Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been accused of racism after complaining that people are not allowed to use the word “monkey” anymore following the renaming of a classic novel to remove a racial slur, reports The Independent.
In a discussion on a television programme called Quotidien, Mr Sarkozy criticised “elites” who he said were “like monkeys who listen to no one”.
Then, in a rambling rant, the 65-year-old said: “I no longer know, do we have the right to say ‘monkey’.
“Because… we no longer have the right to say… What do we say? Ten Little Soldiers now?”
“We perhaps have the right to say monkeys, without insulting anyone,” the former president added.
Mr Sarkozy appeared to be referencing the Agatha Christie novel And Then There Were None, which was originally published in 1939 with the title Ten Little N****** after a minstrel song that features prominently in the book’s plot.