French Press Review 03 Jan 2014

The war in the Central African Republic, the miraculous Reverend Father Georges Vandenbeusch's release from Nigeria, and the reform of French civil law code to speed up divorces dominate the front page stories of the French dailies.

The worsening sectarian violence in the Central African Republic is on front pages with right-wing Le Figaro calling for a change of military strategy in dealing with the bloodletting taking place in the country.

The comments are in reaction to the denial by French Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in Bangui Thursday, that operational difficulties are sapping the morale of some 1,600 French soldiers deployed in the country, to end fighting between mainly Muslim ex-Seleka rebels and Christian vigilantes that have forced more than 100,000 villagers to flee their homes and to refuge in a camp close to Bangui's airport where the French military is based.

It is Mission Impossible for the French army reckons Aujourd'hui en France as it watches the abuses, looting and ferocious hatred going on in the capital Bangui.

L'Humanité believes the situation has forced the Elysée to start preparing French public opinion for a long war. It argues that humanitarian factors forced France to intervene in the former colony and has become an excuse to extend the war on terrorism. Seven people including two soldiers were killed in Cameroon on Wednesday by armed men from the Central African Republic.

According to the Communist party newspaper, Paris is already preparing for a long war that has no predictable outcome. The daily talks to the Catholic Archbishop of Bangui Monseigneur Dieudonné Nzapalainga. He doesn't believe the conflict is a religious war pitting Muslims against Christians and doubts a military response will be sufficient to resolve the crisis.

La Croix has a frantic chat with Reverend Father Georges Vandenbeusch following his miraculous release after seven weeks in captivity by suspected Boko Haram Islamists from Nigeria.

The holy man described by the Catholic daily as serene and strong, says that God can provide everything especially the energy to withstand the ordeal he went through in the hands of his abductors.

LeMonde underlines President Francois Hollande's appreciation of Cameroon's role in securing the priest's release. It reports that Cameroon's leader Paul Biya activated the same network of traditional rulers he used in negotiating the freeing last April of the Moulin-Fournier family abducted by Boko Haram insurgents in that very region.

Le Monde however sheds doubt over the identity of Vandenbeusch's kidnappers. It claims it could be the work of one of criminal gangs operating in the northern border between Cameroon and Nigeria.

Libération takes up the rising discontent of French policemen who are obliged to wear service numbers since 1 January under a new ethical code introduced by Interior Minister Manuel Valls.

The measure is aimed at improving relations between the force and citizens especially of immigrant origin who feel particularly targeted by random identity checks. Police unions and associations say the measure will only contribute in their stigmatization.

LeFigaro says that Justice Minister Christiane Taubira is considering a reform of French civil law code that could enable court clerks or solicitors to handle cases of divorce by mutual agreement.

According to the right-wing newspaper, a report recommending the measure will be unveiled as early as the 10 January during a workshop on Justice in the 21st Century organized by Madame Taubira at The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Paris headquarters.

Le Figaro claims that mutual consent separations represent 54 per cent of 128,000 cases of divorce filed in France. It notes that Madame Taubira is banking on the reform to ease endemic congestion at French courts.

Le Figaro however reports that family law experts predict problems between ex-spouses if the judge disappears from divorce litigations. The French association of Catholic Families warns that any erasing of formal divorce will weaken the institution of marriage, according to Le Figaro.