Macron's Moral Theater: Lecturing the World from a Parisian Stage

French President Emmanuel Macron has always possessed a distinct flair for the theatrical. Hosting the ninth World Congress against the Death Penalty at the Maison de la Radio in Paris provided the perfect backdrop for a sweeping moral address. Rather than focusing on the complexities of domestic governance, the head of state chose to look outward, condemning a global surge in executions and positioning himself as the premier defender of universal values.

The statistics presented by the NGO Together Against the Death Penalty are undeniably grim. Last year witnessed 2,707 executions across 17 nations, marking the highest volume recorded since 1981. Unsurprisingly, authoritarian regimes lead the tally, with China, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Iran dominating the practice. Tehran alone accounted for at least 1,639 executions, reaching a macabre peak unseen since 1989 according to the Iran Human Rights NGO. For a French president eager to project international leadership, these numbers offer a convenient opportunity to champion human rights from the safety of a Parisian auditorium.

In his address, Macron directed specific criticism at legislative movements in Israel, where parliamentarians recently advanced a bill targeting convicted terrorists, and in the Sahel, noting the Burkina Faso military junta's move to reinstate capital punishment. There is a certain irony in Paris lecturing the Sahel on governance, given the recent collapse of French geopolitical influence in the region. Yet, the Elysee clearly prefers the comfort of abstract moralising over addressing the messy realities of its own diplomatic failures.

The core of the president's argument rests on the assertion that capital punishment offers zero deterrent value. In his official address to the congress, Macron declared that the death penalty has never made a society safer, dismissing the practice as fundamentally ineffective against crime. He celebrated recent abolitionist victories in Zambia and Zimbabwe as proof that political progress is possible. However, one might wonder if these grand proclamations ring somewhat hollow. It is always easier to decree what does not make a society safer from a podium than to implement the difficult, pragmatic policies required to maintain actual civic order.

The diplomatic choreography extended beyond the presidential speech. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot held preliminary meetings with Volker Türk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, to endorse the newly launched Global Alliance for Human Rights. The foreign ministry issued predictable statements affirming France's commitment to promoting and protecting human rights everywhere in the world. It is a noble sentiment, perfectly tailored for the international press. One might only suggest that before setting out to save the world, the French administration could benefit from focusing a bit more of that boundless energy on governing its own republic.

Written by Freya Stensrud freya.stensrud@alpineweekly.com