Denouncing judges for being too soft on criminals is an anti-establishment staple for France’s far-right politicians. On Monday, they needed a different line of attack. A Paris criminal court imposed the most severe punishment possible on their leader, Marine Le Pen, for embezzling EU funds. Le Pen was sentenced to two years in jail — or at least wearing an electronic tag — with two more suspended, fined €100,000 and barred from running for office with immediate effect for five years. Though she will appeal, the ban seriously jeopardises Le Pen’s candidacy for the 2027 presidential election — which would have been her fourth bid for the Elysée palace, and probably the most propitious.
指責法官對罪犯過於寬容，是法國極右翼政客反建制的慣用伎倆。但週一，他們需要另闢蹊徑。巴黎刑事法院以挪用歐盟資金爲由，對其領導人馬琳•勒龐(Marine Le Pen)施以最嚴厲的懲罰。勒龐被判處兩年監禁——至少佩戴電子監控器——緩刑兩年，罰款10萬歐元，並禁止競選公職，即刻生效，爲期五年。儘管她將提出上訴，但這一禁令嚴重威脅到勒龐2027年參加大選的候選資格，這將是她第四次競選愛麗捨宮，並可能是最有希望的一次。