants coming from the Comoros neighbors.
Also readOutcry after Emmanuel Macron’s remarks on kwassa-kwassa
The president must also continue with a trip to Djibouti and Ethiopia over the next 48 hours and faces increased pressure from Chad and Senegal on the French military presence. These supposed remarks should hardly improve relations between France, its bereaved overseas department and the African continent, pending the next two articles in the World which should be released in the coming days.
Also read“We’ve always seen no one”: in Mayotte, slum dwellers are still waiting for water and food