Confusion or Unity in France?
Pfeiffer, Edouard
Confusion or Unity in France? By Edouard PfeHfer FBENCH politic.—or, rather, Allied policial with regard to Franca—are more confused than ever. In the United States as well as in France the...
...In the immense majority it consisted of good Frenchmen...
...It may be involved ia varies* agreements which were reached at Teheran...
...The P visional Government st Algiers includes ministers of the socialist left like Adrian Tixier, ministers of the extreme right like M. de la Vigerie, and members of Parliament from the center...
...The meat violent of them became apparent after the execution of Pucheu...
...In the United States as well as in France the question as to whether th* administration of liberated regions should be handed over to the Provisional Government of Algiers is being asked with mounting insistence...
...In the case of Fete in and the armistice it ushered ia France's downfall...
...Th* mailer is one which eaa be viewed frees many angle...
...But the Emperor Napoleon III himself gsv* us th* definition of Bonapartism which we require: "The nature of democracy is to personify itself in ths person of a man...
...His own psychology Charles de Gsulle has sufficiently revealed in his book, The Edge of the Sword, published in 1932...
...Others criticise him for whst they call dictatorial tendencies...
...These ¦sea picture, after the victory, s world in which It will be astsaaary te defend the "economic inde-psadearr" af France and to assure the country of seif-eameteaey la foodstuff...
...Such proposals cii be pleasing to no on* but the Germans, and Dr...
...Perhaps the French have taken themselves too seriously, but other small nstions have done the same...
...Such slogans repeated s hundred times psopsgate the sort of feeling which has inspired them...
...He became at the same time chief of the state, of the government and of the armed force...
...Some Allied journalists and politicians hsv* demanded Dakar, th* French Antilles, New Caledonia, and even Indo-China...
...Whan a Frenchman identifies bath France aad democracy with a man Its natural critical aWeaase brae* dean...
...But there have been other official voices making statements very disturbing to French minds...
...There will be ne liberation for s democratic France if, in aiding the Allies te destroy Nasi and Vichy cantrel, the I irmh people allow themselves to be won ever te this complex...
...Two 5 ears later, in 19S4, his book, "Toward a Professional Army...
...The leadership af Charles de Goalie is tied ap with a nationalist camples...
...In such aa atmosphere open criticism becomes extremely difficult...
...Oae might mm well apeak af neo-faarism in eraer te describe aa eaviroameet in which we ¦stall lire within a framework of organised national scoaamico mare or leas under state control...
...Verax ia the pen name ef a prominent European journalist well known as an informed observer of French oolitic...
...fact* of the case have been made available to th* American public...
...It is on this account that when General de Gaulle demands Equality for France he speaks in the name of the immense majority of the French people whether they are Gaullists or not...
...TlIE whole proceeding teems to be guided by a powerful logic...
...This book and "The Edge of the Sword" show as already the temper ef de Gaulle, the intransigeance of his vi-ws, new well-known...
...We publish today two articles by distinguished Europesns which will contribate toward a better understanding of the varying viewspoiats ef aon-Gaullist...
...They object, moreover, to the current disregard of th* last regularly elected French Parliament...
...But both French and Americans realise that both Gaullists and non-GauHists now take their positions for reasons which have been changed by the course of event...
...Frenchmen do not disregard the fact that the republic cf tomorrow cannot be identical with that of yesterday...
...It is because the dsy after the arrival of the Americans in North Africa all Frenchmen, with the exception of a handful of trait is, were partisans in the struggle against the invader...
...A country which suffers all the hardships of invasion has a natural tendency to grow irritable, and its national pride may grow out of proportion...
...Others find fsult with him lor making an alliance with the Communists...
...It is up to General de Gsulle to make his choice...
...The inevitable results of this could be foreseen...
...They hold fast to the idea of « parliamentary government...
...From then on former divergences disappeared...
...As Harold Callender comments (New York Time*, April 8, 1944), de Gaulle might well say: "The Republic, it is 1." In the first place, he himself, "leader of the Free French...
...but they treat the General as the incarnation of th* Republic...
...It is malevolent to represent the French attitude on this basic point as proof of hostility toward the British or the Americans...
...But in place of yesterday's quarrels are there not ''Ideological differences which new separate de Gaullists from their adversaries...
