France/Egypt: Heil Sisi?

 

Right-Wing Extremist Le Pen Praises Egypt Military Dictatorship as “Model” for Dealing with Muslims

 

By Michael Pröbsting, International Secretary of the Revolutionary Communist International Tendency (RCIT), 21 December 2020, www.thecommunists.net

 

 

 

Marine Le Pen, the French leader of the far-right Rassemblement national, has publicly praised the dictatorship of General Sisi as a model for fighting so-called "radical Islam". In an interview with Egyptian state media, Le Pen stated that the military regime “sets an example to the rest of the world, including France, of how to deal with poisonous ideologies". [1]

 

Likewise, she denounced the Muslim Brotherhood as a “terror organisation” and urged the global community to "confront them and their ideas". She also called France to take action against Turkey and Qatar and advocated collaboration with Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Greece for such purpose. "We have to develop an action plan to isolate and deter our enemies to thwart their plans."

 

All that does not come as a surprise. Le Pen is the leader of the most extremist right-wing party in France, she is a well-known hate-monger against migrants in general and Muslims in particular. She has been also one of the most outspoken defenders of the racist magazine Charlie Hebdo [2] and she praised the racist teacher Samuel Paty. [3] Her father was not only the founder of her party but also a lieutenant in the French army during the colonial occupation of Algeria. He is known to have tortured Arab prisoners to death.

 

In other words, it is only logical that such a figure admires the dictatorship of General Sisi which overthrew the only democratically elected government in July 2013, crushed all resistance forces, killed former President Mohamed Morsi, slaughtered thousands of activists and keeps more than 60,000 people in prison. Surely, she would like to deal with Muslim migrants – and probably all opponents – in France in a similar way.

 

However, it is worth noting that Le Pen is not an isolated figure and what she says does not cause any public outcry in France. Why? Because she is only expressing explicitly what others are doing or thinking anyway. France President Macron, who has imposed a draconic lockdown against his own people (under the pretext of COVID-19) [4], is riding on the same road as Le Pen. In the last few months Macron waged an aggressive war against Muslims – in France as well as global. Since then, many Muslims have been arrested, mosques and cultural associations have been closed and Macron advocated the public presentation of the racist caricatures of the Prophet Mohamed. Unsurprisingly, this has provoked a global campaign to boycott French products. [5]

 

In addition, France has sent thousands of troops to Mali in order to combat an Islamist-led insurgency. [6] Paris is also engaged – together with Egypt, Israel, the UAE and Greece – in sable-rattling against Turkey as it wants to get control over the huge gas reserves in the Eastern Mediterranean. [7] As part of this policy Macron has also rolled out the red carpet for Sisi at his visit in early December and even awarded him the L’ordre national de la Légion d’honneur – the highest French honor – during a closed-door ceremony. [8]

 

We see, Le Pen and Macron are heading towards the same direction. The one might use a more provocative – one could also say more explicit – language than the other but essentially they are on the same page. Essentially they agree on a policy which can be summarized in the formula “Heil Sisi!

 

It is worth noting that there are also a number of so-called “socialists” who essentially share a lot with the anti-Muslim and anti-democratic outlook of Le Pen and Macron. The “Communist” Party of Egypt, pseudo-Trotskyists like Alan Woods’ IMT, the PSTU/LIT and others shamelessly hailed the military coup of General Sisi in July 2013. [9] And many “socialists” in France aided Macron’s Islamophobic campaign by joining the public appraisal for Charlie Hebdo and Samuel Paty. [10]

 

What can we learn from this? Well, it is pretty clear: Don’t look at the superficial (ideological) clothes, look at the inner (political) values. There have been Christians who praised Hitler and others who died fighting against his terror-regime. There are “Muslims” who serve Arab tyrants and there are Muslims who stand up against them. And there are “socialists” who sympathize with reactionary politics of governments and there are socialists who fight such and stand together with the oppressed. There are “socialists” who support one or the other imperialist Great Power (e.g. the EU, Russia or China) and there are socialists who oppose all Great Powers. The RCIT and all authentic revolutionaries know which side to take!

