French President Rejects "Erasing" History Through The Demolition Of A Colonial Statue

Photo of Emmanuel Macron (Source: emmanuelmacron / Instagram)

JAKARTA - French President Emmanuel Macron yesterday, Sunday, June 14 expressed his full support for fighting racism. Nevertheless he refuses to let his country tear down controversial statues of colonial-era figures.

Responding to the mass movement that was busy knocking down statues of colonial figures, Macron said he would not allow this. "The Republic will not erase any traces, or names, from history ... There will not be any demolition of the statue," Macron was quoted as saying by Fox News.

The demolition movement of slavery iconic figures spread to many countries. Initially from the United States, then to Europe, until recently it has happened in Japan.

"We have to look at all of our history together. Including relations with Africa, the goal is to find out" the truth "instead of denying who we are," said Macron.

Reform

Macron publicly admits that a person's skin color, name and place of residence can influence a person's success in France. But he called for guarantees that everyone can find his "place" in society, regardless of origin.

One of the steps to demonstrate this commitment, France banned the use of neck restraint procedures against crime suspects and vowed to eradicate acts of racism among the police.

His policy angered many police officers by describing officers across the country as supporters of white supremacy. In addition, the French Minister of Culture criticized efforts to remove Arfika artwork from the Paris museum.

Meanwhile, the spokesman for President Macron Sibeth Ndiaye published an essay calling on France to rethink its policy of color blindness which is said to ignore racial issues in an effort to promote equality. He asked France to face its history and find a "shared narrative" regarding its former colonial country.