Latest news with #JacquesChirac
The National
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The National
Founding Flavours: Inside Fishmarket, the 37-year-old Abu Dhabi restaurant where Muhammad Ali dined
Founding Flavours is a new series from The National celebrating the UAE's culinary pioneers and the restaurants that helped shape the country's cultural identity The sea bream lies on the board as Fishmarket's chef Sawai Jampakaew slices it open lengthways with the skill that comes from decades of repetition. The knife glides beneath the spine, then the belly, until the fish lies butterflied. 'He wanted the fish to be served elegantly, but without too much fuss,' the Thai national recalls. 'So it was seasoned lightly. And because he knew we specialised in Thai food, he ordered a green curry, not too spicy, to be served on the side. He was a very elegant man. His team said he liked things very organised.' Jampakaew is referring to then French president Jacques Chirac, who dined at the restaurant at InterContinental Abu Dhabi in 1997 during a state visit to the UAE. Instead of using the private room upstairs, reserved for guests of his stature, Chirac and entourage chose to sit among weekday diners at one of the tables along the restaurant's circular wall. The sea bream remains on the menu to this day. The moment lives on in more than memory. A photograph of Chirac with Jampakaew and hotel staff hangs on one of the restaurant's curved walls, part of a gallery documenting decades of distinguished visitors. There's also Muhammad Ali who visited the restaurant in the early 1990s, according to Jampakaew, with former staff recalling how tall he was and that he indulged in a seafood platter. Fishmarket opened in 1989 on the InterContinental's beachfront promenade, nine years after the hotel itself. The restaurant became one of Abu Dhabi's early ventures into luxury hospitality, offering a fresh concept for the capital: a Thai-run seafood spot where diners chose their own fish and the menu is on ice rather than the page. Guests would walk to the chilled display counter showcasing the freshest catch, select what they wanted, and instruct the chef on the cooking style and accompanying sauce – usually Thai green or red curry, sometimes Chinese-style with ginger and soy. Fried rice and noodles are offered on the side. The growing buzz reached the ears of Jampakaew, who had worked in small seafood restaurants in Bangkok before moving to Saudi Arabia in 1989 to work in industrial kitchens in Riyadh. He was ready to return to restaurant work – this time leading a team and cooking dishes he knew intimately. 'I didn't really hesitate, as this was the opportunity I'd been looking for,' he says. 'I arrived in Abu Dhabi and I remember we only had a total of six staff, so basically we were doing everything. Prepping, cooking, advising customers on which seafood to try and share, serving and cleaning. 'And you know what? This is what I loved about it immediately. For such a luxury hotel, this had the soul of a family restaurant, where everyone worked together without complaints. This was something the visitors maybe hadn't seen before in these kinds of big hotels.' Three decades on, Jampakaew is the longest-serving member of staff – greeting regular guests by name, remembering their favourite orders, and rarely changing the menu or its cooking methods. One exception is his version of the popular dynamite shrimp, made with a red Thai curry–based sauce instead of the usual mayonnaise-heavy mix. 'In the 1990s there were not many Thai chefs like there are now,' he says. 'For many, I was a point of contact, and I would advise them that Abu Dhabi was a great place to really show what you can do – because people here are good and provide good work environments.' Jampakaew didn't foresee the wider Thai hospitality footprint in the UAE, with hotel brands such as Anantara and Dusit Thani opening popular properties, and Thai chefs now working across the country. But a certain VIP guest did. Jampakaew says cooking for former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2009 – also seated in the general dining area – was not memorable for what he ordered (a stir-fried noodle dish with mussels and squid), but for what he said. 'He comes in, sees me, and says, 'You see? I see nearly 100 Thai people working in the UAE now,'' Jampakaew recalls. 'Then he looked at me and, in a very nice way, said 'thank you' for what I was doing to represent Thai culture in the UAE. That just made me feel so proud.' The famous visitors made headlines, but the real draw was consistency. 'You know why people come back?' asks Jampakaew. 'Because we don't change. Same fish, same way of cooking. I make butterfly fish the same way I learnt in Thailand. If the fish is good, don't touch too much. Make it clean. Let the flavour come out.' The restaurant itself has received only minor updates during broader hotel renovations over the decades. The original brown chairs were replaced with indigo-cushioned seating, and the gravel path leading to the restaurant became a wooden walkway. 