French embassy blundered in its handling of debate

One can’t gainsay the enormous contribution of the French to modern civilisation — in politics, culture, and philosophy. Liberté, égalité, fraternité — among the most iconic three words ever — still ring with undeniable moral authority throughout the globe. It was the French who gave the Americans the indomitable Statue of Liberty, the lady who has greeted millions of tired and huddled masses as they made their way to America. The French gave us Voltaire, Montesquieu, Albert Camus, Jean-Paul Sartre, Rene Descartes, Michel Foucault, and Alexis de Tocqueville, among other leading thinkers. Few nations can boast of such a deep bench of philosophers. The French gave us the French Revolution, the trigger of the modern republic. But alas — the French aren’t saints.

The French have wrecked many a society, especially in the Global South. They perfected their inhumanity in Haiti — to which they laid siege after the Haitian Revolution. Let’s walk through memory lane. Haitians vanquished Napoleon Bonaparte’s army, abolished slavery, and in 1804 became only the second republic in the Americas. It was the only nation in the West to have defeated three European powers — Britain, France, and Spain. The French never forgave Haiti. We know about French colonial brutalities — and crimes against humanity — in Algeria, elsewhere in Africa, and the Global South. It would be an understatement to say the arrogant French owe the world an apology. That’s why I wasn’t shocked when the French scuttled a KuraYanguSautiYangu event.