French press review 20 January 2015

Recognising heros, Hollande's popularity boost, and propsed new economic reforms - all in today's papers ...

Lassana Bathily, the hero who saved many lives during the Kosher supermarket attack, is to be given French nationality.

You might have heard about Bathily.

Lassana Bathily, a 24-year-old Muslim from Mali saved several people two weeks ago when terrorist Amedy Coulibaly took several hostages at a kosher shop at Porte de Vincennes in Paris.

Catholic newspaper La Croix explains that Bathily managed to escape from the building and give the store keys to the police after hiding several people in the basement.

He was praised as a hero for his actions by several world leaders including Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and François Hollande.

An online petition - signed by 350.000 people - was created shortly after the events asking the French state to give Bathily French nationality.

The ceremony should take place today.

Will he also get the Legion of Honour, as the petition requests, wonders La Croix.

Communist newspaper L'Humanité says that it has been Bathily’s dream since he was a child to become French.

The daily tells us more about the story of the young man.

He emigrated from Mali in 2006 to finish his studies in France.

But in 2009, after he was denied the right to stay longer, he remained in France as illegally as an undocumented immigrant.

"It was really tough," the young man remembers. "People were arrested every week, when we were on our way home from college we used to call the hostel [where we were living] to make sure no policemen were there".

After two years he obtained a working permit and started working for Hyper Casher.

Brigitte Wieser, an activist, told L'Humanité that Bathily should have been given French nationality long ago - and that his should not make us forget about other illegal immigrants.

Lassana Bathily agrees. "No, I don't feel like a hero. I'm just Lassana" he says.

Le Figaro headlines on President François Hollande historic popularity surge.

According to the latest Ifop poll, Hollande gained 21% in positive opinions - that's an increase from 19% to 40%.

Le Figaro wonders if that changes anything for the French President.

For one, this sudden rise "linked to how Hollande handled the Charlie Hebdo attack" might just be temporary, says the paper.

Jérôme Fourquet, a director at Ifop, says "this result changes a lot and silences a number of critics".

But Le Figaro seems to tell its readers otherwise.

In its editorial, it says "Everything has changed, but nothing has changed".

"France remains in a worrying state of fragility, with its galloping deficits, colossal debt, its non-existent growth and mass unemployment" it says.

And of course, Hollande remains a member of the Socialist party - something Le Figaro doesn't like very much.

According to today's Libération the government is trying something new...

New reforms drawn up by economy minister Emanuel Macron are designed to liberalise the economy and boost growth.

In order to argue against those opposing the bill, Macron has asked several think tanks their opinion on the matter.

The idea, according to the left wing newspaper, is for the bill to be validated by experts.

And that's new says Libé.

The government is even considering forcing every ministry to do the same when they write a major law.