First presidential mandate of François Mitterrand

The first presidential mandate of François Mitterrand lasted of the May 21st 1981 with the May 21st 1988.

The May 10th 1981, François Mitterrand, candidate of the socialist party, is elected president of the republic. It beats the outgoing president Valery Giscard d'Estaing and becomes the first president of left of Ve République.

The May 21st 1981, the Septennat of the new president opens by a ceremony with the the Pantheon during which François Mitterrand pays homage, by a deposit of red roses with Jean Jaurès, Jean Moulin and Victor Schoelcher. Then it names its first government directed by Pierre Mauroy.

The following day, it dissolves the National Assembly. The elections which follow, the 14 and June 21st 1981, give him the absolute majority at the Parliament. A second government of Pierre Mauroy makes enter four communist ministers .

Jack Lang declares that on May 10th, 1981 is one day historical where France passed from the shade to the light . The composer-songwriter Herbert Pagani composes even an official anthem of which here part of the text:

France socialiste
Since you existes
All becomes possible here and now!

Governments Mauroy (May 1981 - July 1984)

1981 :

Interior policy

Increase in SMIC of 10 %, of the family benefits and housing of 25 %, handicapped 20 %.
Suppression of the Court of state security and abolition of the Capital punishment.
Abrogation of the law known as “anti-riot”, which established in particular the principle of a collective criminal responsibility.
Authorization of the private local radios.
First Festival of the music.
Regularization of the situation of all the immigrants without papers which exert a trade and can prove it.
Creation of the wealth tax (removed in 1987, restored in 1988 under the name of STF, Solidarity tax on fortune).
the double budget 1982 the appropriations of the ministry for the Culture, increases 512 % those of the ministry for Research, 112 % those of the 37 and Ministry of Labor; % those of the ministry for Housing.
Robert Badinter doubles the annual rhythm of the construction of places in prison to fight against prison overpopulation (42 000 prisoners, 28 000 places).
First price freeze for six months as from October 1981.
Loan of État : ten billion francs with 16,2 % to finance the reforms.
First of the four devaluations of the franc (the others will follow in 1982,1983 and 1986)
With semi-1981, France counts 1,5 million applicants for work.

International policy

Speech of Cancùn: The the United States are criticized for their embargo against Cuba.

The exorde of Mitterrand:

" Hello, With the maltreated priests,
With the imprisoned trade unionists,
With the unemployed who sell their blood to survive,
With the Indians pursued in their forests,
With the workers without rights,
With the peasants without grounds,
With resistant without armes".

Boycott of the Festival of the American cinema of Deauville by the Minister for the culture Jack lang.

1982 :

Interior policy

Nationalization of banks (the first 36 deposit banks, like Paribas and Suez) and of great industry groups (CGE, PUK, Rhône-Poulenc, Saint-Gobain, Thomson).
Week 39 hours (legal duration of work).
5th week of paid vacations.
Ordinances on the office plurality employment-retirement, part-time work, and the professional insertion of the young people from 16 to 18 years. From 1982 to 1985, this last ordinance relates to 600 000 people, of which 300 000 in BTS or CAPE and 250 000 recruits.
Retirement at 60 years.
As from June, the fight against the Inflation is privileged when the government puts an end to the indexing wages on the prices and lets float the frankly.
Laws Auroux on the Law the labor: extension of the rights of expression of the personnel, the representative institutions (work's council), negotiation, reinforcement of the prevention of the risks of work, extension of competences of the committees of hygiene and safety.
Law Quilliot on the rights and the duties of the financial backers and tenants.
Loi-cadre Removes iron on the Décentralisation. From 1983 to 1985, other legislative texts specify competences and the organization of the territorial collectivities.
Creation of the zones of priority education (ZEP).
Law Lang on the flat price of the book.
Adoption of cultural great projects: festival of dance of Marseilles, festival of the sculpture in Montpellier, the cartoon in Angouleme, photography in Arles, the Zenith with the the Villette, the Opera with the Bastille
Creation of the High ranking authority for the audio-visual communication, ancestor of CNCL and the SCUMS.
Hardening of the exchange control.
New price freeze and wages as from June.
New Government loan of 10 billion francs.
Tax on the importation of the video tape recorders.
Abrogation of the offense of Homosexuality (founded by the Mode of Vichy) and of the permanent courts of armed forces (TPFA).
Creation of the antiterrorist cell of the Elysium, following the bloody murders of first half of the year. 1983 to 1986, this cell misused the right legally conferred to practice phone-tappings. It is the beginning of the business known as of the phone-tappings.
Creation of the data-processing World center and human resources, whose direction is entrusted to Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber.

