Is the Circulaire Guéant Dead?

Not quite.  It's gasping for air but it still has a pulse.

After French ministers met with representatives from universities and the "Grandes Ecoles" late December (apparently they did not meet at that time with students or their organizations) the government announced that they would be releasing "une circulaire complémentaire" to the Prefectures.  Le Point reported this on January 4th:

Les ministres ont décidé d'adresser aux préfets dès la semaine prochaine une circulaire complémentaire, donnant les orientations applicables à la situation spécifique des diplômés étrangers hautement qualifiés, de niveau au moins égal au master 2, qui souhaitent acquérir en France une première expérience professionnelle, conformément à la loi en vigueur.
The ministers have decided to send next week complementary instructions giving the applicable orientations to be applied to the specific situation of highly-qualified foreign graduates with at least a master 2 level who wish a first professional work experience in France, in conformity with current law.

Le Monde had more here including an admission from one government minister, Laurent Wauquiez (Higher Education) on French television that, "On s'est plantés, il faut le dire clairement." (We screwed up. It is necessary to clearly state that.)  This man has my complete and total admiration - it takes enormous courage to say something like this publicly in this country.

The new text, however, is not a replacement of the original May 31 Circulaire, it is a "clarification".  The Prefectures are still obliged to apply the original directive but they are to do so in such a way that, "la nécessaire maîtrise de l'immigration professionnelle ne se fasse pas au détriment de l'attractivité du système d'enseignement supérieur, ni des besoins de certaines entreprises." (the necessary controls over professional immigration do not adversely impact the attractiveness of French higher education and the needs of certain companies.)

I see.  Actually, I don't.  And I'm not only one who remains a bit skeptical.  The latest news is that, after meeting with students, the presidents of France's Grandes Ecoles replied by complimenting the government for its willingness to move in the right direction while still insisting that further "clarifications" need to be made.  French law, they say, is clear:  all foreign graduates who have received a job offer commensurate with their education have the right to receive a work permit (article L311-11).  End of story.

And that is where we are today.  We'll see how the French government responds to this.

Backpedalling on the Circulaire Guéant

Good news for year's end?  The French Minister of the Interior was on Europe 1 yesterday and, according to Le Monde, he is softening his stance:

"Clairement, je note qu'il y a des malentendus, des interrogations, a reconnu M. Guéant, et je suis résolu à avoir une concertation approfondie avec les parties prenantes […] afin que les cas de figure soient examinés et que les choses soient plus claires dans l'application." Selon lui, le gouvernement a accordé 6 500 autorisations de séjour pour des étudiants étrangers devenus salariés en 2011. Pour Hajer Gorgi, porte-parole du Collectif du 31 mai, qui a organisé une manifestation à Paris samedi, seuls 250 cas ont été réglés sur 900 recensés depuis l'entrée en vigueur de cette circulaire.
"I see clearly that there have been misunderstandings and questions," said Monsieur M. Guéant, "and I have decided to have a deep consultation with the interested parties...so that cases can be re-examined and that the implementation of the circulaire be clearer."  According to him, the government has granted 6,500 work permits for foreign students who have found work in France in 2011.  However, Hajer Gorgi, the spokesperson for the May 31 Collective who organized a demonstration in Paris Saturday, says that only 250 cases out of 900 have been resolved since the circulaire came into effect.

Please note that he does not say that the circulaire will be withdrawn completely so he has left himself some wiggle room.  That is completely understandable since France is a place where it is very rare to have people in authority admit publicly to being wrong.  It can even be downright dangerous.  So, with that in mind, we can recognize that this is a large step on his part in the right direction. Also consider that he may have been very poorly advised on this issue - he seems to have been genuinely surprised that people reacted so strongly.  Certainly he never intended it to become an international incident.

This seems to be a recurring theme when it comes to immigration issues.  Just look at the U.S. and the states of Arizona and Alabama.  If I were writing this up for an MBA class I would argue that the underlying issue is an inability to recognize and manage stakeholders.  No government or people wants to admit that some of the interested parties in immigration policy are actually outside of the state in question because that takes us straight to uncomfortable questions about sovereignty.  Questions that no one wants raised in the ramp up to a national election.