Alors que les images des migrants arrivant à Lampedusa ont envahi les réseaux sociaux, l’Élysée tarde à s’exprimer… mais face à l’offensive de l’extrême droite, Emmanuel Macron pourrait être tenté de durcir son discours.
On one side, there is Lampedusa, on the other side, there is the Pope… This is what it means to be caught between two opposing forces. While the topic of immigration has taken center stage, it has taken on a very symbolic form this week. The arrival of several thousand migrants on the small Italian island has triggered an overreaction from the right and far-right, who are calling for better border control. « With Emmanuel Macron, Europe has become a host for migrants. With us, it will send the boats back to the countries of origin, » declared RN President Jordan Bardella over the weekend.
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However, on Saturday, Emmanuel Macron will have to respond to a completely different situation. The Pope will indeed be visiting Marseille to raise awareness about the tragedy that thousands of refugees face as they attempt to cross the Mediterranean each week. It is not an easy challenge, as the Pope stated after the Angelus prayer at the Vatican on Sunday. « It must be faced together, as it is crucial for our collective future, which will only be beneficial if built upon fraternity, with a focus on human dignity and those in greatest need. » The temptation for the President, therefore, would be to adopt a ‘at the same time’ approach.
Les Français « veulent en découdre »
During a trip this weekend in Côte d’Or, he emphasized the humanitarian aspect of the problem: « The responsibility » of Europeans is also « to take care » of these migrants, he reminded, defending the idea of a « humanitarian approach ». Following this, the prefecture of Alpes-Maritimes announced the opening of a reception center in Menton with carefully chosen words: it is a « transitory » solution, without « tents » or « hotels », they insist, adding that the area will be « supervised by a company of CRS, with no possibility of coming and going on our territory ».
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In the face of the images from Lampedusa, a discourse of firmness prevailed within the majority yesterday: « The French want to take action. Lampedusa does not make people more left-wing, far from it, even though it mainly demonstrates the failure of neo-fascist and far-right governments. But that is impossible to explain to the general public, » one of the influential members of the Renaissance group in the Assembly confided to us yesterday.
« Il va rapidement dépenser sur la question de l’immigration. »
Currently, regarding the Macronist circles that disseminate talking points to the invited deputies on television sets, it is mainly advised to mention the necessary European solidarity. However, according to this deputy close to the Élysée, the tenant of the presidential palace will quickly and personally take up the issue: « The President will take a stand because the episode on pensions has calmed him down on the idea of staying in the background. He will quickly address immigration, » assures us this elected official from Île-de-France who adds: « He has realized that only his word carries weight and percolates, so he will invest a lot, » especially since the European elections are approaching and the National Rally is leading in the polls.
In an interview with Le Point this summer, Emmanuel Macron has already set some guidelines, expressing his desire to « significantly reduce immigration, starting with illegal immigration. » Recently, he even pretended to consider the request of the LR party who are demanding a referendum on immigration. The President will certainly have interesting topics to discuss with the Pope this weekend in Marseille.
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