Rama Yade on Hot Topics In France

Yesterday French Secretary of State for Sport Rama Yade was a guest on Grand Jury RTL, a panel discussion show which focuses on hot topics. Here is how the moderate-conservative politico - who is France's most popular politician - and former human rights minister responded to various issues:

"Don't let extremists run the show by refusing to discuss national identity. The Left is in La-La land; extreme Right is intolerant":  Secretary Yade defended the debate controversy, arguing that the topic should be a regular debate so "it's not seized by extremists" (article in French) "When [Jean-Marie] Le Pen made it to the second round [of the 2002 presidential election as a minor-party National Front candidate, placing higher than the Socialist Party candidate], I was not surprised because we had put the cover on some issues." Born in Senegal, raised in France since age 11, and a naturalized French citizen for a decade, Ms. Yade expressed her conception of national identity, "made of generosity and diversity." She added, "This is the republican miracle, I am an immigrant and I arrived in France with my history. But by becoming French, I left a part of my history...I have made concessions...Being French is adhering to the republican ideal." She stressed that the debate over national identity wasn't just about immigration, but it wasn't unrelated either.

In relation to an immigration case involving nine Afghans, Ms. Yade said that she was "briefly an illegal immigrant" for a few weeks (until her paperwork was processed) and thus said she was "a little said when there is a deportation." She added that it's better to go down the "path of responsibility", taken by Immigration Minister Eric Besson between "the Left's otherworldliness" and "the extreme Right's intolerance."

"Ban wearing burkas in public, because it undermines French secularism": Ms. Yade, who is of Muslim background, supports banning the head to toe veiled garment (article in French), arguing that it "has no place" in the French public square. "Obviously, I understand that the burka poses several issues," she said. Ms. Yade She drew attention to a "security problem", asking how does one recognize a burka-clad parent who picks up her child to school. The burka also raises the "question of gender equality," argued Secretary Yade. "This is obviously not what we want to see in France," she added. Ms. Yade asserted that the principle of secularism, a founding principle of the French Republic, "shouldn't suffer the slightest concession."

Next year's regional elections, where she is a candidate in the Ile-de-France region. Slams Socialist Party for avoiding local issues, & being tax-and spenders: "Ile-de-France is winnable," said Ms. Yade, four months before regional elections, while aggressively criticizing the record of Jean-Paul Huchon, the French Socialist Party member who heads up the Ile-de-France regional council (article in French). "The Ile's resident deserve better than a regional president who abandons the region to go to Copenhagen," quipped Secretary Yade, who is a candidate for the center-right UMP-New Center coalition ticket in Hauts-de-Seine area. She also criticized Mr. Huchon's "culpable inaction" against striking worker on RER A rapid transit system, which is Europe's busiest line. Ms. Yade also asserted that Mr. Huchon passed "an irresponsible budget" which "increases the debt of the Ile-de-France 28%." "He's going to pay for this increased debt with a tax hike like we've never seen," she accused.

"France embodies a third way on climate change": Secretary Yade said that France had played a "third way" between China and the United States and stayed true to the "Gaullist tradition" at the recent global warming summit in Copenhagen (article in French). She was responding to criticism by the Pierre Moscovici, member of the French Parliament and Socialist Party member, who complained shortly beforehand that the conference featured "too much [French President Nicolas] Sarkozy and not enough Europe." She claimed President Sarkozy was crucial to securing the limited agreement, without whom "we would not have reached this agreement." Secretary Yade argued that the limited deal is "the best deal possible" and urged politicians like Mr. Moscovici to agree to it. Ms. Yade argued that France must avoid "discouragement" and "alarmism" because "in recent years, there have been climate refugees". She said it is therefore necessary to "change our development model" and for that, "we need a new global governance" that would "common management problems." The politico also evoked the idea of a global environmental agency, a proposal supported by President Sarkozy.