'The rest is the same, and they didn't touch my kitchen. The food counter is the same,' Jampakaew says. 'I remember we were thinking 'why change something when it's working so good'?' That loyalty runs both ways. When he retired in 2018 after 26 years of service, former staff and long-time customers gathered to bid Jampakaew farewell in a tearful send-off. After a few months at home in Bangkok, he was surprised by how much he missed the kitchen, the regulars and the routine. So when he was asked to return to help galvanise Fishmarket as it emerged from pandemic-induced closure, Jampakaew didn't think twice. He rejoined in 2021. 'I wanted to come back because this restaurant deserves to get back to where it was,' he says. 'I knew I made the right choice because the customers were so happy I was back, and they made me feel like this is my home.' Now, he no longer knows when he will leave – and it doesn't matter. 'As you get older in this job, what you remember really is not how much money you made or what you did with it,' he says. 'It's about how you make people feel happy with your skills. I learnt that, like life, every customer is different. Some like spice, others don't. Some want extra lime, others prefer less herbs. Everyone is different – but if you remember what they like, they feel special.' After our conversation, Jampakaew returns to where we found him – at his cutting board, blade in hand, fresh fish waiting on ice. Fishmarket stands as a reminder that some things are worth keeping exactly as they are.
LeMonde
3 days ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
The Duplomb Law's partial blocking affirms a healthy environment as a constitutional right
The Constitutional Council did not need to resort to convoluted legal reasoning to put an end, on Thursday, August 7, to the most heated political controversy in France this summer. By introducing, through the Duplomb Law passed on July 8, an exception to the ban on neonicotinoids – pesticides banned in France since 2018 – without any time limit or restrictions on use, the Parliament "deprived the right to live in a balanced and healthy environment of legal guarantees." That right is specifically enshrined in the French Environmental Charter, which was initiated by then persident Jacques Chirac in 2004 and incorporated the following year into the French Constitution. In ruling the most controversial provision of the Duplomb Law, "aimed at lifting constraints on the profession of farming," unconstitutional, the nine judges of the Constitutional Council held that the exception granted by this bill covers "all agricultural sectors" for an indefinite period. It doesn't matter whether or not they are threatened by pests, even though the products in question "have an impact on biodiversity (...) and create risks for human health." In 2020, the same judges gave the green light to limited exemptions allowing the use of neonicotinoids for a set period and only on beets. But this time, they judged that lawmakers, by rejecting all oversight in reauthorizing potentially dangerous products, had overstepped the boundaries of the Constitution. Clear and explicitly motivated by public health data and the current state of the law, the decision legally resolved a debate in which scientific findings had been pushed aside by a coalition of economic, corporate and political interests, uniting advocates of intensive agriculture, the right and far right, all in the name of competitiveness. With this landmark decision, the Constitutional Council affirmed the constitutional value of environmental protection and established itself as a protector of the right to a healthy environment. While maintaining the margin for discretion used in 2020, the body signaled to lawmakers that they cannot act without safeguards when it comes to the health of the French people. The blocking of the most contested provision of the Duplomb Law marked a clear victory for the 2.1 million signatories of the petition calling for its repeal. However, this success, shared by the left who backed the petition, could paradoxically deprive the left of a rallying cause for the fall parliamentary session, while offering relief to the president. Had the bill been approved, the president would have faced the dilemma of signing it into law, meaning a choice between farmers supporting the Duplomb Law and the petition's signatories demanding its repeal. For Prime Minister François Bayrou's government, itself divided over a bill described by some as a scientific aberration and by others as a response to the 2024 farmers' protest movement, the Constitutional Council's ruling should theoretically close the debate. The vigor with which the government chooses to defend the logical and balanced decision of the guardians of the Constitution against those on the right and far right who never fail to pit the "people" against the judges will speak volumes about the rule of law in France.
