Sarkozy takes his re-election campaign to the Vatican (Feature)

By Siegfried Mortkowitz and Peter Mayer Oct 7, 2010, 12:03 GMT

Paris - There is a growing feeling in France that President Nicolas Sarkozy will stop at nothing to be elected to a second five- year term in 2012 - even appealing to the pope.

Most analysts - indeed, a large majority of French voters - have interpreted Sarkozy's recent hard line on immigrants and the subsequent acceleration of Roma deportations as an attempt to woo adherents of the xenophobic National Front of Jean-Marie Le Pen.

But a recent survey showed that this course is costing him more voters among moderate conservatives, particularly among Catholics, than he is gaining among far-right-wing voters.

In one year, Sarkozy's approval rating with French Catholics has fallen from 61 per cent to 47 per cent, with some of that decline due to the controversy over the Roma expulsions.

It is within that context that Sarkozy's visit to Pope Benedict XVI on Friday must be seen, because the church has inserted itself into the controversy, provoking diplomatic tensions between the Vatican and the Elysee Palace.

The targeting of Roma squatter camps for demolition and the repatriation of thousands of Roma already drew fire from several French Catholic officials, including the archbishop of Paris, Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, before the pope himself intervened.

On August 22, the pope appeared to refer to the French Roma policy by reminding French pilgrims that the Scriptures were 'an invitation to know how to accommodate legitimate human diversities, just as Jesus came to assemble men from all nations and speaking every language.'

Several days later, an adviser to Sarkozy, Alain Minc, told France Inter radio that Benedict was not entitled to speak about the Roma situation because he was German.

'Anyone can say anything about the Roma situation, but not a German pope. John Paul II perhaps, but not him,' Minc said.

Minc was referring to the mass exterminations of Roma populations in Eastern and Central Europe by Germany's Nazi regime.

A source in the Elysee Palace told the daily La Croix that Minc's statements had provoked uneasiness at the Vatican. 'The pope is not happy,' the source said.

Perhaps that was why Sarkozy was able to get an appointment so quickly. La Croix, which specializes in religious issues, said it was unusual that a head of state could set up an appointment with the pope in such a short time.

Asked about this, Vatican spokesman Father Ciro Benedettini said, 'When requests are made by world leaders to meet the Holy Father on a specific date, we try to accommodate them, even if it is not always possible. In this case, it was.'

Asked about the reasons for the meeting, Benedettini replied: 'What is discussed during these meetings is something between the Holy Father and the leader he is meeting with. The same applies to the reasons provided when a request is made for an audience with the Holy Father.'

As for speculation in France (and in Italy) - including in the Catholic media - that Sarkozy has asked to meet the pope to discuss the Roma deportations, Benedettini said: 'That is not something the Vatican press office is commenting on.'

However, Sarkozy adviser Claude Geant made it very clear, in September, that Sarkozy would be going to the Vatican to clear up tensions created by French reactions to statements by the pope criticizing the Roma expulsions.

The meeting will be the third between President Sarkozy and the current pope. At the first meeting, in December 2007, Sarkozy was seen to be messaging on his mobile phone. He also introduced some of his friends to the pope, including the popular comedian Jean-Marie Bigard.

This time, the meeting will presumably be far more serious.

Read more about France Migration

Read more about Politics

Read more about Roma

Read more about Vatican