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ELECTION

French prosecutors heap pressure on Macron after opening probe into minister

French prosecutors have opened a probe into a government minister over a controversial property deal involving his wife, piling pressure on new President Emmanuel Macron who has been urged to sack him.

French prosecutors heap pressure on Macron after opening probe into minister
Photo: AFP

Prosecutors in the Brittany town of Brest announced on Thursday morning they had opened a preliminary probe into Richard Ferrand, the minister accused of conflict of interest in a property deal.

Ferrand is the minister for territorial cohesion, but he is also seen as Macron's right hand man and has been leading the parliamentary elections campaign for the president's Republique en Marche party.

After initially suggesting they would not be investigating Ferrand French prosecutors in Brest say they will open a probe to gather together further elements to determine whether Ferrand has broken any laws.

On Wednesday French President Emmanuel Macron had backed Ferrand, urging the media “not to act as judge” in an embarrassing affair that has embroiled the new government, not least because the new president had vowed to clean up politics.

For days, France's new government has been swatting away allegations that Ferrand favoured his wife in a lucrative deal with a public health insurance fund when he headed the company.

The affair is the lone snag in an otherwise trouble-free start to Macron's tenure, during which he has been praised for standing up to US President Donald Trump and taking a firm line with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Ferrand, a former Socialist lawmaker who joined Macron's camp last year and helped run his campaign, has denied any wrongdoing and rebuffed calls by rivals for his resignation.

“I am an honest man,” the 54-year-old minister told France Inter radio on Wednesday.

The investigative Canard Enchaine newspaper reported last week that an insurance fund that Ferrand headed in his native Brittany — where he is an MP — agreed in 2011 to rent a building from his wife and carry out renovations that boosted its value.

Ferrand has dismissed the report as a “welcome present” from the media for the new government, saying that his wife made the fund the best offer and that he had no say in the matter.

The revelations are nonetheless an embarrassment for 39-year-old Macron, who campaigned on a promise to clean up and rejuvenate France's corruption-plagued political class.

His first piece of legislation — to be unveiled next month — will set new standards for ethics in public office.

Francois Baroin, who is leading the legislative campaign for the conservative Republicains party, criticised Macron for not taking “the necessary decisions” regarding Ferrand.

“I can believe the president's sincerity,” Baroin said at a rally in the port city of Caen, but “I don't understand why he is not taking the necessary decisions, which are in his minister's interests.”

Government spokesman Christophe Castaner acknowledged the “unease” generated by the revelations and said he was “favourable” to an inquiry, “if there are elements that lead the courts, or the police or the gendarmes to believe an inquiry is needed.”

He insisted, however, that “from a legal point of view, nothing Richard Ferrand has done is objectionable.”

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has also backed Ferrand although he said he would be forced to resign if he was charged.

ELECTION

German Greens’ chancellor candidate Baerbock targeted by fake news

With Germany's Green party leading the polls ahead of September's general elections, the ecologists' would-be successor to Angela Merkel has become increasingly targeted by internet trolls and fake news in recent weeks.

German Greens' chancellor candidate Baerbock targeted by fake news
The Greens chancellor candidate Annalena Baerbock on April 26th. Photo: DPA

From wild claims about CO2-emitting cats and dogs to George Soros photo collages, 40-year-old Annalena Baerbock has been the subject of a dizzying array of fake news, conspiracy theories and online attacks since she was announced as the Greens’ chancellor candidate in mid-April.

The latest polls have the Greens either ahead of or level with Merkel’s ruling conservatives, as the once fringe party further establishes itself as a leading electoral force in Europe’s biggest economy.

Baerbock herself also consistently polls higher than her conservative and centre-left rivals in the race to succeed Merkel, who will leave office after 16 years this autumn.

Yet her popularity has also brought about unwanted attention and a glut of fake news stories aimed at discrediting Baerbock as she bids to become Germany’s first Green chancellor.

READ ALSO:

False claims

Among the false stories circulating about Baerbock is the bizarre claim that she wants to ban household pets in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Another fake story firmly denied by the party claimed that she defied rules on mask-wearing and social-distancing by embracing colleagues upon her nomination earlier this month.

Baerbock has also been presented as a “model student” of Hungarian billionaire George Soros – a hate figure for the European far-right and anti-Semitic conspiracy theorists – in a mocked-up social media graphic shared among others by a far-right MP.

More serious online attacks include a purported photo of Baerbock which in fact shows a similar-looking naked model.

The Greens’ campaign manager Michael Kellner said that the attempts to discredit Baerbock had “taken on a new dimension”, that “women are targeted more heavily by online attacks than men, and that is also true of our candidate”.

Greens co-leader Annalena Baerbock earlier this month. Photo: DPA

Other false claims about the party include reports of a proposed ban on barbecues, as well as plans to disarm the police and enforce the teaching of the Quran in schools.

While such reports are patently absurd, they are potentially damaging to Baerbock and her party as they bid to spring a surprise victory in September.

“She has a very real chance, but the coming weeks are going to be very important because Baerbock’s public image is still taking shape,” Thorsten Faas, a political scientist at Berlin’s Free University told AFP.

In a bid to fight back against the flood of false information, the party has launched a new “online fire service” to report fake news stories.

READ ALSO: Greens become ‘most popular political party’ in Germany

Russian disinformation

Yet stemming the tide is no easy job, with many of those who peddle disinformation now using private messaging services such as WhatsApp and Telegram rather than public platforms such as Facebook.

The pandemic and ongoing restrictions on public life will also make it harder for the campaign to push through their own narratives at public events.

Miro Dittrich of Germany’s Amadeu-Antonio anti-racism foundation claims that lockdown has “played a role” in the spread of fake news.

“People are isolated from their social environment and are spending a lot more time online,” he said.

Another factor is Russia, which has made Germany a primary target of its efforts to spread disinformation in Europe.

According to the European anti-disinformation platform EUvsDisinfo, Germany has been the target of 700 Russian disinformation cases since 2015, compared to 300 aimed at France and 170 at Italy.

As an outspoken critic of the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Germany and Russia, Baerbock may well become a target of such attacks during the election campaign.

By Mathieu FOULKES

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