Politics foreign and European

First visit of a Head of French State in Israel. Speech of the Knesset in which François Mitterrand declares that Irreducible right to life belongs to Israel and calls with the respect of the rights of the Palestinians of Gaza and the West Bank. He decides for a dialog between the two parts. (See Wikiquote.)
First visit of a Head of French State to the Japan.
Summit of the G7 to Versailles where François Mitterrand in vain tries to obtain large industrialized countries a concerted revival.

1983 :

Interior policy

Third government of Pierre Mauroy. First resignation of Jean-Pierre Chevènement then Minister of Industry which refuses the rigor.
1st plan of rigor in March says “plane Delors”, aiming at reducing inflation.
the Social security becomes again surplus, until 1986.
Abrogation of the law Peyrefitte, known as Sécurité and Freedom.
Retreat of the left to the municipal elections and the Communist party in particular (loss of Levallois-Perret, Rheims, Nimes, Antony, Brest, Nantes, etc).
Law Roudy on the wage equality between men and women in the companies.
Law Badinter on the compensation for the victims of crimes and offenses, which see their strongly wide rights.
Origin of the Business of listenings of the Elysium

Politics foreign and European

In January, creation of Europe of fishing.
Crisis of the euromissiles: support of François Mitterrand for the installation of missiles Pershing 2 in Germany to make counterweight with the Soviet missiles. Speech of the Bundestag on the balance of the forces on January 20th, 1983: Only the balance of the forces can lead to good relationships with the Eastern European countries, our historical neighbors and partners. But the maintenance of this balance implies in my eyes that whole areas of Europe are not deprived of parade vis-a-vis nuclear weapons directed against them. In October, in Brussels, he declares: I am me also against the euromissiles, only I note that the pacifist ones are with the West and the euromissiles in the East.
August 1983, Manta Operation reinforcing the French intervention with the Chad.
Eviction of 47 Soviet diplomats, shown espionage.
François Mitterrand makes confirm by Claude Cheysson the stop of the nuclear cooperation with the Iraq.
Attack of Drakkar the October 23rd 1983 with Beirut. Fifty-eight French soldiers and two hundred and thirty new marines American are killed. François Mitterrand goes to Lebanon as of the following day.

1984 :

iron and steel Interior policy

Crisis in north: modernization plan. Closing or reconversion of the old coal mines, acceleration of the process initiated since the years 1960.
the budget of the Culture represents almost 1 % of the budget of the State (engagement of the Mitterrand candidate in 1981).
European Elections: the National front borer, with almost 11 % of the votes cast, the Communist party sees its score lowering half compared to the preceding election of 1979, the Socialist party loses seats.
Law on professional training.
Abandonment of the bill Savary on teaching following the demonstrations for “free teaching” (the manifestations of the March 4th to Versailles and of the June 24th in Paris gathered 800 respectively; 000 and 2 million people).

Politics foreign and European

At January 1st, France assumes the semi-annual chairmanship of the EEC. At the top of Fontainebleau, the 25 and June 26th enclosing this presidency, series of measure decisive are adopted: payment of the dispute with the the United Kingdom on its contribution to the budget of the EEC, increase in its own resources (the share of VAT passes from 1 to 1,4%), first inflection of the common Agricultural policy, creation of a committee of experts charged to think of a reform of the European institutions and which succeeds, in 1985, with the Single act.
François Mitterrand goes in the USSR and publicly defends there the human rights and the protestors, in particular Andreï Sakharov.

Governments Fabius (July 1984 - March 1986)

July-December 1984:

New government of Laurent Fabius, end of the participation of the Communists in the government.
September 1984: Free-Libyan agreement on total and concomitant evacuation of Chad who will not be respected by the Libya.
Law against the concentration in the press, partially invalidated by the Constitutional council and finally repealed in 1986.
Liberalization of audio-visual, creation of the first private television channels (of which Canal+ and Five).
New statute for the Polynesia.
November 1984: beginning of bloody confrontations in New Caledonia.
Commemoration of the battle of Verdun, where celebrates it handshake between president Mitterrand and the chancellor Helmut Kohl takes place.

