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Ségolène Royal

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Ségolène Royal
Ségolène Royal
President of the Poitou-Charentes region
In office
2004–present
Deputy in the French National Assembly
In office
2002 – present (4 term)
ConstituencyDeux-Sèvres
Personal details
Born (1953-09-22) September 22, 1953 (age 71)
Dakar, Senegal
Political partySocialist Party
Height250px
Children4

Marie-Ségolène Royal (born 22 September 1953 in Dakar, Senegal), known as Ségolène Royalⓘ, (IPA: [sego'lɛn ʁwaj'al]) is a French politician. She is the President of the Poitou-Charentes region, a member of the National Assembly, and a prominent member of the Socialist Party. On 16 November 2006, Socialist Party members elected her as their candidate for the 2007 French presidential election.

She is known for her admiration for some of Tony Blair's "Third Way" politics, for her controversial insistence on "law and order" issues and for her support of devolution and participatory democracy.

Biography

Ségolène Royal was born in Ouakam, Dakar, Senegal on 22 September 1953, the daughter of Jacques Royal, a former artillery officer and aide to the mayor of Chamagne (Vosges), and of Hélène Dehaye.

Royal's childhood played a role in shaping her values and character. Her parents had eight children in nine years: Marie-Odette, Marie-Nicole, Gérard, Marie-Ségolène, Antoine, Paul, Henry and Sigisbert. Her father was fond of saying "I have five children and three girls". He did not believe that girls should be educated, since in his opinion they were meant for obedience and breeding. The young Marie-Ségolène had to struggle with her father to continue her studies through high school, though she ultimately prevailed. Much to his surprise, she was admitted to Sciences Po, an elite university. In Summer 1971 she was an au pair in Dublin, Ireland.[1] In 1972, at the age of 19, Ségolène sued her father because he refused to divorce her mother and pay alimony and child support to finance the children's education. She won the case after many years in court, shortly before Jacques Royal died of lung cancer in 1981. Six of the eight children had refused to see him again at Ségolène's insistence.[2]

In September 2006, her brother Antoine Royal revealed that another brother, Lieutenant Gérard Royal, was involved in the planting of the bomb that sank the Greenpeace ship, the Rainbow Warrior, in Auckland harbour, New Zealand, on 10 July 1985, killing photographer Fernando Pereira. [3] His involvement had been known for some time however, and the New Zealand government announced that there would be no extradition requests since they regarded the case as closed.[4]

Ségolène Royal is a graduate of the elite École nationale d'administration (ENA) along with much of France's political elite, and was in the same class as the Prime Minister, Dominique de Villepin.[5] Since the late 1970s, Ségolène Royal has been the private-life partner of François Hollande, currently first secretary of the French Socialist Party, whom she met at ENA. The couple have four children: Thomas (b. 1984), Clémence (b. 1985), Julien (b. 1987) and Flora (b. 1993). While not married, they are bound by the PACS (pacte civil de solidarité), which provides for a civil union between two adults, regardless of gender.

Political career

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She served as a judge (conseiller) of an administrative court, an assignment for low-ranking graduates, before she was noticed by President François Mitterrand's special adviser Jacques Attali and recruited in his staff in 1982. She held the junior rank of chargée de mission from 1982 to 1988. [6]

She is a deputy in the National Assembly for the Deux-Sèvres département (1988-1992, 1993-1997, 2002-). Her candidacy was an example of the French political tradition of parachutage (parachuting), appointing promising Parisian political staffers as candidates in rural districts. However, hers was second rate: she was up against an entrenched UDF incumbent, and François Mitterrand is said to have told her: "You will not win, but you will next time." She did win against the odds, and remarked: "Pour un parachutage, l'atterrissage est réussi." ("As far as parachuting goes, the landing was a success").[citation needed]

When she was the minister of Environment under Pierre Bérégovoy from 1992 to 1993, she failed to be elected mayor of Niort against the incumbent Socialist who ran as an Independent when she received the nomination. She first considered a run for President during the Socialist Party's primaries for the 1995 elections but decided against it because only heavyweights were running.[citation needed] When the Left won the 1997 legislative election, she stood for the presidency of the National Assembly; however, the party instead elected Laurent Fabius. In compensation, she was appointed to Lionel Jospin's government as Vice-Minister of Education, then as Vice-Minister of Family and Childhood from 2000 to 2002.

