Debate: Why France needs the Fifth Republic
Retrieved on:
Monday, September 25, 2023
Revolution, Vichy, Democracy, French Fourth Republic, Violence, Face, Fifth Republic, Politics, Constitutional Council (France), Policy, Fourth Republic, Marriage, Algerian War, University College Dublin, Constitutional Council, Single person, Third Republic, Government, National Assembly, Thought, Fault, Das Rãs River, La France Insoumise, Student, French Revolution, Marquis de Condorcet, Time, National Rally, Power, Assembly, Conscience, Drug, Management
Established in 1958 after the government collapsed in the throes of the Algerian War, the new constitution featured a president with considerable powers.
Key Points:
- Established in 1958 after the government collapsed in the throes of the Algerian War, the new constitution featured a president with considerable powers.
- In 2022, both the far right (Rassemblement National) and the far left (La France Insoumise) successfully sent a staggering number of representatives to the assembly.
- However unprecedented, this result only confirmed that any political party needs local anchorage and time to climb the constitutional ladder.
Taming executive power, ensuring political stablity
- The Third Republic (1870–1940) modernised the country and implemented state laws that schooled multiple generations into becoming citizens.
- It was not without flaws: between 1876 and 1940, 101 cabinets came and went, essentially due to parliamentary instability and a total absence of authority within the executive power.
- France’s defeat in 1940 finished off the Third Republic and eventually led to the Vichy Régime.
Looking to Germany and the UK
- Today, when finding fault with France’s institutions, the systems of neighbouring countries such as Germany and Britain are often brought up.
- The comparison is not apt, however, for British and German parliamentary systems do not meet France’s standards for process and governance.
- And while such systems succeed in Britain and Germany, France’s history has shown that it is a nation that regards political compromise as a sign of institutional weakness.
- Nothing today, save for unpopular reforms presented to parliament and Emmanuel Macron’s general unpopularity can justify overthrowing France’s constitution.
The flip side of power
- While the Fifth Republic certainly confers great power to its presidents, and so draws political hatred and violence against them (rather than against the assembly), this system guarantees political stability.
- Calling for the establishment of new institutions at a time of social crisis and spreading populism is not productive.
- Citizens across France certainly distrust Emmanuel Macron, but this need not entail an automatic rejection of the nation’s institutions.
- While it certainly places significant power into the hands of a single person, the constitution ensures that it is still up to the people to decide who shall govern their lives.