Sarkozy and Chirac attend event marking France’s abolition of slavery

Monument commemorating the abolition of slavery, St Nazaire, France

May the 10th is the day France commemorates the abolition of slavery. The day was created last year by President Jacques Chirac, and seen by friends and foes alike as a breakthrough in France’s efforts to come to terms with its colonial past. But incoming president, Nicolas Sarkozy, who was also present at the ceremony, last year supported a controversial role which acknowledged the ‘positive role of colonialism’ and later said during political rallies that he “wasn’t remorseful” about the past.

No speeches at the ceremony in the Jardin de Luxembourg, but songs and poems, like this song, the liberty of the blacks, performed by Serge Hurot. And the inauguration of a monument, three links of a broken chain, symbolizing freedom. I asked Louis-George Tin, spokesperson for Le Cran, an organization which represents blacks living in France, what this day means to him:

First of all, it is a great victory because formally there was no date for such an event, abolition of slavery, so French black organizations, and not only human rights organizations in general asked for this day. So it is an historical victory. Secondly it is a way to promote cultural diversity and historical knowledge. So thanks to that it is easier now to speak about this issue in the society, and especially in the classrooms. So that is a great and important thing for us.

French President Jacques Chirac, right, and President-elect Nicolas Sarkozy, smile at supporters during a ceremony commemorating victims of slavery in Paris

Doctor Francoise Verges, member of the Committee to commemorate Slavery, and a sociology teacher in England, attended the ceremony as well.

You know, since the abolition of slavery in 1848, France never spoke again about slave trade and slavery. And we discovered that history barely six years ago. So it’s really the starting point of a large movement I hope of recovering history and looking at what that meant for today.

In how far does the collective memory for colored people of slave trade still echo in present day life?

Well in the former slavery society, Reunion, Martinique, Guadeloupe and Guyane, that memory is still there at present. It’s present even though it was repressed. But it’s present in the language, in the food, in the music. And also in the fact that people ask themselves: Who are we? We are black people, descendents of Africans, thrown on this island, and we’ve been told we are French, but nonetheless when we were free, we gathered citizenship, but we were still colonized, and do we belong to that national narrative of France, which does not give us any line to our history.

French President-elect Nicolas Sarkozy, right, and outgoing President Jacques Chirac, center, share a laugh as they meet Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour, left, at the Luxembourg gardens in Paris

Well, Nicolas Sarkozy, the president-elect, was there too. But past remarks he made sparked controversy. He said, among other things, that France should “not have remorse” about it’s past, on the contrary, it should be proud of its history. I asked Louis-George Tin what he thought of the presence of Nicolas Sarkozy at the meeting.

Well Mister Sarkozy is more than ambiguous. He is coming back from his holiday, to commemorate the event, which is a positive thing. But on the other side he made many remarks, for instance, we should not have any remorse about the history of colonization, it was a good thing, and all this, which is unbearable speech. So it is really hard to say what is going to happen now. Is he going to go on with this provocative attitude or is he going to change? Because he always says he’s changing. But I hope he’s not going to change every day. And I think it is not possible for him to go on. Because if he wants to have a positive relationship with other countries in the world, namely countries in Africa, it is not possible to insult statesmen like this all over the world. So he has to change his way. And I think he is already able to understand that. This is way he is coming to this commemoration first, before going to Africa.

For now, descendants of former slaves, people from the French colonies, are taking a wait- and- see attitude. It now remains to be seen in how far, and if, Sarkozy will manage to appease France’s offspring of its colonies, and if not, they will bmda varioe the first to remind him once again of France’s colonial past.