euro|topics - Philippe Bach

Bach, Philippe

4 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.

Le Courrier - Switzerland | 08/02/2008

France's discreet 'yes' to the Lisbon Treaty

"Europe is a subject far too serious for a population that appears irrational and unpredictable", quips the editorialist Philippe Bach, who regrets that the Lisbon Treaty was not submitted to a referendum. "The citizens had rejected the Constitutional Treaty [in 2005] for a whole series of good and less good reasons. One of the principles of democracy is to recognise that the people are right, even when they are wrong. By wanting no what's best for them, you condone the already strong tendency to see European institutions as a war machine that mainly serves the dominant ideology. And, as form shapes contents, it is no by taking democratic short-cuts that you can invent a Europe that serves the common good and institutions that are truly able to take into account and defend the interests of those who most need state protection, which is to say the great majority of citizens."

Le Courrier - Switzerland | 11/05/2007

Time to take stock of Tony Blair's leadership

"Blair is off and blairism remains", notes the editorialist Philippe Bach for whom Blair "marvellously embodies the drifting of social-democracy towards liberal theses. In this respect he will have marked his era, but not in a glorious manner. ... The dismantlement of the public services was pursued under his reign, notably in the central domain of schools. Disadvantaged layers of society are struggling to be guaranteed public services as basic as water provision. And only once trains were repeatedly derailed did the failure of the privatisation of certain services become obvious enough for the British model to cease shining on the continent. ... The drifting and slippage embodied by Tony Blair surpass the individual and these cleavages between the Keynesian version of social-democracy and its liberal mutation are occurring in most left-wing parties. His departure will not resolve this."

Le Courrier - Switzerland | 07/02/2007

The Mohammed caricatures face French justice

Phillipe Bach considers that there is only one possible response facing the "Caricatural trial" of 'Charlie Hebdo' : to defend freedom of expression. "Yes religion can be taunted. This is the price of democracy. It is understandable that a sincere believer might be offended by such and such a drawing. So what? Nobody is obliging them to buy the paper. ... The charge brought against 'Charlie Hebdo' is worrying. It shows that secularism is a fragile and ill accepted value. It also highlights the limits of anti-racist legislation that facilitates this sort of unjustifiable attack of press freedom. And the fact that the French president Jacques Chirac did not think it right to defend democratic values at the time of the events is an aggravating factor that will bear upon the trial. Those who believe that, by publishing the drawings, the weekly damaged dialogue between religions and their cohabitation within a political, peaceful, non-sacred space, should have avoided turning to legal defence. Their criticism would have gained coherence and been expressed in an area that is reserved for them: the area of debate."

Le Courrier - Switzerland | 06/11/2006

Swiss aid for Eastern countries

On November 26th, Swiss voters will express themselves on a bill aimed at developing collaboration with Eastern European States. "Concretely, this legislation, fought against by the far-right and certain small groups on the left, foresees the aid of former Eastern countries with an annual sum of 200 million francs [125 million Euros] over five years", explains Philp Bach, who supports this initiative. "Europe no doubt lacked will power after the collapse of the Berlin wall. Would Yugoslavia have fallen into the spiral of violence if, instead of the structural adjustment programmes that were imposed, a generous and disinterested aid had been provided? Controllable public aid can legitimately be given preference over the manoeuvres of the Soros Foundation that in a cloaked fashion fed the 'orange revolution' in Ukraine with inglorious goals and dubious results."

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