Macron Faces Backlash at Africa Summit 05/13 06:09

   

   DAKAR, Senegal (AP) -- French President Emmanuel Macron is facing backlash 
after he interrupted a panel at the Africa Forward Summit in Kenya to demand 
silence from the audience.

   Macron stormed the stage to rebuke audience members for what he called a 
"total lack of respect," accusing them of disrupting speakers during a 
presentation by artists and young entrepreneurs. He had earlier described 
himself as a "Pan-Africanist" during a news conference.

   The summit is meant to showcase France's new policy for the continent -- a 
shift from a former colonial power seen as dominating to what Paris describes 
as a partnership of equals. On Tuesday, Macron announced a $27 billion 
investment into various sectors in Africa, including energy, artificial 
intelligence and agriculture.

   Videos of Macron's heated intervention on Monday quickly spread across 
social media, drawing a mix of mockery, praise and criticism.

   Appearing visibly frustrated by the noise in the room, Macron abruptly 
walked onto the stage and asked the speaker to hand him the microphone, saying 
he would "restore order."

   Addressing the audience in English, he criticized attendees for talking over 
the speakers and creating disruptions during the session.

   Some audience members applauded the intervention, but Macron also drew 
criticism over his response.

   "Just imagine what would happen if an African leader did the same thing in 
America or Europe," said Thierno Mbaye, a history student at a university in 
Senegal's capital, Dakar.

   "He acted like a schoolteacher scolding children," Mbaye told The Associated 
Press.

   The intervention also drew criticism in France.

   "It's stronger than him: as soon as he sets foot on the African continent, 
he can't help but behave like a colonizer," Danile Obono, a lawmaker for the 
hard-left party France Unbowed, said in a post on X.

   Diplomatic and military setbacks in West Africa

   The Africa Forward Summit, which is set to close on Tuesday with a 
declaration that is expected to be signed by all 30 heads of state, comes amid 
a fallout between France and its former colonies, mostly in West Africa.

   France has long maintained a colonial policy of economic, political and 
military sway dubbed Franafrique, which included keeping thousands of troops 
in the region it controlled.

   After years of criticism from leaders and opposition parties in many West 
African countries over what they described as a demeaning and heavy-handed 
approach, France has withdrawn most of its troops from the region. It completed 
the withdrawal of troops from Senegal in July.

   Macron had already faced a backlash ahead of the summit for claiming Sunday 
at news conference alongside Kenyan President William Ruto that "we are the 
true Pan-Africanists."

   "We believe that Africa is a continent, and that this continent has an 
enormous amount to build," Macron said.

   Pan-Africanism refers to an ideology seeking the unity of Africans and the 
elimination of colonialism. Given France's colonial history across the 
continent, the remark went viral on social media and drew swift backlash.

   "Pan Africanism is not a brand, Mr. Macron, neither is it a diplomatic 
posture," Farida Nabourema, a Togolese human rights activist, said in an open 
letter on Monday.

   "It is a political philosophy that said no to everything France spent three 
centuries saying yes to: slavery, colonialism and neocolonialism," she added.

   Beverly Ochieng, a senior analyst at geopolitical risk consultancy Control 
Risks, said Macron is trying to distance France from its diplomatic and 
military setbacks in West Africa by turning to the east of the continent, 
signaling that its strategic priorities now follow where it finds goodwill.

   She said Macron's remarks were raising questions about whether France's 
renewed engagement with Africa represented a genuine equal partnership or 
merely convenient rhetoric.

   The French presidency and Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a 
request for comment.

   Paris will be respectful of each African country's independence, Macron said 
on Tuesday, adding that "sovereignty and autonomy is shared, and your success 
is our success."

   'Inauthentic or politically manipulated'

   Alioune Tine, founder of the Afrikajom Center think tank, said Macron's 
remark might also be a subtle jab at Russia, which has replaced France as the 
main security partner in some West African countries.

   "When Macron describes himself as the 'true' pan-Africanist, it is also a 
subtle response to the pro-Russian pan-Africanist voices online, which French 
officials tend to view as inauthentic or politically manipulated," Tine said.

   He said relations between Western powers and African states are inherently 
paternalistic and France is no exception, but that Macron has shifted policy 
away from the colonial legacy through a more informal diplomatic style aimed at 
rebuilding trust.

   According to an Ipsos survey conducted on behalf of the French Foreign 
Ministry in nine African countries ahead of the summit, 74% of respondents said 
they have a positive image of France. Support was highest in English-speaking 
countries and among respondents under 35.

   Macron, who is the first French president born after the colonial era, had 
pledged after his first election in 2017 that he would reset French relations 
with Africa.