A new poll has found that a majority of French people support the sentiments expressed in a letter signed by active duty and retired members of the military warning that the country is heading towards a “civil war” caused by failed multiculturalism and attacks on French identity.
Around 1,000 servicemembers signed the letter, including 20 retired generals, warning President Emmanuel Macron of “several deadly dangers” threatening France, including “Islamism and the hordes of the banlieue,” a reference to the fractured suburbs around major cities with high crime and immigrant populations.
The signatories also blame the “anti-racism” movement for seeking to create a “racial war” by attacking symbols of French cultural cohesion and identity, including statues.
The letter blames “fanatic partisans” for seeking to create divisions within communities that have created a vacuum for Islamists to assert their control.
“The hour is grave, France is in peril,” states the letter, which was published on 21 April – the 60th anniversary of a failed coup d’état.
The military servicemembers warn that the treatment of the “gilets jaunes” or yellow vest protesters exemplifies how the government has used the police “as proxy agents and scapegoats” for brutal oppression.
“It is no longer the time to procrastinate, otherwise tomorrow civil war will put an end to this growing chaos and deaths – for which you will be responsible – with numbers in the thousands,” the letter concludes.
Despite the letter being condemned by the government and the media, a new poll has found that a majority of the French people agree with its substance.
A survey by Harris Interactive found that 58% of respondents “support the words of the soldiers,” reports Valeurs.
A clear majority – 84% – said violence was increasing in society and 73% thought the country was disintegrating. Almost three quarters think the “anti-racism” movement is having the opposite impact and making race relations worse.
Almost half (49%) also think that the military should be sent in to occupy problem areas, “which would act on its own to restore order.”
Only one in three respondents said the signatories should be punished, despite the minister in charge of the armed forces, Florence Parly, indicating that active duty members would face sanction.
“Two immutable principles guide the action of members of the military with regard to politics: neutrality and loyalty,” tweeted Parly.
A university in Berlin told women being repeatedly harassed by a sex offender migrant male not to call the police as it may be seen as racist.
The suspect has been sexually harassing female students for weeks around campus at Berlin’s Free University, but the left-wing General Students’ Committee (AStA) has urged them not to alert authorities.
The Morgenpost newspaper reported on an email sent out to students by the group which said women should be wary of appearing racist and putting the sex offender at risk.
“We would like to point out that police operations for people affected by racism are generally associated with an increased risk of experiencing police violence,” the email stated, adding that most police officers are “not sufficiently trained in dealing with psychologically exceptional situations.”
“Therefore such engagements often ‘by unnecessary use of force are escalated.'” the statement added.
Morgenpost reported that the university’s email indicated, “the concern here is obviously less for the potential victim than for the perpetrator.”
Instead of calling the police, the letter says students should instead contact the security service of the university or the social psychiatric service.
“However, the latter can only apprehend an individual with their consent and thus is an unhelpful suggestion,” reports Remix News.
“Despite an intervention, the sex offender appears to resist any attempts to change his ways. Apparently, there was at least one conversation between students and the alleged sex offender, but he has shown no willingness to stop harassing women.”
Berlin police responded to the story by urging women to call them if they felt unsafe.
“Anyone who is in danger or affected by a crime or becomes aware of an emergency situation of others should not let anything or anyone stop them from acting. Call us – dial 110! We are here for you,” the police department tweeted.
Such behavior is nothing new in Germany, which has accepted millions of migrants, the vast majority of them young men, from the Middle East and North Africa over the last decade.
After the mass molestation of women in Cologne by migrant men on New Year’s Eve 2015, the local feminist group infamously responded by visiting the city’s migrant center and handing out flowers to asylum seekers.
Berlin was also hit by a wave of unrest on December 31st last year, although outside of the city itself the media barely covered the story.