The stele in tribute to the victims of communism will be unveiled this Saturday in Saint-Raphaël

Barring a sudden storm or a stray Russian ballistic missile, everything suggests that from this Saturday, August 23, Saint-Raphaël will have a stele exclusively dedicated to the victims of communism .

Since the beginning of the month, the intentions of the right-wing mayor Frédéric Masquelier (LR) have created a certain stir, echoing the great upheavals of History.

Despite the indignation of the department's communist elected officials, the chief magistrate is not giving up.

This Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m., he will hold a municipal council meeting which will include only two items on the agenda: a loan taken out by the Social Action Community Center and the famous " laying of a stele in memory of the totalitarianism of communism ."

The inaugural gesture is still planned for the same day to coincide with the European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Totalitarian Regimes.

Meet at 6 p.m. at Beaurivage, by the sea.

The illegality of the contested deliberation

Pierre Daspre, the departmental secretary of the PCF Var, fought to have " this shameful inauguration banned, insulting not only to the communists but to the entire Resistance. "

As he explained to the prefect of Var in a first letter sent on August 11, waving an article of the Penal Code which defines " as discrimination any distinction made on the basis of political opinions ."

Then a second letter dated August 19 when he learned that Frédéric Masquelier was calling his municipal council to hastily vote on the installation of the stele.

" Upon reading the resolution, nothing indicates any connection with the affairs of the municipality ," notes Pierre Daspre, who denounces the resolution's illegality and asks the prefect to withdraw it. And if not, to " refer it to the administrative court ."

"They will have tried everything!"

Request rejected. Contacted, the prefect's office indicated that it had responded to Pierre Daspre " that it had no evidence to prohibit this initiative ." " They've tried everything! " Frédéric Masquelier quips. " They'd do better to do some soul-searching... "

There is therefore nothing to prevent the inauguration of the stele on Saturday at the end of the day in the presence of flag bearers, followed by a debate on the not always rosy realities of communist regimes.

At the microphone: historians Virginie Girod (specialist in women's issues), Pierre Rigoulot (specialist in the communist movement) and François Kersaudy (author of the book Stalingrad ) as well as political journalist Vincent Hervouët (Europe 1, Cnews), known in particular for having castigated in 2022 " the theft of sheep during Eid " which led to a complaint, without follow-up.

All this is not to the liking of the Communist Party, France Insoumise, the Socialist Party, Europe Écologie – Les Verts and the CGT, who will hold a static demonstration at the same time in front of the town hall (validated by the prefecture).

" I'm happy for them. They're expressing a freedom that was forbidden in the ideal they support ," says the mayor of Saint-Raphaël. History is indeed a human science, filled with emotion...