Background Report Mitterrand’s Historic Visit to Israel

Who is Francois Mitterrand? What are his roots? Francois Maurice Mitterrand, one of eight children (four boys and four girls) of Joseph and Yvonne (Lorrain) Mitterrand, was born on October 26, 1916, at Jamac, in the Charente Department of western France.

One of his brothers was a general in the French Air Force, another is an engineer, a third brother is an agronomist and vintner. His father was a railroad man who worked for a time as stationmaster at Angouleme and later went into the vinegar business.

Mitterrand achieved a brilliant scholastic record at the College Saint-Paul in Angouleme where he received his secondary education, and at the University of Paris where he obtained an advanced law degree and a diploma from the Ecole Libre Des Sciences Politiques. As a student in Paris, he did social work among the poor and the aged at a Roman Catholic hospice.

In 1939, after the outbreak of World War II, he enlisted in the colonial infantry and was sent to the Maginot Line. When the Germans invaded France, in June, 1940, Mitterrand, now a sergeant, was wounded and captured.

He escaped on his third attempt in December, 1941, and returned to France where he joined the resistance and organized the National Movement of War Prisoners and Deportees. In 1943 and 1944, he undertook secret missions to London and Algiers on behalf of war prisoners.

CAREER IN NATIONAL POLITICS

His career in national politics began when he was elected deputy from the Nievre department in central France in 1946. He served in the National Assembly until his election as President except for a short period from 1959 to 1962 when he was a Senator. In the Assembly, he was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. He was named a member of the European Parliament in 1967, and in 1979 he won a seat in the first elections to that body.

A former Cabinet Minister, Mitterrand held the following posts: Secretary of State to the Presidency of the Council in charge of information in 1948 and 1949; Minister of France Overseas, 1950-1951; Minister of State, 1952; Minister of the Interior, 1954-1955; and Minister of State in Charge of Justice, 1956-1957.

He has been described as indefatigable, “phoenix-like,” “nothing stops him.” After all, he made two unsuccessful bids for the Presidency. In 1965, he ran against Gen. Charles de Gaulle as a candidate for the non-Communist left and obtained 45.5 percent of the votes.

In 1974, he ran against Valery Giscard d’Estaing as the candidate of the leftist coalition and polled 49.19 percent of the votes. In the 1981 elections, he polled 51.76 percent to Giscard d’Estaing’s 48.24 percent.

A lawyer, writer and author, he is married and has two adult sons. He holds Legion of Honor, the Croix de Guerre and the Rosette of the Resistance.

His books are read; his speeches studied. His comments during his visit to Israel will be scrutinized and analyzed, especially in light of a statement he made almost 10 years ago (March 14, 1972) in Tel Aviv. “If we are elected,” he said, “you can be sure that we will be loyal friends of Israel both as Socialists and as French citizens.”

Mitterrand reaffirmed this on the eve of his departure in an interview in the French Jewish monthly, L’Arche:

“When I first visited Israel I marvelled by the print of history engraved in its beauty, the physical beauty of the land. The Jews with, first Abraham and then Joshua at their head conquered the land of Canaan not for themselves but for the sake of God, who asked them to do this for his sake. This contract has created a physical, spiritual, historic and even legal link between God and the Jews. In spite of its universal dimension, the Bible is the family book of the Jewish people.”