Emmanuel Macron was in Corsica this Thursday to talk about a future more autonomous status for the island. A process initiated several years ago, which concluded, after eighteen months of exchange with the government, with the adoption of a text, on July 4, by the Corsican Regional Assembly. To take stock of this day, which the president described as “historic” for Corsica, we interviewed Thierry Dominici, lecturer at the University of Bordeaux, specialist in nationalist movements, and particularly Corsica.
Emmanuel Macron spoke of “a historic moment”, is this really the case?
I would be tempted to say yes. Yes, because even the proposal to introduce Corsica into the constitution shows a historic desire to move forward on this issue. Because in the constitutional revision of 1991, there was an article which said the Corsican people were an integral part of the French people, but this was rejected by the constitutional council. And since then, we had no longer spoken about the Corsican people. While here, for the case, it is quite interesting Macron spoke of autonomy for Corsica and states that this region deserves a specific status.
This speech is the culmination of eighteen months of discussions. In July the Corsican assembly voted for the “Autonomia” text and elected officials have six months to work on a text with the government. There are clearly three strong demands: co-officiality of the language, amnesty for political prisoners and resident status. Is it not on these points that the discussions risk collapsing?
So, yes and no. Because we must not forget, and this may anger some elected officials, but the president does not have to give all the lines. Its role in the Fifth Republic is to give the main line. This is what he did in the speech. He talked about a specific article, he talked about the language. And he went to the maximum possible that our constitution offers. That is to say that the co-officiality of the language, both the nationalists and the autonomists have known this from the beginning: there is no possibility of inserting this into the constitution. The language of the republic is French.
What is quite interesting is that Macron recognizes this linguistic heritage, at the same time as this historical and geographical heritage. It invites more Corsica in Corsica. And he hopes that this enters the public space. But I don’t really know what that means, other than a half-hearted co-officialization. The same goes for resident status. I heard the position of the nationalists. But French law cannot recognize this status because it creates inequality between nationals. I believe that Macron went to the maximum of what he could do as president of the Fifth, and guardian of the institutions.
In the context of constitutional revision, a 3/5 majority of the two chambers meeting in Congress is required, and this majority is not possible without the LRs who dominate the Senate…
What is quite extraordinary is that the Republicans said that the Rubicon not to be crossed was the autonomy of the legislative power. Macron spoke of the power of adaptation, therefore rather of decentralized power. And the president has already crossed the Rubicon concerning the identity of the Corsican people, cultural and historical recognition. What surprised me was that he recalled that Corsica was independent with a very modern constitution in 1755. Something that had never been done, except by a Prime Minister who was Mr. Rocard .
From there, there is a recognition of this specificity as a Corsican nation, not necessarily as a people. He also referred to the fact that Corsica, during the Second World War, had not collaborated with this idea of “Land of the Just”. So all this aims to demonstrate that in Corsica there is a republican spirit and that therefore, even if there is autonomy, this would not undermine our republican principles and values. That’s what’s interesting about this speech. For once it is tempered, the question is no longer politicized, it is political. It is no longer a nationalist-State confrontation, but a problem linked to the center-periphery divide.
Are we really going beyond a simple “more decentralization” or are we wrapping more advanced decentralization in the term autonomy to satisfy political demands?
I would be tempted to repeat Gilles Simeoni’s speech. He tells us: if there is no recognition of this demand for autonomy, there is a denial of democracy. It is true that it is the first time in France that on a regional level there are 70% of people who voted for an autonomy project. And I don’t have the impression that President Macron, a bit like at the time of political violence, is trying to satisfy the nationalists and control their violence by proposing changes but that he is attempting a social project. And Gérald Darmanin, also Minister of Overseas Territories, has other projects up his sleeve, which is the Polynesian and New Caledonian file.
A word perhaps on Gilles Simeoni. Is this an outcome of his political journey? A victory ? It took him a long time to win his majority, to bring the nationalists into line with the 2021 elections. For now, is his victory complete?
Yes, especially since in 2019, it was part of the pact proposed by Macron who did not want an alliance between nationalists and separatists. And there, for once we find ourselves in a majority nationalist system supported by the autonomists. But is this his victory? His victory was that of 2015, when he won the region, which made Gilles Simeoni surpass the tutelary image of his father, Edmond Simeoni.
By winning the region, he then overtakes Aléria (founding event of the contemporary independence movement in Corsica, of which Simeoni’s father was the main actor)?
So. Now all he gets is more. In 2014, Gilles Simeoni is a single person, without a political party who will win the town hall of Bastia, then the region and then build his party, Femu a Corsica. At the time, the only legitimacy he had was being the father’s son. And it’s a little sad because Edmond Simeoni’s brother, Max, died about ten days ago. He was the real intellectual. And he would have been really interesting to listen to. So the big victory was 2015. In 2021, he just consolidated his victory.
2015 was just after the FLNC laid down its arms and chose to play the electoral game. Is this day also a bit of their victory?
Somewhere yes. Because ultimately union is possible. After what can be annoying, and in Corsica we have always experienced these phenomena especially during periods of negotiations with the State, is that we are not safe from small groups or nebulae passing through. action to break the process.
Is it too early to talk about the scope of this autonomy? Will we have to wait to see what is in the texts?
Will the separatists accept the idea of this progress and remain timid on everything that concerns the legislative power while waiting for the rest of the process? Or end up with a blockage. I am more worried about the six months between Corsican elected officials than about the passage before the congress. Because once the guardian of the institutions, that is to say the president, himself crosses the Rubicon, I find it hard to see Congress disjudging him.
I understood that there would be transfers of skills, but not all. For example, in terms of land there would be a sort of protection at the level of speculation, but without resident status. On the other hand, a power of adaptation with the prefect which would make it possible to develop kinds of laws which would take into account the singularities in terms of land or real estate speculation.