On 28 March 2004, she was elected (with more than 55%) president of the region Poitou-Charentes, notably defeating Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin's protégée, Elizabeth Morin, in his home region. (She retains her National Assembly seat simultaneously.)

Ministerial career

  • 3 April 1992 - 29 March 1993, Minister of the Environment
  • 4 June 1997 - 27 March 2000, Vice-Minister for Education (ministre déléguée à l'Enseignement scolaire auprès du ministre de l'Éducation Nationale)
  • 27 March 2000 - 27 March 2001, Vice-Minister for Family and Childhood (ministre déléguée à la Famille et à l'Enfance auprès de la ministre de l'Emploi et de la Solidarité)
  • 28 March 2001 - 5 May 2002, Vice-Minister for Family and Childhood and Handicapped Persons (ministre déléguée à la Famille, à l'Enfance et aux Personnes handicapées auprès de la ministre de l'Emploi et de la Solidarité).

Elective office

2007 presidential bid

Main article: French presidential election, 2007

On 22 September 2005 Paris Match published an interview in which she declared that she was considering running for the presidency in 2007. [7] After the government was forced into a humiliating climb-down in the face of youth riots against the CPE (first employment contract) laws, she was tipped as the lead contender in what is dubbed the "Sarko-Sego" race against Nicolas Sarkozy. Until that time, she had not been thought a likely candidate as she had stayed out of the Socialist Party's power struggles.

On 7 April 2006, Royal launched an Internet-led electoral campaign at Désirs d'avenir ("Desires of a future"), publishing the first of ten chapters of her political manifesto. The campaign — which allowed contributions by visitors in order to help "complete" the book — was designed to help Royal produce a document which was to be published in September 2006, two months before the Socialist Party elected her its presidential candidate.

By the beginning of September, her intentions had become quite clear. She has said that only widespread sexism in the Socialist Party had prevented it from rallying around her candidacy as it would have had she been a man. She announced an official team to promote her campaign on 30 August. At this point, polls showed her to be much more popular than her closest competitor, former Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, and other Socialist heavyweights Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Jack Lang, another former Prime Minister Laurent Fabius and François Hollande.

Her status as a presidential candidate became more likely on 28 September 2006, when Lionel Jospin announced that he would not run after all. Jack Lang followed suit.

On 16 November 2006, Royal defeated Laurent Fabius and Dominique Strauss-Kahn in the French Socialist Party primary, becoming the party's candidate for the 2007 presidential election. She won in 101 of 104 of the Socialist Party's fédérations, losing only Haute-Corse, Mayotte and Seine-Maritime (the latter being the home region of Laurent Fabius).

Controversy over personal issues

In January 2007, a persistent rumour circulated on the Internet that Royal and Hollande avoided paying solidarity tax on wealth by having their three properties owned by a private real estate company. (This came soon after a tax-dodging controversy about singer and tax exile Johnny Hallyday, whom Royal and others criticised).[8] After UMP deputy Jacques Godfrain relayed the accusations, Royal and Hollande disclosed the exact state of their wealth, which showed that they do indeed pay the tax. Other major candidates followed suit, and Hollande announced that he was suing Godfrain and a newspaper over the allegations.[9]

On January 18, 2007, Royal suspended her spokesman Arnaud Montebourg for a month, after Montebourg quipped on a television show that "Segolene Royal has only one flaw: her partner".[10] This came amidst speculation that a rift is growing between Royal and Hollande.

Policies

Royal has been widely criticised for being stronger on rhetorics than policies, and being part of a trend in French politics to focus on the personality and lifestyles of politicians rather than their ideas. When in August 2006, a paparazzo took a photo of her wearing a bikini, she refrained from suing as was her right under French privacy laws.[11] For the recent campaign for the Presidential nomination she changed from wearing dull clothing to stylish suits and reportedly had work done on her teeth.[12]

She has also tended to campaign on family and other socially-oriented issues, rather than on economic or foreign policy issues. For instance, she has mounted campaigns against the exposure of children to violent television shows, including cartoons (see her 1989 book, listed below, Le Ras-le-bol des bébés zappeurs, roughly translated as "Channel-Surfing Kids are Fed Up"), and more generally has taken a stand on several issues regarding family values and the protection of children.

