The election of Francois Hollande yesterday is causing concerns amongst the EU's political elite: their fiscal programme looks to be in jeopardy as the new socialist president wants to renegotiate the Fiscal Treaty.
But there is another, worrying aspect to this change of government, and concerns are being raised by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre.
They point out that almost a third of the 11 million French voters cast ballots for parties with a history and leadership that include anti-Semites, anti-Zionists or both.
In the past, while Socialists have been consistently vocal in their criticisms of Israel, there has been a virtual silence after many anti-Semitic attacks targeting French Jews. With the images of the massacre in Toulouse still fresh in their collective consciousness, a recent poll shows many French Jews considering leaving France, many to Israel.
The Wiesenthal centre is also concerned that Hollande will swing France closer to Arab countries at the expense of French-Israel relations.
Economic crisis often brings social tensions, and too often minority groups can become scapegoats. Let us hope that the new French presidency will allay these fears.
http://www.wiesenthal.com/site/pp.asp?c=lsKWLbPJLnF&b=6212365
