Corsica: What do the nationalists actually want from Macron?
Evie Burrows-Taylor - [email protected]
Published: 6 Feb, 2018 CET.
Updated: Tue 6 Feb 2018 14:53 CET
French President Emmanuel Macron paid his first visit to Corsica on Tuesday where he will hear demands from nationalists. But what is it they actually want from him?
Macron's visit comes two months after a nationalist alliance trounced his centrist La Republique en Marche (LREM) party in regional elections, boosting their quest for greater autonomy for the island of 330,000 people.
And on Saturday, thousands of nationalists set the tone for his two-day stay with a peaceful march in the island's capital Ajaccio to demand "democracy" and "respect for the Corsican people".
However unlike in Catalonia, these nationalists aren't seeking independence (yet). So, what do they want?
Pardon for "political prisoners"
One of the more sensitive topics for Corsican nationalists is the subject of the release of "political prisoners", with nationalists long calling for an amnesty on these individuals.
Among them are Pierre Alessandri, Alain Ferrandi and Yvan Colonna who have been sentenced to life imprisonment for the assassination of government officer Préfet Claude Erignac in 1998.
However there is some dispute over whether "political prisoner" is the correct term to use in this situation.
"The term political prisoner does not appear to be legal, they are people sentenced for one or more offenses that are against the law," spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice Youssef Badr told Le Monde.
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Rather than a full pardon, at the moment Corsican prisoners detained in France can request a transfer to Corsica, something which is looked at on a "case-by-case basis".
"There is no opposition in principle [...], but no unconditional right to it either," said Badr.
Joint-official status for the Corsican language
One of the biggest bones of contention between the French government and the nationalists in Corsica is that of language.
The nationalists want Corsican to be instated as an official language which means it would be used alongside French within the legal system and on national identity papers.
On top of that people would be encouraged to use it "in local communities, administration, education, media, cultural industries, the socio-economic and sports worlds".
If the nationalists got their way, it would also be mandatory for Corsican children to receive a bilingual education and they would be expected to reach a certain level at the end of their schooling.
Photo: AFP
Nationalists have also called for civil servants and public officials to have been trained in Corsican.
Naturally there are some concerns about this from the French government, including the fact that it would limit access to positions in the civil service.
And the French state, which is highly centralised, considers French to be the only official language of France.
Resident status for Corsicans
The nationalists also want to create a resident status for people who have been living on the island for five years or more.
The idea behind it is to stop real estate speculation by saying only those with permanent resident status would be able to own property.
And Corsica Libera, a group which advocates full independence for Corsica, goes one step further, wanting the time period for securing permanent status to be ten years.
The problem behind these demands is very real.
In 2013, around 35 percent of dwellings in Haute-Corse were second homes and this went for 37.6 percent in Corse-du-Sud, according to France's national statistics agency INSEE.
"The Corsicans are forced to leave Corsica, they leave without hope of return," argued President of the Corsican Assembly Jean-Guy Talamoni at the time.
However, the measure has been found to be unconstitutional by many legal experts as it creates discrimination in access to property.
Photo: AFP
Inclusion in the French constitution
It might seem surprising but Corsica is not mentioned in the French constitution and, unsurprisingly, its nationalists would like to change that.
Professor of constitutional law Wanda Mastor who hails from Corsica supports the inclusion of the island in the constitution and a new status for the community which would give it more autonomy without "hindering the principle of the indivisibility of the Republic".
"It is unthinkable that Corsica is combined [with France] and has silent status," she said, according to a report in Le Monde.
And it isn't only Corsicans who believe the island deserves a place in the constitution.
In 2013, lauded French constitutionalist Guy Carcassonnehe said: "It is indecent, illogical and insulting that Corsica is not mentioned in the supreme text."
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Macron's visit comes two months after a nationalist alliance trounced his centrist La Republique en Marche (LREM) party in regional elections, boosting their quest for greater autonomy for the island of 330,000 people.
And on Saturday, thousands of nationalists set the tone for his two-day stay with a peaceful march in the island's capital Ajaccio to demand "democracy" and "respect for the Corsican people".
However unlike in Catalonia, these nationalists aren't seeking independence (yet). So, what do they want?
Pardon for "political prisoners"
One of the more sensitive topics for Corsican nationalists is the subject of the release of "political prisoners", with nationalists long calling for an amnesty on these individuals.
Among them are Pierre Alessandri, Alain Ferrandi and Yvan Colonna who have been sentenced to life imprisonment for the assassination of government officer Préfet Claude Erignac in 1998.
However there is some dispute over whether "political prisoner" is the correct term to use in this situation.
"The term political prisoner does not appear to be legal, they are people sentenced for one or more offenses that are against the law," spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice Youssef Badr told Le Monde.
READ ALSO:
Rather than a full pardon, at the moment Corsican prisoners detained in France can request a transfer to Corsica, something which is looked at on a "case-by-case basis".
"There is no opposition in principle [...], but no unconditional right to it either," said Badr.
Joint-official status for the Corsican language
One of the biggest bones of contention between the French government and the nationalists in Corsica is that of language.
The nationalists want Corsican to be instated as an official language which means it would be used alongside French within the legal system and on national identity papers.
On top of that people would be encouraged to use it "in local communities, administration, education, media, cultural industries, the socio-economic and sports worlds".
If the nationalists got their way, it would also be mandatory for Corsican children to receive a bilingual education and they would be expected to reach a certain level at the end of their schooling.
Photo: AFP
Nationalists have also called for civil servants and public officials to have been trained in Corsican.
Naturally there are some concerns about this from the French government, including the fact that it would limit access to positions in the civil service.
And the French state, which is highly centralised, considers French to be the only official language of France.
Resident status for Corsicans
The nationalists also want to create a resident status for people who have been living on the island for five years or more.
The idea behind it is to stop real estate speculation by saying only those with permanent resident status would be able to own property.
And Corsica Libera, a group which advocates full independence for Corsica, goes one step further, wanting the time period for securing permanent status to be ten years.
The problem behind these demands is very real.
In 2013, around 35 percent of dwellings in Haute-Corse were second homes and this went for 37.6 percent in Corse-du-Sud, according to France's national statistics agency INSEE.
"The Corsicans are forced to leave Corsica, they leave without hope of return," argued President of the Corsican Assembly Jean-Guy Talamoni at the time.
However, the measure has been found to be unconstitutional by many legal experts as it creates discrimination in access to property.
Photo: AFP
Inclusion in the French constitution
It might seem surprising but Corsica is not mentioned in the French constitution and, unsurprisingly, its nationalists would like to change that.
Professor of constitutional law Wanda Mastor who hails from Corsica supports the inclusion of the island in the constitution and a new status for the community which would give it more autonomy without "hindering the principle of the indivisibility of the Republic".
"It is unthinkable that Corsica is combined [with France] and has silent status," she said, according to a report in Le Monde.
And it isn't only Corsicans who believe the island deserves a place in the constitution.
In 2013, lauded French constitutionalist Guy Carcassonnehe said: "It is indecent, illogical and insulting that Corsica is not mentioned in the supreme text."
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