 



[1] French far-right leader praises 'model' state Egypt for 'fighting radical Islam', 15 December, 2020 https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/12/15/french-far-right-leader-praises-egypt-for-fighting-radical-islam

[2] See on this e.g. RCIT: France after the Attacks in Paris: Defend the Muslim People against Imperialist Wars, Chauvinist Hatemongering, and State Repression! 9.1.2015, http://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/europe/statement-paris-attacks/; Michael Pröbsting: The Racist Character of Charlie Hebdo and the pro-imperialist campaign “Je Suis Charlie”. Solidarity with Muslim People! NOT Solidarity with Charlie Hebdo! 17.1.2015, http://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/europe/racist-charlie-hebdo/; Michael Pröbsting: After the Paris Attack: Socialists must Join Hands with Muslim People Against Imperialism and Racism! Reformist and Centrist Forces try to derail the Workers Movement by Failing to Stand up for Solidarity with the Muslims and Against Imperialist War-Mongering! 17.1.2015, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/europe/france-defend-muslims/

[3] See on this e.g. Yossi Schwartz: Down with the Islamophobia in France: “We Are Not Samuel!”, 20 October 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/europe/down-with-the-islamophobia-in-france/

[4] All RCIT documents on the COVID-19 crisis are compiled at a special sub-page on our website: https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/global/collection-of-articles-on-the-2019-corona-virus/. In particular we refer readers to the RCIT Manifesto: COVID-19: A Cover for a Major Global Counterrevolutionary Offensive. We are at a turning point in the world situation as the ruling classes provoke a war-like atmosphere in order to legitimize the build-up of chauvinist state-bonapartist regimes, 21 March 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/global/covid-19-a-cover-for-a-major-global-counterrevolutionary-offensive/. In addition, we draw attention to our book by Michael Pröbsting: The COVID-19 Global Counterrevolution: What It Is and How to Fight It. A Marxist analysis and strategy for the revolutionary struggle, RCIT Books, April 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/theory/the-covid-19-global-counterrevolution/. See also by the same author: COVID-19: The Current and Historical Roots of Bourgeois Lockdown “Socialism”. Police State and Universal Basic Income are key elements of the new version of reformist “War Socialism” of 1914, 19 December 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/theory/covid-19-the-current-and-historical-roots-of-bourgeois-lockdown-socialism/; How the Ruling Class Prepared for COVID-19. A number of events before and after the beginning of the pandemic demonstrate the political nature of the COVID-19 Counterrevolution, 3 December 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/global/how-the-ruling-class-prepared-for-covid-19/; The Second Wave of the COVID-19 Counterrevolution. On the ruling class strategy in the current conjuncture, its inner contradictions and the perspectives of the workers and popular resistance, 20 July 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/global/the-second-wave-of-the-covid-19-counterrevolution/; The Police and Surveillance State in the Post-Lockdown Phase. A global review of the ruling class’s plans of expanding the bonapartist state machinery amidst the COVID-19 crisis, 21 May 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/global/police-and-surveillance-state-in-post-lockdown-phase/.

[5] See on this e.g. RCIT: Boycott Imperialist and Islamophobic France! Solidarity with the Muslim migrants! Drive out the French occupiers from Mali and other countries! 26.10.2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/europe/boycott-imperialist-and-islamophobic-france/

[6] See on this e.g. Down with French Neo-Colonialism in West Africa! Protest against the imperialist “Operation Barkhane” / “Coalition for the Sahel”! Joint Statement of Anti-Imperialist and Socialist Organisations, 12 February 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/joint-statement-down-with-french-neo-colonialism-in-west-africa/; RCIT: Expel French Imperialism from West Africa! Macron and his G5 Lackeys plan to intensify their colonialist “Operation Barkhane”, 15 January 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/expel-french-imperialism-from-west-africa/

[7] See on this e.g. RCIT: Turkey and the Growing Tensions in Eastern Mediterranean. Theses on the complex contradictions between imperialist and regional powers, the Arab Revolution and the consequential tactics of Marxists, 28 August 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/turkey-and-the-growing-tensions-in-eastern-mediterranean/; RCIT: War Clouds in Eastern Mediterranean. Down with the imperialist aggression of the EU, Israel and Arab tyrants against Turkey! Support the ongoing Arab Revolution! 14 September 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/war-clouds-in-eastern-mediterranean/

[8] Paolo Santalucia And Nicole Winfield: Italians return French Legion awards after el-Sissi gets one, 2020-12-14 https://apnews.com/article/europe-abdel-fattah-el-sissi-italy-giulio-regeni-egypt-661099fa0f952b856be54d96203db3eb; see also Malia Bouattia: Macron, Sisi and the hypocrisy of France's so-called defence of human rights, 18 December 2020 https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/macron-and-hypocrisy-frances-so-called-defence-human-rights  

[9] See on this e.g. Michael Pröbsting: The Coup d’État in Egypt and the Bankruptcy of the Left’s “Army Socialism”, August 2013, https://www.thecommunists.net/theory/egypt-and-left-army-socialism/; Yossi Schwartz: Egypt: The U.S. Support for the Military Coup and the Left’s ignorance, 11.7.2013, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/egypt-us-support-for-military-coup/

[10] See on this e.g. Michael Pröbsting: France: “Our Republic”? Social-Chauvinism and Capitulation to Islamophobia by the Left, 2 November 2020, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/europe/social-chauvinism-and-capitulation-to-islamophobia-by-the-french-left/