Sarkozy is consciously provoking some of the big battalions of
the French labour movement. His strategy is clear: take on the strong sections
of the class and, counting on the weak trade union leaders, smash them in order
to prepare the ground for an all-out attack on the rest of the class. The
stakes are high. With a bold, militant leadership the workers could win.
The legislative elections in France, despite
giving a clear majority to the right, also marked the electoral recovery of the
left. French society is increasingly divided, and the divisions in parliament
will be reflected on the streets one way or another.
The main reason why
Sarkozy won the French elections is to be found in the policy of the Socialist
Party. Ségolène Royal’s party proposed nothing whatsoever which would make a
significant difference to the living standards of working people.
For the
third consecutive time, the left has lost the presidential elections in France. Their
programme did not have one single measure to seriously improve the lot of the
victims of capitalism, through which they could have been enthused. This is the
editorial of this month’s Marxist paper La Riposte.
Greg Oxley analyses the first round of the
presidential elections in France,
and explains the reasons for the generally poorer performance of the left
candidates.