After the family tribute, the public tribute. A ceremony takes place this Thursday late morning in Paris in memory of Jean-Marie Le Pen, former representative of the French far right, who died on January 7 and buried four days later in La Trinité-sur-Mer.
It is a “religious and homage” ceremony, according to the entourage of the former president of the National Front, now National Rally (RN). It is organized at the Notre-Dame-du Val-de-Grâce church, which is attached to the diocese of the Armed Forces. The holding of this mass open to the public was decided by Marine Le Pen and her sisters Marie-Caroline and Yann, the first of three daughters to succeed her father at the head of the party.
According to our journalist present on site, several personalities were turned away by the RN security service. These include Yvan Benedetti, of the Pétainist movement, and Henry de Lesquen, convicted several times for provoking hatred and contesting crimes against humanity.
The photo of the 2002 presidential election
RTL radio explains that the choice of location was made in a desire to recall the military past of Jean-Marie Le Pen. He actually fought in Indochina and Algeria. But he was also accused of acts of torture during his time under the flag. “I do this under the orders of my captain. We take the risks that are linked to war,” he admitted in 2019 during an interview.
During the mass, a photo used for his 2022 presidential campaign, where he reached the second round and received less than 18% of the vote, will be exhibited. The image was already used last Saturday in La Trinité-sur-Mer. A choir must perform sea and religious songs at the end of the ceremony which must begin at 11 a.m. and last 1h30.
Dieudonné and Alain Soral are not welcome
The crowd could be quite large. The activists were also contacted by the RN. The church has a capacity of less than 500 seats. Two giant screens were placed outside. Journalists will not be able to enter the religious building.
Dieudonné, a comedian convicted several times for his remarks, obtained authorization to participate in the service. He had taken legal action in this regard, even though he wears an electronic bracelet and his movements are limited. He highlighted the fact that Jean-Marie Le Pen was his daughter’s godfather. According to Le Figaro, the Le Pen family ultimately opposed his arrival. Far-right essayist Alain Soral is also persona non grata.
The RN staff will be present, including its president, Jordan Bardella. Many French and European parliamentarians from the party will also be on site. A security service will ensure security.
“By opening the ceremony to the public, we expose ourselves to the arrival of a whole bunch of individuals that the RN no longer wanted to see in its meetings,” worries an elected official from the party, interviewed by franceinfo. Jean-Marie Le Pen founded the National Front with the support, among others, of Pierre Bosquet, a former Waffen-SS, a military branch of the German Nazi regime during the Second World War.
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