Local politics

In Royal's career as a local government official, one of the first issues which brought her a certain level of national prominence involved a Poitevin cheese. In order to promote the local Chabichou cheese, she arrived at the garden party at the Palais de l'Elysée on Bastille Day dressed in the traditional Poitevin costume. [13] A major environmental issue in which she was active, which attracted international attention among ecology groups, was the restoration of the Poitevin Marshes. Royal also sponsored several related projects in the Poitevin Marshes, including the planting of 10,000 trees there. In Poitou, Royal has appeared often in efforts to support local agriculture, such as campaigns to promote the parthenaise and maraîchine cattle breeds.[14]

National politics

Royal has caused some controversy by her statements on juvenile delinquents, advocating putting young delinquents under a reform regime with a "military aspect",[15] causing a stir within her own party[citation needed] and attacking Nicolas Sarkozy on his own turf. She also criticized some side effects of the 35-hour working week that Lionel Jospin wrote into law when he was Prime Minister.[citation needed]

Environment

During her tenure as Minister for the Environment, 1992-1993, Royal campaigned actively and successfully for the Law on the treatment and recycling of refuse (La loi sur le traitement et le recyclage des déchets), the Law to preserve the countryside (La loi sur la reconquête des paysages), a Save our countrysides, savor their products campaign to provide proper labelling for the products of 100 local areas (opération «Sauvons nos paysages, savourons leurs produits»), and the Law against noise pollution (La loi de lutte contre le bruit). She provided compensation for people adversely affected by airport noise.[14]

Education

During her tenure as Minister-delegate for the Family, Children, and the Handicapped, 2000-2002,[14] Royal was active in the re-launch of the Priority Education Zones program (ZEP / zone d'éducation prioritaire), the creation of a government student lunch program, the implementation of language instruction as a priority in primary schools, the creation of a national home-tutoring program, Heures de Soutien Scolaire,[16] and the creation of programs for parental involvement in schools, "la Semaine des parents à l'école", and national campaigns for the elections of parent-representatives. She also campaigned for the creation of local education and citizenship education contracts, the "Initiatives citoyennes" program for teaching children how to live together, the law on Defense of children's rights and campaign against violence in the schools (Loi de juin 1998 relative à la prévention et à la répression des infractions sexuelles ainsi qu'à la protection des mineurs), the Campaign against "hazing" rituals in higher education (Loi de juin 1998 contre le bizutage), the Campaign against violence and racketeering which included implementation of the "SOS Violence" telephone number, and the implementation of mandatory civics instruction in secondary schools.

In January 2006, she criticised secondary school teachers who give private lessons outside of school hours, saying that they should spend more time in school. When a bootleg video of the speech surfaced on the internet in November 2006, the teacher's union SNES rebuffed her, requesting that she renounce her proposal.[17]

Family and social affairs

Ségolène Royal speaking to a crowd in Nantes

Royal is in favour of, and has worked for, the Parental rights and obligations act (loi sur l'autorité parentale), the Women's rights reform and anonymous childbirth act ("l'accouchement sous X"),[18] the creation of paternity leave, the creation of 40,000 new spaces in French nursery schools, and Social housing reform.[19] She has been active in campaigns providing for Parental time-off provisions and financial support for child illness care,[19] Special education support ("parents d'enfants handicapés"), Benefit allocations for students starting the new school year ("Allocation de rentrée scolaire"), and the Prostitution of Minors Act (Loi contre la prostitution des mineurs) which provides penal measures for clients. Royal has supported the Law against child pornography, the creation of the association "Childhood and the Media" ("Enfance et média") against violence in the media, the creation of the "Plan Handiscole" for the education of handicapped children and adolescents and their integration into life at school, programs for mass and individual transportation, and the creation of the program Tourism and the Handicapped ("Tourisme et handicap").[20]

Television Issues

Royal has been a long-standing critic of violence on television. She has voiced opinions in the past linking youth crime to exposure to pornography and television violence.

