🇫🇷Legal Wrangling across France
New Caledonia is in a State of Emergency, there are 37 separate party lists for the European Parliament 2024 election, and Reconquête's Damien Rieu is condemned to 8-months prison for harassment
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This week
🇳🇨New Caledonia in State of Emergency
🗳️37 separate party lists for EP2024
️👮Damien Rieu condemned to 8 months prison for online harassment
🇳🇨New Caledonia in State of Emergency
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So, as you may be aware, a very concerning situation has arisen in New Caledonia since Monday 13 May, with violence, protests, and barricading occurring as a result of a controversial voting reform.
As per the 1998 Nouméa accord, the electorate for the islands is restricted to those who lived there before 1998 and any descendants who have maintained continuous residence on the territory for at least 10 years, excluding migrants from European and Polynesian backgrounds from the franchise.
The ECHR considered this an acceptable temporary measure. Following the three independence referenda of 2018, 2020, and 2021, in which the island repeatedly voted in favour of remaining part of France, work began on integrating the overseas territory, and in particular, updating the franchise.
However, it should be noted that independence campaigners boycotted the 2021 referendum, in the hopes of invalidating it once they noted that polls showed they would lose.
The reform that triggered the violence is intended to replace the Nouméa Accord and make the voting requirement a 10-year residency period, which has been rejected by independent voters, who claim it would dilute the vote of indigenous Kanak people, and increase the vote share for pro-France Politicians.
This has led to the aforementioned situation, where supermarkets, car dealerships, and other businesses have been looted and attacked, and other acts of violence have taken place.
In total, the costs are estimated to be over €200 million, with an estimated 150 businesses have been destroyed and about 1,750 jobs are lost. The President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry estimated that 80-90% of the grocery distribution network has been destroyed.
Currently, four civilians and two police officers have lost their lives during the unrest, with around 236 civilians and 64 police officers being injured, and barricades/blockades being implemented across the territory,
The government of New Caledonia called for a lifting of these blockades, and for a return to calm, with Vaimu’a Muliava, the head of public service in the local government, calling for an end to the violence:
“We are killing each other, we cannot continue like this, It will be very difficult to get back up. But there is still time. Free up access! It is a slogan which is not only that of the government, but that of the population.”
However, the hostilities look like they’ll continue in the short term, with protestors actively engaging in a politicisation of the event. According to Le Monde, an activist was heard yelling the following from a barricade:
“Macron put down the “yellow vests” at home, but here, he is not at home. This is our country! You are in Kanaky here! This is our home!”
Things have also gotten more complex for the French government, with the Azerbaijani government getting involved in the discussions and many accusations flying around of Azerbaijan actively being involved in fomenting dissent and unrest.
Admittedly, this isn’t far-fetched when the Azerbaijani government launched the Baku Initiative Group last year to support “French liberation and anti-colonial movements.”
Clearly, Ilham Aliyev is still very upset about French support for Armenia over the years.
🗳️37 separate party lists for EP2024
Moving over to the mainland, your favourite newsletter this week was informed of a fun fact: There are 37 candidate lists for the European Parliamentary Elections, three more than in 2019.
Going through my daily reading in Le Monde, they outlined this impressive figure with a breakdown of the various ideologies, from a list defending Esperanto to a list focused on French Sovereignty to even a list focused exclusively on a Free Palestine.
And
has a full list for you right here with even an English translation:Rassemblement national - National Rally
Besoin d’Europe - Need for Europe
Les Écologistes – EELV - The Ecologists
Les Républicains - The Republicans
La France insoumise - France Unbowed
Réveiller l'Europe - Wake Up Europe
La gauche unie pour le monde du travail - The Left United for a World of Work
Parti animaliste - Animalist Party
Rassemblement écologiste pour le vivant, l’Europe et les territoires - Ecological Rally for the Living, Europe and the Territories
Union populaire républicaine - Popular Republican Union
Lutte ouvrière - Worker’s struggle
Les Patriotes - The Patriots
Parti Pirate - Pirate Party
Espéranto langue commune - Esperanto Commo
Parti fédéraliste - Federalist Party
Europe Territoires Écologie - Europe Territories Ecology
Reconquête - Reconquest
Pour un monde sans frontières ni patrons, urgence révolution ! - For a World Without Borders or Bosses, Urgent Revolution!
Écologie au centre - Ecology at the Centre
Équinoxe - Equinox
Union pour une Europe arc-en-ciel - Union for a Rainbow Europe
Écologie positive et Territoires - Positive Ecology and Territories
France libre - Free France
L'Alliance rurale - The Rural Alliance
Nous le Peuple - We the People
Pour le pain, la paix, et la liberté ! - For Bread, Peace and Liberty!
As you can see, we’re categorically spoilt for choice in this election, and if you guys want to learn more about any of these, let me know via email or in the comments below, and we can have a fun chat about it!
️👮Damien Rieu condemned to 8 months prison for online harassment
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Speaking of party lists, one of Eric Zemmour and Marion Maréchal’s candidates, Damien Rieu, has been condemned to 8 months of prison for online harassment.
For some background: Rieu is A veteran of the identitarian movement in France; he co-founded Génération Identitaire, which the government dissolved in 2021 for being extremist, and became its spokesperson. He was a candidate for the RN in 2021, and after the schism in the far-right, he joined up with Eric Zemmour’s outfit in 2022.
A candidate in the legislative elections, he managed to earn 10.7% of the vote in the Alpes-Maritimes.
Anywhom, Rieu, real name Damien Lefèvre, was caught publishing the name and most of the telephone number of a woman who complained about Marion Maréchal in a private video on Snapchat.
Naturally, France is a free country where people are allowed to complain about those they dislike, and doxing an innocent citizen doing so is a very bad thing to do.
This led to a “led to a massive campaign of denigration, racist insults and online harassment, as well as a large number of anonymous calls” and the individual targeted by Rieu called her lawyers to deal with this outlandish behaviour.
All of this culminated in Rieu now being charged, for the first time, for harassment over social media, and quite honestly, reader, this is unlikely to be the last time.
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Regarding New Caledonia. Sadly, one more horrible example of political tribalism and problems with human psychology. I do not know much about the situation but I think that it has to be resolved through community engagement and initiatives, and not only by voting on referendums and every four years.
50 shades of Eurolists
Are some of them jokes or?