...Ia this insistence upon independence and equality th* result of ingratitude or txcessiv* pride...
...aaaasaw* THf INIfMflA OF VI MVUI n ,i ¦ i As the iavssioa liberates expanding aecUeaa of French territory diacasaioa ef the American atUtod* toward da Gaelic rise* te a crisis...
...Waea It Intiljr MuMMCMrr for then, a take It iato account, they drafted the famous larfcereUon of June 14, ltiz, in which da Gauile for he first thaw acted as political leader and as leader of 'roach reconstruction...
...Finally, there is the constant talk about a Europe divided into spheres of influence by England and Russia, of control by ths Big Four, of th* reeducation of the French people...
...The past cannot be wiped out in a dsy...
...This colony was for him "th* refuge of French sovereignty," the territory where took place, sccording to his own words, his seizure of power...
...It in when Frenchmen discuss the steps whereby a regalar government is to be restored In France that unity comes to an end and aharp oppositions appear...
...On* could paraphrase this to mean J personal power exercised in the name of nstionsl sovereignty...
...Ths Gaullists insist upon the necessity of reestablishing order in the departments as they are liberated, and of punishing the traitors before it is possible to establish a nsticnal government and hold rrgulsr elections...
...Why...
...The essential feature of "Caullism" is, on the contrary, that the General has maintained in his own person the continuity of French government...
...But the problem look* different—it* strangeness disappears—if one subjects the men and the movements involved to a psychological-social analysis...
...Then, he and the Free French Committee of London, a body named by him...
...It is equally false to interpret General de Gaulle's praise of Russia as a threat to the Anglo-Saxons...
...This sort of stste socialism baa been accepted by some French business leaders as easily as the corporatissi of Vichy a*as by ethers...
...Not now...
...Within the das.astir scene, this concern with ajstssanl sovereignty, witfc its supremacy over sU aooHtisat af parties or iateresU, leads to the use ml a set mt words aad ideas which ge beyond iseaecrstk concepts...
...Correspondents in Algiers draw sttention to the interpretstions of American policy which are current over there...
...Re aiCOSStS willing to accept sny ex ptaastfon at face value...
...He knew them "well enough to have no doubts s to their patriotism...
...French confusion at the present time is, then, but a matter of appearances...
...Politicians have often resorted to it But it has lost none of its effectiveness through age and use...
...According to this law it is impossible to have a legitimate provisional government in France without an approving vote by a majority of departmental General Councils...
...But if they develop any tendency to go over to the opposition, they are polled up short by the picture that baa been built up in the minds of the dangers which * France will face in her international relations...
...But it ia important that rulers ahmuid not hi permitted t* build thair lamdartkip an the resulting nationmUatii limitation But whet is it, besieaily, that de Gaulle is saying to the French...
...It* editors fsvor every action which will restore the French people te their place ia the world...
...Unfortunately aenliment often interferes with the operations of logic...
...ends with an appeal te th* leader, political as well as military: "It is necessary that a matter appear on the scene, independent in his judgments, unquestioned aa to his orders, accepted by public opinion, eager te assume responsibility, a man strong enough to impose his will and sufficiently clever te seduce the mind of the nation, great enough for the greatest tasks...
...That they shall become under his leadership "a nation pure and tough and dependent on no one but herself...
...The worst feature of the matter is that in certain rircles these interpretations, fantastic as they are, may by this time he spread and accepted in good faith...
...But, however important may be domestic political problems, they ar* necessarily overshadowed by the issues of the war, issues which involve the basic interests of our life...
...How is one to define such a political system...
...They understand that it will be necessary to institute drastic restrictions on economic liberty...
...But they consider it healthier and safer to go about it in another way...
...There is too much secret diplomacy...
...It is because after the occupation of the whole of Frence in November, 1942, the fiction of a free French government disappeared...
...Authority, yes...
...A policy devised to lead te this result can be defended only on a basis of facta...
...Dictatorship, no...
...For the situation has changed, and it is necessary to face the present realities...
...In order to continue Ihii advantage all that will be needed in a liberated France will be a controlled prm or, at Itatt, a prill controlled with regard to the foreign information which it imparts...
...Liberal* who talk of the revolutionary character af Ganllism had better stop to ask them selves what sort of revolution is contemplated...
...This creation of his was not merely a military chief...
...The men cf the left prsise de Gaulle for his economic and social program...