Local France
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Local France
What's in store if your child is doing France's Journée de Défense et de Citoyenneté this year
The Journée de Défense et de Citoyenneté (JDC) is a requirement for all young French citizens, even if they live outside France, and is a prerequisite for sitting the baccalauréat, applying for certain public jobs, or obtaining a driving licence. The day itself, formerly known as the Journée d'Appel de Préparation à la Défense (Defense Preparation Day, or JAPD), was established in 1997 by President Jacques Chirac and replaced compulsory military service. Non-French citizens who are resident of France as well as those with dual nationality (who can opt out depending on their nationality) are not yet obliged to take part in these days, but they are mandatory from September for all French nationals – and some foreign residents – aged 16 to 25 as part of government efforts to link youth engagement to military preparedness. Advertisement Invitations to attend a JDC are sent out once a compulsory citizen registration is completed. In 2024, 20,000 JDCs were organised with around 40 young people taking part in each session. From September 2025, they will undergo several key changes, and take on a greater military direction – and will feature greater emphasis on military and reserve recruitment, the Ministry for the Armed Forces confirmed. By 2026, the goal is to organise 8,500 new-generation JDCs with 100 young people per session, accompanied by 10 supervisors from defense units and sites. French government information website Service Publique included a breakdown of a typical JDC day that will be rolled out from September. They will last seven hours, starting at 8.30am and ending at 3.30pm, and – after a flag-raising ceremony and the singing of La Marseillaise, followed by the reading of the Charte des droits et devoirs du citoyen français (charter of rights and responsibilities of French citizens) will feature role-play and aptitude workshops, a laser-target shooting simulation, and a careers forum with military officials and officers from the National Gendarmerie, while meals will be served in the form of combat rations. The armed services currently aim to increase the number of reservists from 47,000 to 80,000 by 2030.
Local France
30-07-2025
- Business
- Local France
Ryanair says dropping three French airports over ticket tax
Ryanair, whose CEO Michael O'Leary has been an outspoken opponent of French taxes, said that it was reducing its capacity in France by 13 percent this winter, ending flights to and from three airports; Bergerac and Brive in the south-west of France and Strasbourg in the east. The company added that over the winter it also intended to reduce flights from its other French regional airports, by up to 33 percent, although its main hubs in Paris-Beauvais, Toulouse and Marseille would see a decrease of around 10 percent. It has not provided details on which routes would be affected. A statement from the company said: "This astronomical tax makes France less attractive than other countries in the EU such as Ireland, Spain or Poland, which impose no such taxes." The company appears to be referring to an increase in the 'eco tax' which France charges on plane tickets - the taxe sur les billets d'avion (TSBA) which was introduced under president Jacques Chirac and was doubled in the 2025 budget so that it now adds €7.40 to an economy or short-haul flight. READ ALSO : What changes for plane tickets in France with new 'eco tax' rates The increase was confirmed in January and has been charged on tickets for flights leaving France since March. Advertisement In April, one month after the new tax rates came into effect, Ryanair announced four new routes from France - going from La Rochelle in south-west France to London Stanstead, Dublin, Cork and Brussels. Ryanair has also added extra routes from Toulouse airport to its summer 2025 schedule. The initial proposal was for France to treble its flight tax, upon which O'Leary said that Ryanair would halve its schedule from France. He later clarified to AFP in March that the company would not be pulling out of half of France's regional airports. "No, no, no. We will still fly to France, but simply with lower capacity," he told reporters. Ryanair currently flies from 25 airports in France, mostly smaller regional airports. In 2024 the company pulled out of Bordeaux airport in a separate disagreement over airport fees. READ ALSO : Interview: 'Bordeaux airport will recover from loss of Ryanair within two years'✎ Ryanair on Wednesday urged the French government to