Nov 1, 2005
The world: Film spotlights Paris night of blood: Jason Burke reports on a nation racked by memories of war in Algeria and the killing of protesters by police
IN THE film, there are demonstrations on a bridge in Paris. Last week there were protests on the Pont St Michel over the Seine. In the film, there are angry accusations of racism and counter-accusations of betrayal and treason.
This weekend the harsh words, insults and racial slurs were as virulent as ever.
Today Nuit Noire (Black Night) will be released at a select number of French cinemas. The controversial film, made by one of France's most respected directors, reconstructs the events of the night of 17 October 1961, when a protest against French policy in Algeria, then a colony on the brink of independence, sparked a huge police operation. Hundreds of demonstrators were killed or injured but there was no official acknowledgement at the time
- or for decades afterwards.
For some, Nuit Noire is an overdue attempt to throw light on a shameful episode; for others, it is an unwarranted slur on a glorious imperial history. The bitter division reflects deep fissures in modern France, pitting the young, the left and millions of immigrants and their children against older, white, conservative nationalists.
'It's a debate important to every part of society,' said one historian this weekend. 'The young generation are pushing hard for a new inclusive history.
The old are hanging on to a nostalgic view of empire and country.'
The arguments have involved illustrious names. Two weeks ago, Philippe de Gaulle, the son of President Charles de Gaulle, was cleared of having insulted the memory of Algerians who fought beside the French in the North African state by doubting their genuine loyalty in an interview. The 2005 film Cache , starring Juliette Binoche, about a family whose life is ruined by an incident dating back to the 1961 killings in Paris, has been a box-office hit.
A key battleground has been the schools. In response to a new law ordering teachers to portray France's imperial rule as 'positive' for indigenous populations, the country's best-selling history magazine, used by tens of thousands of teachers, devoted an entire issue to a detailed account of French colonial misdemeanours. A series of conferences are to plan a strategy of resistance.
The debate has been especially bitter because it touches profound issues about the nature of contemporary French identity. Mehdi Lalaoui, who led the demonstrators last week on the Pont St Michel, said the events such as those of 17 October 1961 had been deliberately forgotten and ob scured. 'French colonialism was based in violence, contempt for others and massacre. It cannot possibly be described as positive,' Lalaoui, whose father was among the protesters 44 years ago, told The Observer . 'For us to be known as French, not immigrants, the history of France has to be the history of all its citizens.'...
This weekend the harsh words, insults and racial slurs were as virulent as ever.
Today Nuit Noire (Black Night) will be released at a select number of French cinemas. The controversial film, made by one of France's most respected directors, reconstructs the events of the night of 17 October 1961, when a protest against French policy in Algeria, then a colony on the brink of independence, sparked a huge police operation. Hundreds of demonstrators were killed or injured but there was no official acknowledgement at the time
- or for decades afterwards.
For some, Nuit Noire is an overdue attempt to throw light on a shameful episode; for others, it is an unwarranted slur on a glorious imperial history. The bitter division reflects deep fissures in modern France, pitting the young, the left and millions of immigrants and their children against older, white, conservative nationalists.
'It's a debate important to every part of society,' said one historian this weekend. 'The young generation are pushing hard for a new inclusive history.
The old are hanging on to a nostalgic view of empire and country.'
The arguments have involved illustrious names. Two weeks ago, Philippe de Gaulle, the son of President Charles de Gaulle, was cleared of having insulted the memory of Algerians who fought beside the French in the North African state by doubting their genuine loyalty in an interview. The 2005 film Cache , starring Juliette Binoche, about a family whose life is ruined by an incident dating back to the 1961 killings in Paris, has been a box-office hit.
A key battleground has been the schools. In response to a new law ordering teachers to portray France's imperial rule as 'positive' for indigenous populations, the country's best-selling history magazine, used by tens of thousands of teachers, devoted an entire issue to a detailed account of French colonial misdemeanours. A series of conferences are to plan a strategy of resistance.
The debate has been especially bitter because it touches profound issues about the nature of contemporary French identity. Mehdi Lalaoui, who led the demonstrators last week on the Pont St Michel, said the events such as those of 17 October 1961 had been deliberately forgotten and ob scured. 'French colonialism was based in violence, contempt for others and massacre. It cannot possibly be described as positive,' Lalaoui, whose father was among the protesters 44 years ago, told The Observer . 'For us to be known as French, not immigrants, the history of France has to be the history of all its citizens.'...