“Be worthy of the trust placed in you”: Emmanuel Macron named this Tuesday the first class of volunteers for the new national military service after Henri Fertet, a resistance fighter shot at the age of 16 in 1943, in homage to “those heroes who contributed to saving France”. “The choice he made, that of serving France and defending its freedom, echoes your commitment”, it was “the choice to serve rather than suffer”, launched the Head of State in front of Air Force volunteers on air base 115 in Orange (Vaucluse), adding that each of the promotions would now bear “the name of a companion of the Liberation”.
Henri Fertet was born on October 27, 1926, he was a high school student in Besançon, an “intelligent and diligent student”, “passionate about history and archeology”, and “in the summer of 1942, joined the Resistance”, he recalled. He participated in three operations, including the attack on a German customs commissioner, before being arrested, “tortured for 87 days”, sentenced to death and shot on September 26, 1943 by the Germans. This voluntary service, which marks the burial of the universal national service (SNU) dear to the president, is one of his last major projects at the end of his mandate, launched symbolically before he leaves the Elysée in the spring.
At a time when Europe is facing a conflict on its doorstep with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, this service announced in November by Emmanuel Macron is presented as a means of strengthening the link between the nation and the armies, but also as a response to military needs in the face of threats, even if young recruits are not intended to join conflict zones. “In his last letter to his parents, Henri Fertet wrote “I want a free France and happy French people”. Simple words which remind us that if freedom is the legacy of generations who preceded us, it is up to us to preserve it,” stressed Emmanuel Macron. The 1,038 Companions of the Liberation, members of the Order of the Liberation created by General de Gaulle to reward the heroes of the liberation of France during the Second World War, included a “hundred” young people under the age of 20, he recalled.
“The sense of the collective”
In 2007, Nicolas Sarkozy decided to have the letter of the young resistance fighter Guy Môquet to his parents read in all classes in the country, at the start of the school year, before his execution, a practice which, however, did not continue. “What brings you together today is this desire to serve greater than oneself and to make oneself useful to France,” continued the Chief of the Armed Forces, who then attended training workshops in hand-to-hand combat – with artificial weapons – and in the handling of assault rifles, before having lunch in the mess with the conscripts.
The first month of service is devoted to initial training (classes): spirit of discipline, handling of weapons, marching, etc. The following nine months, the volunteers are inserted into the three armies and the support services. Beyond a “job”, “skills”, the discovery of the “life of a military unit”, “you will learn something even more valuable, the sense of the collective”, also insisted the Head of State.
After 3,000 volunteers expected this year, there should be 4,000 volunteers next year, 5,000 in 2028, 7,500 in 2029 and 10,000 in 2030, according to the Élysée, which explains this very gradual increase by the need to develop the infrastructure to accommodate these young people. A dedicated budget of 2.3 billion euros was voted in the military programming law adopted this summer. Unlike the old military service, interrupted in 1996, the new system is not compulsory. It is offered to young French people, aged 18 to 25, who will receive remuneration of around 800 euros per month if they are selected. According to the Élysée, the candidates “responded en masse” from this first year, allowing a “satisfactory” level of selection, and a feminization rate of around 30%, a little above the average rate of the armies.
