The rule of law “is a set of rules, a hierarchy of norms, judicial control, a separation of powers, but the source of the rule of law is democracy, it is the people sovereign”, said the figure of the Republicans in an interview on Sunday.
“We are scandalized”confides a ministerial advisor. 24 hours before his general policy declaration before the National Assembly scheduled for Tuesday, October 1, the Prime Minister, Michel Barnier, must confront a new controversy instigated by none other than his Minister of the Interior. After the refocusing of the Minister of the Economy, Antoine Armand, and the controversy that followed, Bruno Retailleau is the subject of strong criticism. “The rule of law is neither intangible nor sacred”, he said in The Sunday Journal a week after his appointment. “It is a set of rules, a hierarchy of norms, judicial control, a separation of powers, but the source of the rule of law is democracy, it is the sovereign people,” added senator Les Républicains de Vendée.
His declaration immediately aroused indignant reactions, on the left, but also within the presidential camp, an ally of LR in the Barnier government. The President of the National Assembly thus reminded the Minister of the Interior on Monday that the rule of law “protect our democracy”saying to himself “worry” of his words. “When the situation is tense, when there are crises, we must above all not call into question the rule of law”, estimated Yaël Braun-Pivet Monday morning on France 2. “Now is not the time to make divisive remarks”for her part, criticized Elisabeth Borne on BFMTV. “The rule of law is something sacred”insisted the former Prime Minister, calling for “avoid tensing the country”.
“The rule of law is what founds democracies. It is what protects each of us from arbitrariness. It is what was able to protect, when under the pressure of crowds with exacerbated passions by the populists, some were ready for the worst”recalled on the social network X the boss of MoDem deputies, Marc Fesneau. “The rule of law in a democracy is an intangible to ensure everyone’s equality before the law”also supported on X Agnès Pannier-Runacher, minister in the same government as Bruno Retailleau.
Some in the Macronist camp go even further in criticism. “Ona a Minister of the Interior who only communicates and who moves towards the extreme right”accuses the deputy Together for the Republic (EPR), Ludovic Mendes.
“Bruno Retailleau’s comments are identical to those of Marine Le Pen. It shocks me.”
Ludovic Mendes, EPR deputyat franceinfo
Former Renaissance president of the law committee, now sitting among the non-registered, the deputy Sacha Houlié even affirmed on “s“Without any other form of executive response, this policy alone justifies government censorship.”. “Retailleau will have to get out of the comfortable ‘all we have to do’ in his Senate office to learn to consult and find compromises to restore harmony. At this rate, it’s not won”tackles the related EPR deputy Stéphane Travert. “His definition of the rule of law is in complete contradiction with what I believe. The rule of law is what protects our democracy”adds the former minister.
The words of the “first cop in France” provoked reactions beyond just the political sphere. “Calling not to respect the rule of law is calling not to respect the laws that we have voted for collectivelylambasted Kim Reuflet, president of the Magistrates’ Union, on franceinfo. A France that leaves the rule of law means accepting that the State is not subject to the law, that everyone is not subject to the law and therefore, it is the reign of the arbitrary.” . It is “staggering, disastrous and truly very worrying”, echoed on franceinfo Patrick Beaudouin, president of the Human Rights League (LDH). “The rule of law is what characterizes democratic regimes, as opposed to authoritarian regimes now called ultra-liberal, it is even what distinguishes it from dictatorship, since dictatorship is the rejection of the rule of law”he developed.
However, defining the rule of law is not easy. “It’s a very complicated concept in reality, which was built in successive layers”explains Benjamin Morel, lecturer in public law at Paris-II University. “It is the subject of discussion, of interpretation, often due to the contexts”supports Thibaud Mulier, lecturer in public law at the University of Paris Nanterre.
“We are accustomed to teaching two complementary forms. First, the formal rule of law with the hierarchy of norms, where the vote on the law must respect the Constitution. And this is not what we are considering bringing back in question Bruno Retailleauanalyzes Benjamin Morel. Then there is the rule of law in the material sense, which is not only respect for the hierarchy of norms, but also for fundamental norms which are the subject of respect in principle.” But with “a margin of appreciation on the part of the judges”adds the specialist.
Bruno Retailleau’s comments on “the rule of law which is not sacred” are to be taken “two-way”specifies Thibaud Mulier: “Yes, it is not sacred, since our law is established by men and not nature or religion, but there is also an element of sacredness in the rule of law, it is a kind of common heritage States founded on ‘Reason’, which refers in its content to something which is sacred, namely freedom, the dignity of the human person, equality before the law…”
The declarations of the boss of Place Beauvau must also be placed in their context, that of the murder of Philippine, this 19-year-old student killed on the outskirts of the Bois de Boulogne. The suspect is a Moroccan, targeted by an OQTF and already convicted by French justice. In his interview with JDDBruno Retailleau also cites two legal cases in which foreigners are involved. “We can no longer accept protecting ourselves behind rules of law that do not protect our population. When the rules are faulty, they must be changed,” thus assures the Minister of the Interior, who repeats throughout interviews that he wants to turn the tables on security and immigration.
“In matters of immigration, it appears very complicated to reform it with constant law, if you do not return to international provisions or constitutional”notes Benjamin Morel. However, if our rule of law “is very moving, since when you add things, like abortion in the Constitution, you change the rule of law”, “we have, to this time, never withdrawn a right or a freedom”adds this constitutional specialist. But, he adds, “it all depends on what we would remove. If we withdraw the environmental charter, that would be detrimental to nature, but it will not change the face of our democracies either.”
What does the elected LR really have in mind on the subject? “It is out of the question to call into question even one centimeter of the rule of law, which is a major pillar of our Republic. What the minister wanted to say is that we can, on the other hand, question the law, make it evolve, on the sovereign level like the rest, it is the role of Parliament”assures a government source. “The question of the rule of law is non-negotiable. However, legislation can evolve. But we cannot compromise on the defense of the rule of law”warns Renaissance MP and former minister Franck Riester. “It’s the Prime Minister’s line that counts and we will have it tomorrow,” cuts Bruno Retailleau’s entourage.