In Turkey, a general election was held today in which the AK party won the majority. The votes, however, fell short of two third that is needed to change the constitution outright. It would require a referendum to change the constitution. The constitutional change is one of its Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's agenda. He insists to alter the constitution to elect a president by direct votes in Turkey. By this election, Prime Minister Erdogan is set to serve the third term in office.
According to the French newspaper articles, the former President of France, Jacques Chirac said he would vote for the former head of PS, not for candidate from his own party, UMP. The articles say, he has mentioned it "jokingly" that he would vote for François Hollande, the head of the PS in the next Presidential election in 2012.
Whether his announcement was made seriously or not, in this crucial time of the year before the 2012 election, the blatant defiance could just be an attack to divide the enemy party or -- a vindication. The political drama that has been frequently cited was that in the Presidential election 1995, then the minister Sarkozy sided with the former President Chirac's rival then the Prime Minister Balladur, when he was mostly seen to be close to Chirac. He had lost his position after the election.
It has been said that Chirac had reasons to support the President Sarkozy in the Presidential election in 2007, esp. regarding to his alleged scandal. The former President is accused of having paid the non-existent city officials when he was the mayor of Paris. The trial was held in March, 2011.
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It is hard to call the President of France that he does not -- doubt, from the phrase of the former President's memoir. While the word trust has different meaning in different places, the belief in human reasons and emotional sides of each and every individual is a form of conviction in what makes us human. The former President is known for his warm character and thoughtful comments on humanity and culture. His apparent hostility, however, does not seem to show justice nor fairness. The personal attacks on characters and ignoring what has achieved while sending implicit acceptances of them by the silence, is not -- fair nor constructive. Political initiatives can not be sustainable if the fair assessments constantly show the supports all the while.