She also described the M6 programme "Loft Story", based on the internationally popular Big Brother format, as contrary to principles of human dignity and risked transforming viewers into voyeurs instead of providing quality programming.[21]

LGBT issues

In 2000, Royal, as the then Minister of the Family and Children spoke out against anti-gay bullying in schools, saying, “School must be a place of tolerance, of welcome. Too many young people face teasing, social exclusion because of their sexual orientation… Some consider drugs, suicide attempts. It is time to stand up to this hostility shown towards homosexuality.” She later introduced an educational packet in high schools and colleges called “The Happiness of Loving”, designed particularly for teachers and nurses. It comprises a video, educational information and printed copies for students which address the different issues of homosexuality and homophobia. It includes information on the Civil Partnership scheme, the situation of homosexuals and the discrimination they face abroad. Royal commented further on the issue later that year: “It is necessary, in my opinion, to step up against homophobia, to recognise and respect each other, with our differences”.

A law passed in February 2002, introduced by Royal on behalf of the Jospin government, gave legal recognition, for the first time, to families with same-sex parents, part of the law’s object. Article 7 of the law amended Article 337 of the Civil Code in allowing the parents to “[delegate] all or part of the exercise of their parental authority to a third person, member of the family [or] trustworthy near relation,”. Article 337-1, added by the law, ensures that “delegation may provide, for the needs of education of a child, that the father and mother, or one of them, shall share all or part of the exercise of parental authority with the third person delegatee."

In a June 2006 interview with LGBT publication Têtu, Royal said "opening up marriage to same-sex couples is needed in the name of equality, visibility and respect" and said that if her party formed the next government, she would introduce a bill to legalize same-sex marriage and adoption.[22]

Foreign policy

Foreign affairs are one of the key responsibilities of the French President, and Royal has been struggling to erase the impression that she is a novice in this area. She initially appeared to have few opinions on key subjects, such as whether Turkey should be allowed to join the European Union, to which she merely responded , "my opinion is that of the French people."[12]. On another crucial issue, that of Iran's development of nuclear technology, Royal also appeared insufficiently briefed. She initially took a very hard line in a televised debate, contending that any nuclear power programme in Iran must be prevented since it would inevitably lead to weapons production. When she was criticised by French politicians for not understanding the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty – which gives signatories the right to nuclear power for non-military purposes – Royal softened her position and, through a spokesman, said that a civil nuclear program should be allowed as long as United Nations inspectors were permitted to conduct spot checks.[23]

Since December 2006, Royal has been travelling abroad extensively in order to enhance her international profile and credibility, but her efforts have been set back by a series of blunders, which her political opponents at UMP have been quick to jump on.

In early December 2006, controversy followed a brief tour of the Middle East. Meeting Hezbollah politician Ali Ammar, she took exception to his use of the euphemism "Zionist entity", but failed to react when he likened Israel's behaviour in Palestinian territories to Nazi occupation of France during WWII. This attracted criticism in France and in Israel which Royal visited next. However, the French ambassador to Lebanon, Bernard Emié, backed her explanation that she did not hear the offending remarks - the discussion took place via an interpreter supplied by the Lebanese parliament.[24]

Royal visited China in January 2007; after speaking with a lawyer in that country she noted to the press that he had pointed out to her that the Chinese legal system was "faster" than the French one. She was immediately reminded by her opponents at home that the Chinese system orders 10,000 executions each year, and that defence lawyers there must be authorized by the Communist Party.[25] She however brought up with her hosts the fate of three Chinese journalists recently imprisoned, and criticised the meekness of French entrepreneurs in tackling new markets such as China. On a more trivial level, she also invited ridicule by mangling the French language in a soundbite delivered on the Great Wall of China.[26]