1985 :

Politics foreign and European

Jacques Delors becomes president of the European commission (it remains it until 1995).
Launching of Eureka, Europe of technology.
monetary Agreements of the hotel Plaza (New York): beginning of a true monetary dialog enters the Western countries.
“Doctrines Mitterrand”: the gauchists and Italian activists not continued for crimes of blood and which explicitly gave up violence will not be extradited by France. Nevertheless, some like Cesare Battisti, condemned to the prison with perpetuity in Italy for several murders, will manage to profit from these doctrines.
Business of Rainbow Warrior: the ship of Greenpeace is run by agents of DGSE; a photographer is killed. Charles Hernu, the Minister for Defense must resign. The national press as foreign improbable judge that the president was unaware of the preparation of the operation.
Ratification of the European Convention of the human rights, which prohibits in particular the re-establishment of the capital punishment.
Beginning of taking of French hostages with the Lebanon by the Hezbollah pro Iran IEN (Marcel Carton, Michel Seurat, Jean-Paul Kauffmann, Georges Hansen, Marcel Fountain…)

Interior policy

Inauguration of Géode to the Park from the Villette in Paris.
Law Mountain: protection of the natural framework, representation of the mountain dwellers.
Introduction of the Poll proportional to the legislative elections envisaged the following year. It is a promise of the Mitterrand candidate and at the same time a means of limiting the losses of the PS. Michel Rocard resigns of the government in April to protest against the introduction of proportional which would allow the election of deputies resulting from the National front.
Law limiting the office plurality of the mandates.
Reform of the Penal code.
the course of the 2,5 million unemployed is crossed.

January-March 1986:

Politics foreign and European

Beginning of the “Operation Sparrowhawk”, with the Chad against the GUNT pro-Libyan.
Signature of the Single act.

Interior policy

Inauguration of the Quoted of sciences and industry in Paris.
Law littoral: strong restrictions on construction.

Government Chirac (March 1986 - May 1988); cohabitation

Union of the right RPR - UDF gains the legislative elections. Jacques Chirac form a new government. It is the first Cohabitation of the 5th republic. The National front obtains 35 deputies.

March-December 1986:

Interior policy

Regional elections gained by the alliance RPR-UDF which assumes the chairmanship of 20 of the 22 metropolitan regions (including 5 with the essential support of the elected officials of Front National)
Promulgation of the law removing the administrative authorization of dismissal.
Inauguration of the Museum of Orsay (whose work was decided under the septennate of Valery Giscard d'Estaing).
Privatization S and constitution of the “hard cores”. François Mitterrand refuses to sign the ordinances on privatization. The government must pass by the parliamentary way for reprivatiser (Saint-Gobain, TF1, Havas, Matra, CGE, General society, Paribas and Suez). Constitution of provisional hard cores to which certain members are shown by the opposition to be too close to RPR.
Ordinances of February 1st, 1986 relating to the freedom of the prices and competition.
Vague of terrorist attacks to the autumn 1986 (attack in particular street of Rennes) clerk by the network Fouad Ali Salah.
Demonstrations coeds against the " Project Devaquet " of reform of the University. François Mitterrand supports the students publicly.

International policy and European

Launching of the boring of the Channel tunnel.
1st top of the francophonie.

1987 :

Interior policy

Inauguration of the Institute of the Arab world.
Arrest of the terrorists of Direct action then arrests of the members of the network Fouad Ali Saleh (organizing supposed of fifteen attacks who made 13 died and 303 wounded in Paris of December 1985 in September 1986).
Privatization of TF1 and creation of M6
Disneyland chooses the site of Marne-the-Valley in France against Spain to establish its future park of leisure Eurodisney.
Chaumet Scandal splashing the RPR minister with Justice Albin Chalandon.
Reference before the High court of the socialist former minister for the Co-operation Christian Nucci.
Scandal of the truth-false passport of Yves Chalier which splashes the Minister of Interior Department Charles Pasqua.
September 1987: referendum in New Caledonia on the maintenance within the Republic, boycotted by FLNKS (98,3 % against independence, 40 % of abstention).
Celebrations of the Capétien Millenium in the Basilica of Saint Denis by François Mitterrand, in the presence of Henri of Orleans (known as the “count de Paris”), claiming orleanist with the throne of France. Emission of a part of 10 francs to the effigy of Hugues Capet.
the balance trade foreign becomes again surplus.

International policy and European

Rupture (provisional) of the diplomatic relations with Iran in July after the Iranian embassy in France had refused to give to the French authorities, Wahid Gordji, an interpreter of the embassy of Iran, nonprofit of the immunity diplomatic, and suspecté to be implied in the wave of terrorist attacks (Gordjii will be finally heard by the judge then expelled towards the Iran).

1988 :

Inauguration of the pyramid of the Louvre.
Law on the financing of the presidential and legislative electoral campaigns.
March 22nd: François Mitterrand announces his candidature for the presidential election. Its program is contained in a " letter with all français".
April 22nd: In New Caledonia, a Commando Canaque attacks the gendarmerie of Fayawé (island of Ouvéa), keep silent four gendarmes and takes as an hostage the others. The May 5th, three days before the second turn of the presidential election, the army gives the attack to the cave of Ouvéa: 21 dead (two soldiers and nineteen freedom fighters calédoniens).
Release of the last French hostages of Lebanon.

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