French election campaign. THE LAST week has seen n nace of French political life Five weeks helore the first round of the legislative clections, the time for bluff and blackmail is over and the main lies of the Cannon are takIne RECEIVED President Giscard d'Estaing made a long awwited speech on his antitade to the campaign WHOLE TOSSUE BEES. course be appealed to the electorate to vote for the parties. of the so-called majonty hardly surprising since he is the leader of it, or tries to be, Hat the real interest of the speech lay in his remarks on the possible victory of the left in March.
He made it clear that in such eventuality, appoint a Prime Minister of The left (.c. Francois: Mitteerand leader of the Socialist Party! MURRAY SMITH reviews the past week of the and not obstruct legislation the based Programme of the Left, In this AS TOLDWEE estahlished strategy of avoiding a direct confrontation with the left fas the Gaullists would likel, and trying eventually to finally detach the Party (PS) from the Communst Party (PCF) and put together a Centre-Left government.
For the PS and PCF Giscard's approach was an offer they couldn't refuse. pointing out the comradictions President and leader of the Mitterrand didn't even try to bide and proclaimed that he had never thought that the President of the Republic could do otherwise than apply the Constitution A couple of days Georges Marchais, Jeader of the PCF, made it abundantly clear would be happy to take office under Cascard and the 1952 Constitution, and that they were ruby to suct a sorcer ment with the PS, dropping Al the same time the PC slood down Socialist stituencies 10 tavour Gaullists, reminding those who needed reminding of how far to the right their concept of the -Union al the France extends. And this is LEOS LUCKI the party which has just spent Tour months denouncing the PS Apart 110m for Its supposed swing to the right POCKETED nie the developing coco workers' parties government of the left more the Increasingly divided It now seems certain that in tbe first round Jacques Chiracts GmilTist RPR wil be opposed in many constituencies by the government into *Union for French own ranks, nOw and PCF.
People of two big made right looked
Demo
composed of the Giscardians and their albes.
Faced with divisions in its La steady trend reconciliation between the PS - the goveramcatal "majority" is resorting to some attacked gays. very wo and unsavours mem ods to try and reconsoliciate its sit-in al reactionary base. Using as harassment of gays at a Paris film festival.
control industrialist and particularly shocking comes of violence, the Cabinet last week approved 23 new measures 10 a "aw and order' package Ministry of Culture (sic) banned several films at a gay cinema lestival in Paris. Some of these films had already been shown publicly (one of them on television) Sbortly after this, the audience at another film in the festiva was altacked by a gang of fascists armed with iron bars arrested twa A subsequent the Ministry Culture led to more arrests, aod *Now Philosopher Andre Gluckamann (centre] was among those arrested for protesting at po candidates in the elections have been threatened These attempts of a dying tally the MOSE backward elementa in society are unlikely to save it, but i would be dangerous for the workers' movement lo leave them unchallenged.
The working class is not passisely awaiting the aulcome of the clections. After the police evacuation of a Horng office near Paris which bad occupicuu mostal workers, there were immediate sympathy strikes and there is the possibility of a mutional stoppage as we go to press.
----- pull-quotes -----
Not so long ago the outcome of the forthcoming French election was assured in the eyes of the mass of French The workers' parties still hold a clear lead in the opinion polls, but the break-up of the Union of the Left has thrown all those ideas about
The police acted really the