Can the NPA be a member of the “Popular Front” despite its obvious support for the massacres of October 7, 2023? If the presence of La France insoumise in the agreement no longer seems to be debated, that of Philippe Poutou’s party could be a red line for the social democrats.
Bringing together too much is dividing? You have four days before officially submitting your candidacies for the legislative elections. Will the New Anti-Capitalist Party, a Trotskyist movement accustomed to permanent splits, be able to create a division within the new “Popular Front” of the left, which brings together the far left, the Socialist Party and the Greens? At the heart of the controversy, the position of the NPA on the evening of October 7, 2023.
An untenable position
In a statement published on its website, the far-left party announced its total support for the Palestinians, without ever condemning the massacres of civilians committed by Hamas. The NPA declared its support for “means of struggle that they chose to resist”inviting the left to “remember the necessary solidarity with the resistance struggles against oppression and occupation”.
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This support for “the offensive […] of resistance » – which earned Philippe Poutou’s party legal proceedings for advocating terrorism – had passed under part of the media radar on October 7, but resurfaced when the NPA announced “respond positively to the call of the seven organizations which initiated the Popular Front. […] The urgency is for unity against fascism and the construction of a counter-offensive of the popular classes. »
The left still united?
But at the heart of the alliance of the left, some want to be reassuring about the potential divisions that could punctuate the group on the subject of the NPA. By telephone, Léon Deffontaines, former head of the PCF list who failed to pass the 5% mark, explains and gives pledges on the fight against anti-Semitism: “We have never procrastinated: we are not here to count the good and bad points, but to write a new page. This page must be exemplary, particularly in the fight against anti-Semitism. If the NPA adds its signature, that means that in the end they are clear on the political project that we are going to carry, and this political project will be clear on these questions. »
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Contacted by Marianne, a Socialist Party executive who wishes to remain anonymous brushes aside any controversy and justifies the agreement with the New Anti-Capitalist Party: “It’s no longer October 7th. The controversy will not have the same weight. The NPA was already in the Nupes, the logic of the rally is that it is there again. »
An anti-“Popular Front” argument on the right
Gabriel Attal, short-lived Prime Minister and leader of the Renaissance bloc’s legislative campaign, spoke this morning on France inter sa “sadness”hoping to rally all moderate left voters to his camp: “I campaigned in the Socialist Party. I am sad to see this party lining up behind rebellious France. I am sad to see social democrats siding with the NPA. […] I am sad to see those who were the defenders of Dreyfus with those who are being prosecuted for advocating terrorism. »
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In the process, the Renaissance party shared on X (formerly Twitter) two visuals from the NPA which recalled its favorable position to ” resistance “ of Hamas, taking care to mention the first secretary of the PS: “So it is with the NPA that Olivier Faure and the Socialist Party are forming an alliance? » The leader of the PS declared on RMC that he was not in principle hostile to constituencies being allocated to the new ally: “For the moment, I have not seen any constituencies allocated to the NPA… We can have an NPA candidate! Those who do not share the project will not be candidates! »
Bernard Carayon, former Les Républicains deputy – and defender of the alliance with the RN – expressed his indignation: “The Popular Front of Jaurès’ party is joined by the NPA, which is the subject of an investigation for advocating terrorism. Before justifying the action of Hamas, he had joined Rouillan, the terrorist killer of Action Directe. »
Le Pen seizes the opportunity
The far right, which hopes to mobilize against the left bloc by recalling the mistakes of the rebels and its allies against anti-Semitism, also condemns. “The so-called Popular Front which allies itself with the NPA, the most violent extreme left, support of Hamas and the rioters, intends to accelerate the collapse of institutions and anarchy”reacted Marine Le Pen on X.
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Éric Ciotti, new ally of the RN after his proposed alliance with the troops of Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella, gives the same story: “The threat of the “popular front” is increasing with the enlargement of the NPA. The only answer is the union of republicans and patriots in the face of the danger from the far left! » He knows the Republican cordon.