...In the ordinances of October 27, 1940, and in a promulgation on November 16, he expressed himself , as fellows: "In the name of the people and of the French Empire we, General ie GemUo, leader ef the Free French...
...Nstionsl unity against the collaborationists became a reality...
...business at the expense of Franc...
...General Smuts has the idea of doing...
...They accept the idea of a strong government, but they do not wish to sacrifice their political liberties...
...They object to ccntrol by any sort of camarilla or dictatorship under any form or name...
...Four month* -later, after having failed at Dakar, the General arrived at Brazzaville, capital of French Equatorial Africa...
...The same man who based his appeal of 1940 on the fact that "France does net stead ajoaa," hew again add again la l»4l and 1*42 gen* the length, at emrssing that "Frenchmen are fighting for France alone...
...They include pro-Vichy prejudices, a desire to save French capitalism and imperialism...
...His own propagandists admit that he was describing himtelf when he sketched the features of the "leader...
...It ia clear, at any rate, that mark of the discission haa net been based upon adequate information...
...ThIS is the bone of contention...
...Not only, according to this theory, is the Vichy Government a "pseudo-government," but the National Assembly gathered at Vichy cn July 10 and 11, 1940, was but "a pretended National Assembly...
...It is tied in with the wh*4* problem ef ear attitude toward the conquered countries ef Eorepe...
...They must have a chance to else ap de Gaalle for what he really is, the symbol ef their own re-aistsnce but s lesder in whom they cannot repose faith without exposing themselves to grsve peril...
...This declaration which con keaas at the same time and to the same extent the *ird Republic aad the Vichy regime has for its core he ides of national sovereignty...
...They aee de Gaulle as the defender of French sovereignty...
...Th* Gaullists refuse to listen to talk of "Bonaparl ism...
...Not long ago the President of the Governmentof Algiers telegraphed to the newspaper F ranee-Amerafne urging that we unite and forget past differences...
...Our very first concern must be to give France a government which can speak in her name...
...In their opinion action should be left to the departmental General Councils, bodies to which the Ccnstitution of 1875 gave authority for the administration of France in case the country was occupied and parts were liberated...
...Putting France in s position which will ensble her to act as an independent nation will hasten the victory and save the population from the loss of lives and property not required by military necessity...
...As the Latin proverb puts it, We mutt lire in order to pkiloeophize...
...If the Franco-Russian alliance is natural and in conformity with the interests of the two nations, it is nevertheless true that all Frenchmen would be happy to join in a Franco-American alliance and to do what they can to increase the collaboration between the United States and Russia...
...Beyond this, it is important to guard the status of France among th* nations...
...Here we have a peculiar psychological twist to deal with...
...This sort of slogan aad the feeling Sebiad it should be easily recognizable among Frenchmen...
...To disregard them creates the danger of disorganisation, which might result in unfortunate opportunities for personal leadership...
...This second thesis has been maintained in all of its implications by these men from thst day to this despite a contrary opinion expressed by the Presidents Jean-neney and Herriot...
...Edouard Pfeiger was among the top leader* of th* Radical Socialist Party...
...It is important that in the future aha shall be able to take her place as aa equal alongside the United States, England, and Russia...
...And the danger of inch a limitation upon the newapaptri of France tt by no meant imaginary...
...Just as the king* at Franc* had their legal authorities on the rights of succession, so the General has nis jurists...
...It is this word gremtneae, constantly repeated bet never explained, which famishes the motif of the final section of th* book: "Greatness i* indivisible...
...7hIS sort of nationalism feeds on defiance of other countries...
...They maintain that, excepting for Brazzaville, there ia no regular French authority...
...For two years past unfavorable reports of American views have been set in circulation among the French underground...
...Daring the cummer of Mil, mm of the advisers af the General declared: "What wa need to a form of aatioaahatic socialism " Oae mt hie propagandist* talked af "aeo-demee-vacy...
...On June 18, 1940, in London, the General made his famous appeal for French resistance: "France does not stand alone...
...Americans ar* by no means agreed with regard to this subject—and neither are the French...
...And, finally, he and the Committee of Algiers, where he succeeded in less than a year in assuming a position of unique authority...
...The establishment of such a government is as important to our Allies as it is to ourselves...
...Clrse tier, bind us to them...
