By: Claude Ribbe - Le Blog de Claude Ribbe (Translation by HaitiAnalysis)

As the weekly magazine "Jeune Afrique" asked me recently what was my "reaction" to the premiere of Nicolas Sarkozy, (that is: the introduction in the government of ministers of "diversity"), after expressing my perplexity about the word of "diversity", it seemed good to me to recall some apparently forgotten historical facts.

If one means by "diversity" people of foreign origin, I seem to remember, for example, that the Italian Giulio Mazarino, said Mazarin, naturalized in 1639, became Prime Minister in 1642.

If one means by "diversity" people of African descent, which seems to me to generally be the case of those who concocted this formula, (my race-based sense), to avoid saying "black" or "Arab", the presence of ministers of "diversity" in government really was not born yesterday.

Seventy three years before Rachida Dati, a "diversity" minister of Justice: Henry LEMERY !

To ponder: To say nothing of the French parliament in which "diversity" was represented as early as 1794 by the Haitian representatives Mills and Belley;

Severiano de Heredia, representative of La Seine of afro-Cuban origin, stepped up in government in 1887 where he occupied the function of minister of Civil Engineering in the Rouvier government.

Henry Lemery from Martinique participated in the Clémenceau government in 1917, at the side of Senegalese Blaise Diagne, who lead in government with the title of General Commissioner of the African troops. Henry Lémery occupied the seat of minister of Justice in 1934. Seventy-three years before Rachida Dati! He was even Minister under Petain.

Talcide Delmont from Martinique was Vice-Secretary of State in the Colonies in 1929 during the Tardieu government. He was replaced in this post by Gratien Candace from Guadeloupe in 1932, then by Gaston Monnerville from Guyana during the Chautemps government in 1937.

Houphouet-Boigny from Ivory Coast was an official of all governments between 1957 and 1961, notably head of public Health and with the title of minister of State.

More recently, Lucette Michaux-Chevry from Guadeloupe entered the Chirac government as the head of the Francophone World in 1986, post that she occupied up to 1988. She was next delegate minister at the ministry of Foreign Affairs, heading the Human Rights Department in the Balladur government in 1993.

Fourteen years before Rama Yade! Roger Bambuck from Guadeloupe was Michel Rocard's Secretary of the State Sports Commission from 1988 to 1991.

Kofi Yamgnane, from Togo, was Secretary of State of the Integration in the governments of Edith Cresson and of Pierre Bérégovoy from 1991 to 1993.

Fourteen years before Fadela Amara! Margie Sudre from Reunion was Secretary of State of the Francophone World in 1995 in the Juppe government and Leon Bertrand from Guyana was Secretary of State of Tourism in the Raffarin and Villepin governments of 2002 until the election of Nicolas Sarkozy.

The presence of "diversity" in governments of all tendencies (including the collaborationist extreme-right) and not only to posts linked to the colonies or to the former colonies is therefore an old French tradition older than a century. Almost as old as the colonies, almost as old as colonialism.

The presence of "diversity" women was inaugurated 22 years ago. More generally, it has also been 22 years (to the exception, very curiously, of the five-year socialist term of Lionel Jospin) that "diversity" men and women sit in government.

I do not see therefore much novelty...Numbers and gender, maybe, since nowadays there are three ministers stemming from "diversity" and that they are three women.

But this innovation is compensated by the fact that no man of African descent appears on the list of the government of Francois Fillon and that the overseas are not represented.

What a pity!