In January 2007, during a meeting with Quebec opposition leader and Parti Québécois head André Boisclair, she stirred up more controversy by declaring her support for the Quebec sovereignty movement in its aim to secede from Canada. Royal said Quebec and France share common values, including "sovereignty and Quebec's freedom." Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper issued a statement in which he questioned the wisdom of Royal weighing in on a Canadian debate: "Experience teaches that it is highly inappropriate for a foreign leader to interfere in the democratic affairs of another country," he said. Federal Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion said Royal's comments hurt her credibility. "She does not understand," he said. "You do not interfere in the affairs of a friendly country, you do not wish for the dismantling of a friendly country. Canada does not wish for the dismantling of France and France certainly does not wish for the dismantling of Canada." [27] [28] Soon after, Royal took a phone call from comedian Gérald Dahan passing himself off as Quebec Premier Jean Charest and was tricked into making a quip about Corsica's independence: "Not all French people would be opposed." She then added, "But don't repeat that or we'll have another scandal on our hands."[29][30]

By the end of January 2007, this string of controversies in a short period of time was causing speculation across the French media and a slump for her in opinion polls.

Bibliography

Royal is the author unless otherwise noted.

  • Le Printemps des grands-parents : la nouvelle alliance des âges (Paris : Cogite-R. Laffont, 1987) ISBN 2-221-05314-1, (Paris : France Loisirs, 1988) ISBN 2-7242-3948-2, (Paris : Presses pocket, 1989) ISBN 2-266-02730-1.
  • Le Ras-le-bol des bébés zappeurs (Paris : R. Laffont, 1989) ISBN 2-221-05826-7, cover "Télé-massacre, l'overdose?", subjects): Télévision et enfants, Violence -- A la télévision.
  • Pays, paysans, paysages (Paris : R. Laffont, 1993) ISBN 2-221-07046-1, subject(s): Environnement -- Protection -- France ; Politique de l'environnement -- France ; Développement rural -- France.
  • France. Ministère de l'environnement (1991-1997) Ségolène Royal, une année d'actions pour la planète : avril 1992 - mars 1993 (Paris : Ministère de l'environnement, ca 1993), subject(s): Politique de l'environnement -- France.
  • France. Assemblée nationale (1958-) Commission des affaires étrangères Rapport d'information sur les suites de la Conférence de Rio / présenté par M. Roland Nungesser et Mme Ségolène Royal (Paris : Assemblée nationale, 1994) ISBN 2-11-087788-X, subject(s): Développement durable ; Conférence des Nations unies sur l'environnement et le développement.
  • La vérité d'une femme (Paris : Stock, 1996) ISBN 2-234-04648-3, subject(s): Pratiques politiques -- France -- 1970-.
  • Laguerre, Christian École, informatique et nouveaux comportements préf. de Ségolène Royal (Paris ; Montréal (Québec) : Éd. l'Harmattan, 1999) ISBN 2-7384-7453-5, subject(s): Informatique -- Aspect social ; Éducation et informatique ; Ordinateurs et enfants.
  • Sassier, Monique Construire la médiation familiale : arguments et propositions preface by Ségolène Royal (Paris : Dunod, 2001) ISBN 2-10-005993-9.
  • Amar, Cécile and Hassoux, Didier Ségolène et François ([Paris] : Privé, impr. 2005) ISBN 2-35076-002-2, subject(s): Royal, Ségolène (1953-) -- Biographies ; Hollande, François (1954-) -- Biographies.
  • Bernard, Daniel Madame Royal ([Paris] : Jacob-Duvernet, impr. 2005) ISBN 2-84724-091-8, subject(s): Royal, Ségolène (1953-) -- Biographies ; France -- Politique et gouvernement -- 1958-.
  • Désir d'avenir ([Paris] : Flammarion, [forthcoming, March 2006]) ISBN 2080688057.
  • Malouines-Me La Madone et le Culbuto - Ou l'Inlassable Ambition de Ségolène Royal et François Hollande ([Paris] : Fayard, [forthcoming, April 5 2006]), series: LITT.GENE, ISBN 2213623546.