abolish the "harmful" air tax in order to make French aviation more competitive. France remains the world's most-visited tourist destination and is on course to break its own records for visitor numbers in 2025. Ryanair said its decision follows "the French government's failure to cancel an excessive increase in air tax, which was raised by 180 percent in March 2025". Advertisement "At a time when France should be focusing on recovery and growth, Ryanair has no choice but to reduce its capacity for winter 2025 by 13 percent due to the French government's failure to act against this harmful air tax," said Jason McGuinness, Ryanair's chief commercial officer. The eco tax rose in March from €7.40 euros per passenger for domestic and European flights from €2.63 previously, although there are higher rates for first class, long-haul and private jet flights. In most cases the tax is added directly on to the cost of the passenger's ticket. Ryanair said its decision will mean the loss of 25 routes and 750,000 seats in France this winter. The airline said it would redirect capacity and investment to more competitive European markets such as Sweden, Hungary and Italy if the French government does not change course. In contrast, if the government decides to drop the tax, Ryanair said it would respond with an investment of €2.5 billion, 25 new aircraft, a doubling of traffic to over 30 million passengers per year, and the creation of 750 additional jobs in French regions.
Daily Mail
23-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
People can finally swim in European city's iconic river after 100-year ban is lifted - but would YOU do it?
The River Seine has officially reopened to the public for swimming for the first time since 1923, marking a major milestone for the French capital. At 8.00am local time on Saturday, 19 July, dozens of swimmers gathered along the banks of the iconic Parisian river and entered the water as part of the historic reopening. The monumental event comes after decades of efforts to clean up the Seine, which had been off-limits to swimmers for over 100 years due to pollution and safety concerns. However, more than £1.2bn was invested into cleaning up the river ahead of last year's Olympic Games, during which open-water swimming and triathlon events were held. Swimming in the Seine was banned in 1923 due to high levels of pollution and the risk of accidents caused by heavy boat traffic. Over the years, multiple plans were put forward to reverse the ban, including a proposal in 1988 by then-mayor and future French president Jacques Chirac who promised Parisians that they would one day swim in the river. Now, it's been fulfilled. Authorities say the water is now safe for public use, with daily testing of bacteria levels and several lifeguard stations at all swimming zones. Speaking to EuroNews, Marc Guillaume, the prefect for the Paris' Ile-de-France region said: 'The water quality is exceptional. 'We are monitoring two bacteria, E. coli and enterococci, and for one we are ten times below the thresholds and for the other more than 25 times below.' There are three designated swimming sites along the river: one near the Eiffel Tower, one close to Notre Dame Cathedral, and one in eastern Paris. Each location includes changing rooms, showers, and beach-style seating areas, accommodating up to 300 people. The swimming areas will be open until 31 August, and access is free during scheduled hours. Entry is allowed for individuals ages 10 or 14 and up, depending on the location. All swimmers must demonstrate basic swimming ability, wear provided flotation rings, and children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult. Access is granted on a first-come, first-served basis, with no reservations required. Meanwhile, MailOnline Travel has shared 10 hidden gems to take holidaymakers off the tourist trail in Paris - from an unmissable viaduct 'park' to a secret vineyard. Around 50 million tourists flock to France's capital every year, with crowds heading straight for the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, and the Notre-Dame. After Parisians fled the city last summer during the Olympics, many locals hoped it would quieten down after the games were over. But TikTok tourists and programmes like Netflix's Emily in Paris have only made the capital more popular with foreign tourists, which has increased prices in cafés and restaurants and resulted in ridiculously long lines for popular museums and cathedrals. You can avoid being a clichéd tourist, and the queues, by going to these ten hidden gems scouted by MailOnline and recommended by real Parisians.