...Hang of the adherents af l.aullnm com from democratic circles aad clearly perceive the authoritarian direction af the General's domestic policies...
...Must France suffer a second time and in the same way at the time of reconstruction, the tlsse when France cannot possibly ssve herself unless she understands the necessities of collective security...
...Only the future can determine how serious it is...
...There will be farther articles on this problem as the reronquest of France succeeds snd the political situstioa develops...
...About this idea are reran the characteristic tendencies of Gaullism as it rocks itself oat hi domestic and foreign policy...
...Representatives of the right rally about de Gaulle because in their opinion he is the only one who can suppress the Ccmmunist movement...
...Goebbels knows well how to mske use of them...
...Far persons of this ort thia offers another chance te csrry forward the "managerial revelation...
...They hsve nothing but sn historical interest...
...DeGaulle and the Gaullist Complex By Verax THIS debate about de Gaulle has assumed in recent days a strange—even a fantastic—character...
...For his philosophy of leadership is also a philosophy of government It is founded upon th* ignoring of morals and of the place of the "common man" in society, upon his admiration for th* modern dictators who have risen to grest heights "through nothing but their audacity," and, finally, upon th* notion that we can achieve nothing great without great men and thai these eminent ones must depend upon their own fighting strength to resch their proper plsce in society...
...The General's nam* baa hiremi a syasbeL Shrill argument is mere energetic than eaUghtcniag...
...Such misrepresentations have been of assistance to the agent* of the Ceneral in securing followers of his political leadership...
...This is by no means a new trick...
...It is necessary, then, to sesrch elsewhere for the cause of the differences between the Gaullists snd non Gaullists The division Is caused by varioas sttitudes toward the future of France...
...And few...
...It is an aspect of th* psychology both of th* General and of his friends that they accept ths identifier'" n of Franc* and a man...
...Now—.as formerly —the French do not sgree on matters of domestic political pclicy...
...But wherever the question of the basic interests of the country come into question they are ready to unite—Gaullista and non-Gaullists—to affirm their faith in the destiny of their country and their empire...
...And, in open agreement with the Bonapartist tradition, certain Gaullist groups proclaim that in the fourth republic the same man should bs head of the state and of tha^ government In 1940 the General may already have identified himself with Franco but certainly not with democracy...
...These men represent the French state, the continuity of the French constitution...
...In particular, it flourishes wherever opposition to the United States gains a foothold, an opposition which is by no means spontaneous among the democratic masses of France...
...They have confidence in the statements of Winston Churchill and President Roosevelt with regard to their country...
...Misunderstandings with regard to Morocco ar* evidently in the air...
...The New L*ad*r believes that the earliest possible restoration of democratic government In France is essential to th* future of Europe...
...What sre these basic interests...
...ianwrcJ tk+Jmm*Ui character at French .•istance...
...The same juridical extremism should lead the General and his legal advisers to reject the application of Trereneuc law of 1872...
...During the avtnmer of 1941,he outlawed the lis* I that word...
...A monopoly of rttetioni with the French undir-ground hat been the great tit advantage enjoyed by the Central't political machin...
...la the field of foreign^ affairs everyone knows by new that the chief preoccupation of the GaullisU is to play up French sovereignty . . . even to the point of endangering unity with the Allies...
...Discussions about these matters belong henceforth to the psst...
...Am inferiority temples, a hypernntitwiiy, is m-«i ita6lc m a cannery which aee »•»* de/eafed, op-pressed, warn down...
...He served, in addition, on Premier Dais-dier's personal staff in charge of foreign affairs...
...Likewise in the anti-Gaullist camp Socialists make common cause with conservatives...
...During that period the Gaullista in ^mW...
...But today the opposition of those influenced by past sttitudes is gradually disappearing...
...The non-Gaullists do not deny this necessity...
...The French will not really be exercising political liberty unless they first enjoy the possibility of tsking stock of these dengers...
...The French people themselves sre still very much divided with regard to the armistice and to the part played by Marshall Petain...
...De Gaulle has appointed to important positions administrators who served Vichy up to 1942 snd even beyond thst dste...
...The French are grateful to their liberators...
...Among the ill-informed and super-patriotic it always has its effect...
...It is full of danger for the demo crstir wsy of life snd the future course of international relations...
...This is a world war...
Vol. 27 • June 1944 • No. 26
