Agissez!
An interesting article in the citizens’ newspaper, AgoraVox reacting to Nicolas Sarkozy’s Call from London. It’s written by a French chap, Stephane Rossard, who lives in Cape Town.
“Sarkozy says to us “Come back”: we say “Do something!”
There is of course a basic difference between the Brits who have moved to France and the French who have moved out. Whatever their individual reasons, most of the British taking up residence in France tend to be in the second half of their careers, often well into it, whereas the majority of French women and men who leave France are just beginning theirs. Another basic difference, which Stephane Rossard’s article unconsciously highlights, is that at some moment, fairly early on, I had to decide whether my principal residence was in France or in Britain. As soon as I ticked the former, I lost the right to vote in Britain (even though I still had a flat in London): my two expatriate French step-sons can still vote for a French president even though they have been living outside France for several years – as I guess M. Rossard and others can. Until I take French nationality, I am voteless (so this blog dedicated to the French elections is rather like a sex-manual written by a eunuch - no, that’s not true! I have vague memories of what it’s like inside a polling booth).
Back to M. Rossard (whose text I am ruthlessly pillaging, with sentences taken out of order (apologies), to keep brief, but if your French is OK, read the article): “The number of French leaving the country has risen by 40% in 10 years…..Some of course go to the UK, but many go elsewhere……It is one of the biggest waves of emigration France has ever known….This is a reality minimised by French politicians, either brushed off as irrelevant or ignored. It’s about time a candidate took an interest in us.
“However, calling on us to come back is not enough: French people abroad will judge on the evidence whether it’s worthwhile coming back or not. The future president is going to have to prove himself to convince us. For we are scalded cats. We know all about promises. It’s because in the past they were not kept that we left, and most of us have only a lukewarm desire to return unless there is a strong signal or something done.”
A theme I hear more and more from the current campaign and which I shall probably start repeating in different ways is: despite what they say, the principal candidates are completely out of touch with most of their compatriots.
Finally M. Rossard gives the address of a web-site dedicated to ex-patriot French people: http://francaisdumonde.canalblog.com/