References

  1. ^ Lichfield, John (December 12, 2006). "When Ségolène came to stay". The Independent. Retrieved 2006-12-16. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ Karlin, Elise (November 11, 2006). "La jeunesse cachée de Ségolène Royal". L'Express. Retrieved 2006-11-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Template:Fr icon
  3. ^ "Presidential hopeful's brother bombed the Rainbow Warrior". Sydney Morning Herald. October 1, 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ "Suspect in Rainbow Warrior blast escapes NZ extradition". Sydney Morning Herald. October 2, 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (November 18, 2006). "Ségo returns to her 'political laboratory' to savour victory". The Guardian. Retrieved 2006-11-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "La Présidente du Conseil Régional". Région Poitou-Charentes. Retrieved 2006-11-18.Template:Fr icon
  7. ^ "Ségolène Royal «Que le meilleur gagne»". Paris Match. September 22, 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Template:Fr icon
  8. ^ "Royal is accused of dodging tax on her wealth". Daily Telegraph. 2007-01-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ Kerviel, Sylvie: "La blogosphère envenime la campagne", Le Monde (21-22 January 2007) p. 17.Template:Fr icon
  10. ^ "Royal suspends a campaign spokesman". International Herald Tribune]]. 2007-01-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Schofield, Hugh (August 10, 2006). "French politics takes popular plunge". BBC. Retrieved 2006-11-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ a b Associated Press (November 16, 2006). "Ségolène Royal: The 'gazelle' of French politics bolts ahead of the pack". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Karlin, Elise (29 March 2004). "Ségolène et François, couple royal". L'Express. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Template:Fr icon
  14. ^ a b c "Qui est Ségolène Royal?". Régionales 2004. Socialist Party. Retrieved 2006-11-18.Template:Fr icon
  15. ^ Morfin, Thomas. "Ségolène Royal pour la manière forte contre la délinquance des jeunes". Yahoo! France. Retrieved 2006-11-18.Template:Fr icon
  16. ^ "L'annuaire de Soutien Scolaire". Jeunesplus. Retrieved 2006-11-18.Template:Fr icon
  17. ^ "Le SNES demande à Ségolène Royal de "renoncer" à ses propositions sur le temps de travail des enseignants". Yahoo!. November 13, 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-03. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Template:Fr icon
  18. ^ "Réforme de l'accouchement sous X et la création du Conseil national pour l'accès aux origines personnelles". Ministry of the Family and Children. 14 December 2000. Retrieved 2006-11-18.Template:Fr icon
  19. ^ a b "Bilan et perspective des actions en faveur des familles et de l'enfance". Ministry of the Family and Children. 11 January 2001. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)Template:Fr icon
  20. ^ "Le label national Tourisme et Handicap". Ministry of Tourism. Retrieved 2006-11-18.Template:Fr icon
  21. ^ "Ségolène Royal, a woman who always took courageous decisions". PS Sciences Po. Retrieved 2007-01-06.Template:Fr icon
  22. ^ "French Presidential Contender Calls For Gay Marriage". 365Gay.com 2006. 20 June 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ Arnold, Martin (November 9, 2006). "Royal criticised for hard line on Iran's nuclear ambitions". Financial Times. Retrieved 2006-11-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ Lichfield, John (December 4, 2006). "Royal's first foreign tour blighted by blunders". The Independent. Retrieved 2006-12-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  25. ^ "L'éloge de la justice chinoise par Royal fait des vagues" (in French). Le Figaro. 2007-01-11. Retrieved 2007-01-14. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  26. ^ Ganley, Elaine (January 8, 2007). "French Candidate Bashed for 'Bravitude'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-01-22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ Canadian Press (January 22, 2007). "Harper takes Segolene Royal to task for her comments on Quebec sovereignty". Canada.com. Retrieved 2007-01-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ Michel Dolbec (January 22, 2007). "Canadian politicians rap Segolene Royal for comments on Quebec sovereignty". Canada.com. Retrieved 2007-01-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  29. ^ "Royal caught out by hoax caller". BBC News. 2007-01-28. Retrieved 2007-02-05. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  30. ^ "Royal's campaign wobbles on gaffes and dirty tricks". The Independent. 2007-01-29. Retrieved 2007-02-05. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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