Only death release you from the Legion.
They take there legend with them in to the war, just like there glass with the decorations curved in it, there silver cutlery and the ingrediants for the tonguetickiling vinaigrette. In the evening, when candlelights lights the weathered faces, then the harded men of the French Foreign Legion starts singing.
There voices sounds deep and harmonious, and when you lisen to the trained community singing you can hear that the men have been on one place together for a long time. The songs are going about the past, about lost friends and lost loves, about saying goodbye.
"We are sailing to Mexico with the wind in our sails," they are singing about a campaign of 1863. "About a year we will back." In reality only a handfull came back. But the corps, that runs on his traditions, looks may be back to the defeat in Mexico, where legionnairs fought to the last man, than the victory.
"I hope they will survive. I love live," says luitanant-cornel Antoine Lecerf (40). But he knows that the live of a legionnair is nothing, on the politocal way og seeing things. France doesn't like to see that the soldiers of the common army comming home in a bodybag. "But with the legion is it different", says the luitanant-colonel Lecreft. "Here are we necessary."
They are necessary for this couse for 159 years. And still men are willing to join, men who are on the run for a women, or the long arms of the law. About 30% of the legionnairs have 'a litle problem with justice', so they call it. Others are on the run for merage, for the responsibility for a family. But when they are in, the legion will not longer ask quistions. But also don't give awnsers.
On top of the breast pocket of the batle-teneu, where the men of the most army's have there name tag, the legionnair have a peace of velcro. The name can been taken of, just like the past that they leave behind. The most legoinnairs are using a fake name, witch the recieved from the legion. Also the counry of burth is verry variable, if you com from Russia, you can change it in to a French nationality. Less than 50% of the legionnairs got a French indentity. But after 5 years of duty, a legionnair can choose if he wants to become a frenchmen.
In cange of that, they will become a tool of France. They will be send to a fight a gainst a riot in Tsjad, against Greenpeace in the frenchnucliar testing area, or a gainst allies of Irak in the desert of Saoedi-Arabie. The conditions are still P.C. Wren wrote in his roman Beau Geste. "You become a soldier of France, complitly subjected to the laws of combat, with out a the rights for appeal." Your friends can't buy you out, and your consul can't do a thing. Five years long, only death can releave you from the legion.
There are about 2.500 soldiers of the french foreign legion in Saoedi-Arabie, this is about the half of all the french troops. The camps of the legion you can find, on places where you are not surprised to find them, if you see the history and legends of the legends: in the front lines, with only sand, rocks and Bedouin between the legion and the Irak border.
They are not long here, since september, but when you see the camps, you can see that the man are used to have an easy time on the most out ragous places. There are parking places for 'visitours', in the pillbox are washing machines with a switch for finewash and the man are holding tomatoes. There is also a cearly meantaind grassfiels, in the shape of the legion symbol, an exploding grenade.
Morall
The morall is high. If you start talking about the heat, the zand or the boring stuff, they just heal up there shoulders. "It's a dream for us to be here, a vacation," says gemerall Jean Charles Mouscardes, a 55 years old veteran from the war in Algeria, were a millioen Arabs died when tey want the French colonist out of there country. (Some legionairs could not accept the defeat and they made a coupe against Charles de Gaulle. When this
Circustents
When darkness fals over the desert, the legionnairs lights go on in the camps of the legion. Here is no light discepline like the American army, when they light a sigaret, they have to smoke with thelight coverd.They even use lamps with redlight. Sounddisepline is not in the legion. On the long eatingtables are load singing and talking en lauging.
Eating is the most difrence. While the American soldiers are eating an unclear substance in the mus. The legionnairs are eating from neat coverd up tables, they are eating warmand nice smelling ragout, fresh french bread and fresh salads. "We can manage with out," the luitanant-conel Lecerf says, "we will survive while we eating in the mud, but why do it. You can do it this way."
The legionnairs are proud on there hard image. So much that they don't say a thing when you are talking about it. Lecerf is digingin his memory, searching for an example. Then he found one, of his recent tour to Gabon and Tsjaad from his time in Libanon where he was guarding the camps Sabra and Sjatilla, but he does n't remind a thing of it, he said. But the he reminds the torture, wich the legion give it self, an exercize in the Brazilian jungle. Then he din't eat for 6 days and sleep only two hours a day. "It was a hard time," he said
Women
The only 'good' thing American have in there army above the legionnairs is that American can have a women as there mate. "We live in a man's world," says the luitanent-kolonel. He would do any thing else. "I've got a perfect image of a women," he said, "en that you can't put in the legion." If he can imagine that the kepi blanc ever be worn by women. The awnser is: "NEVER !"
Taken from a Dutch newspaper on 8-12-1990, called Het Parool
