Francois Asselino detained on charges of harassment and moral abuse
In France, 63-year-old François Asselino, the leader of the People's Republican Union party, has been detained on charges of sexual harassment and moral violence, the newspaper Le Point writes. The politician answered questions from investigators on the morning of February 3.
The investigation into this case, as indicated in the publication, was launched in May 2020. The charges against Asselino were brought forward by his former subordinates. Asselino stressed that he intends to file a counter complaint for libel.
The entourage of the head of the People's Republican Union “resolutely” rejected the charges against Asselino, noting that they were “mostly related to facts that allegedly took place even before they were hired.”
The politician expresses confidence that in this way he will be hindered from participating in the election race in 2022.
François Asseleno announced his intention to run during the televised debate in April 2019. According to him, he “fully expects to become a candidate in the next presidential elections.”
It is noted that in the spring, several people demanded Asselino's resignation from the post of party chairman, citing “the presence of special and more than persistent relations on the part of Mr. Asselino with employees”, which served as “a source of severe psychological suffering.” Nevertheless, the politician was approved in office during the July congress of the People's Republican Union.
Asselino took part in the French presidential elections in 2017. Then he dropped out after the first round, gaining only 0.92% of the vote. In the 2017 presidential race, he finished ninth out of 11.
Asselino created the People's Republican Union on March 25, 2007.
The party is known as a supporter of France's withdrawal from the European Union, the euro area and NATO.
This, in particular, is stated on the website of the party in the section “Program”: “… I invite the French to unite, regardless of their political or religious beliefs, as well as ethnic or social origin, to restore freedom and democracy in France. For this it is necessary, first of all, to legally denounce the European treaties, to leave the EU and the euro, to leave NATO and to take the economy, public services and the media out of the stranglehold of private feudalism. “
In addition, Asselino's party is anti-American. The People's Republican Union also proposes to nationalize private corporations and heavy industry.
According to Le Point, François Asselino was unable to run in the 2012 presidential elections because he did not have sufficient sponsorship at the time.
At the same time, five years later, in the 2017 presidential elections, he still managed to nominate himself for the post of head of state, having received a sufficient number of signatures from elected officials for this.
Le Point calls Asselino's political party marginal, but at the same time draws attention to the fact that for France the People's Republican Union is the standard of cyber activism.
As the head of the Center for French Studies at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, professor at the Higher School of Economics Yuri Rubinsky noted in a commentary to Gazeta.Ru, Asselino's personality is not so important.
“Asselino is a former associate of the leader of the National Front political party Marine Le Pen, with whom she fell out and whom she expelled from her party. Asselino is one of the far-right candidates for the presidency of France, but he has no chance of winning. This figure is completely secondary. In relation to him, the accusations of sexual harassment can be considered just a detail, ”said the expert.
At the same time, he drew attention to the fact that accusations of sexual harassment and court proceedings in these cases have recently become more frequent in France.
Yuri Rubinsky called such situations not special cases, but a crisis of the elites, and not only in the West.
