French press review 8 February 2012

Jean-Luc Mélenchon and Marine Le Pen are on the front page of Le Monde, where they represent the "battle of the extremes".

Le Pen is the leader of the far right National Front party, while Mélenchon can be found at the other end of the political spectrum. He is the presidential candidate of an extreme Left coalition, including the Communist Party, the Unified Left and the Party of the Left.

The two have a lot in common, despite the political gap. Both are loudly critical of the way the economic crisis is being managed, and see the working class as their natural support. Both also hope to seduce those disappointed by mainstream politics.

And they despise one another personally, to the point where their little war has become a festering side issue in the main race. Le Pen currently accounts for 16% of voting intentions, Mélenchon for about 8%, so their supporters are not to be ignored by the leading contenders.

Yesterday saw the first mass walk-out by the French government since 1898. At that time, the Dreyfus Affair was a bone of contention.

Yesterday, it was the Guéant Affair. After his weekend statements to the effect that not all civilisations are equal, Guéant was yesterday associated with Nazi Germany and the concentration camps. The comparison provoked a riot among UMP members and saw the Prime Minister, François Fillon, lead his chattering charges from the debating chamber.

Elsewhere, communist L'Humanité recalls the tragic events around the Charonne metro station here in Paris fifty years ago.

Police attacked a group of people protesting against the war in Algeria, killing nine and injuring dozens. No one has ever been charged in connection with the killings.