From Macron phenomenon to French reform

By Yao Meng
0 Comment(s)Print E-mail China.org.cn, June 29, 2017
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French president Emmanuel Macron (Front R) shakes hands with the outgoing French president Francois Hollande (Front L) during an inauguration ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on May 14, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

French president Emmanuel Macron (Front R) shakes hands with the outgoing French president Francois Hollande (Front L) during an inauguration ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on May 14, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua] 



On May 7, Emmanuel Macron, 39, beat Marine Le Pen in the second-round run-off vote to become the youngest president-elect of the French Republic. Since then, a series of unprecedented phenomena have occurred.

The newly-elected president is a young man who has broken the fences erected by the long standing left- and right-wing parties, mixing political shades in ministerial appointments to form a new government. In addition, the new National Assembly has a large number of new faces, defying French political tradition.

All of these phenomena are related to Emmanuel Macron himself.

When he appointed left- and right-wing celebrities to form the new government, and began to reform the labor and education systems and introduced the "moralization law," people began to use "Macronism" to describe his policy and practice.

However, it was not until candidates of Macron-led political party won an overwhelming victory in the National Assembly election, sidelining the traditional heavyweights, that people realized that this was truly a dynamic revolution directly bearing on the future of France.

Historically, the outcome of each presidential election and parliamentary election in France has involved a mere rotation of regime. In recent years, with economic globalization, the EU integration and a series of oil and financial crises, many developed countries in Europe as well as the U.S. have been faced with a series of economic, social and political problems.

Sluggish economic growth, high unemployment rate and social inequality have led to increased social contradictions and people's dissatisfaction with existing governments.

In France in particular, a series of terrorist attacks have occurred of late. Social security problems have further exacerbated the people's sense of insecurity and their anger that has forced existing parties to recognize the need for reform.

However, it is rather the existing political structure that hindered French reform. Namely, if the left-wing party was in power, it would implement leftist policies and vice versa for a right-wing party.

The French presidential election this time was an important transition during which Emmanuel Macron, aloof from left- and right-wing parties, came to prominence and was able to win a sweeping victory. This reflected the French people becoming tired of the repeated fights between the traditional left- and right-wing parties.

What is now emerging is that Macron tends to learn from each party's strong points. In the economic field, his approach is very close to right-wing Republicans; in social affairs, he adopts many ideas of the left-wing Socialist Party. He is close to the centrists in advocating clean politics and opposing the practice that one official holds several posts simultaneously.

In addition, Macron's openness to the international community and international competition, his positive promotion of EU development, and his acceptance of pluralistic international relations are also an important part of his thinking.

Moving from thinking to action was achieved in the recently-concluded parliamentary election Where his Republic on the Move! party won 308 seats in the 577 seats of the National Assembly, easily achieving a parliamentary majority. The centrist Democratic Movement Party won 42 seats, giving the two likeminded parties 350 seats, providing a strong base to push through necessary reforms.

At the same time, the left-wing Socialist Party dropped from 284 to 29 seats, and the right-wing Republican Party and its allies together won only 131 seats, thus suffering a devastating defeat. The two traditionally big parties are now faced with serious internal crisis, suggesting a major shift in French politics.

It's not just the numbers that are important. A large number of new faces have been included in the National Assembly, and only 148 of the original 577 members actually were reelected.

Second, members of the National Assembly elected this time came from all walks of life, which is quite different from before. It probably means policies and laws will be more in line with the actual needs of the society, according to many commentators.

Third, parliamentarians are much younger, averagely aged from previously 54 to present 46, with the youngest aged 22.

Fourth, the proportion of female parliamentarians has increased significantly. Among the members of Macron's party, women account for 47 percent. It is a concrete expression of the principle of gender equality he advocates.

The political landscape is changing and we await further dramatic developments.

The author is a senior French media professional.

The article was translated by Li Jingrong from an unabridged version published in Chinese.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

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