No, the rules of the Assembly do not prohibit interrupting the Marseillaise.

This is a moment that marked a day of political and social tension. This Thursday, as Prime Minister Elisabeth Bourne appeared on the dais to announce the use of 49.3 and push through the pension reform, Nupe deputies sang the Marseillaise on a half cycle, placards waving.

Faced with this impromptu choir, the head of government was at first unable to speak. What will she finally do in the hype, with calls to resign after a short two-minute break.

“With deputies from France Insoumise, we are now intoning the Marseillaise in a semi-cycle. The rules of the Assembly forbid interrupting this song. This should cancel the intervention of E. Born, who wants to harden the representation of the people at 49.3”, then publishes on the social network Twitter Alma Dufour, Deputy (LFI) of the fourth arrondissement of the Seine-Maritime. The message was also conveyed by the coordinator of recalcitrant France, Manuel Bompard.

“Amazing. What is more surprising that this norm exists or that it is used in this way? Is it necessary to abuse democracy in order to cling to the means of this order! assembly services, they don’t: “There is no mention of the national anthem in any of the regulations of the National Assembly or the General Instructions of the Office,” we are told.

The MP acknowledged the “mistake in a hurry”

Contacted, Alma Dufour reconciled. “Indeed, this is a mistake. I acknowledge that my co-authors were a bit rushed to tweet at this rushed moment for everyone and that I myself was not entirely sure of the legal basis we were relying on,” she wrote to us. In fact, the authors of this tweet wanted to refer to the insult in the form of disrespect for the national anthem.

This is provided for in article 433-5-1 of the Criminal Code. “The act of publicly insulting the national anthem or the tricolor flag during a demonstration organized or regulated by public authorities is punishable by a fine of 7,500 euros.” I am not sure, however, that Assembly President Yael Braun-Pivé would have been condemned for this. “Republican custom requires that the authorities remain silent when the Marseillaise is played,” concludes Alma Dufour.

On the other hand, another symbolic image was indeed banned within the framework of the National Assembly semi-cycle. The sign “64 years – no” waving in relation to the transition from 62 to 64 years of the statutory retirement age by Nupes deputies is reprehensible. The Rules of Procedure of the Assembly do prohibit waving posters or leaflets on a half-cycle.