KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Tens of thousands of people marched in the streets of French cities, urging President Emmanuel Macron not to sign the tough law that aimed to reduce migration to France.
- The reason for this protest was that the new immigration bill goes against French values, and it is heavily related to the far-right approach of the Marine Le Penn party.
- The bill strengthens France’s ability to deport foreigners considered undesirable and makes it tougher for foreigners to take advantage of social welfare.
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in cities across France on Sunday, calling on President Emmanuel Macron not to sign the stringent new immigration legislation, which, according to them, aligns with far-right ideologies and goes against French principles.
According to the Interior Ministry, 75,000 people participated in the protest, with 16,000 protesters alone marching in the streets of Paris, whereas the hard-left CGT union contested these figures, claiming there was a turnout of 150,000 protesters, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
The protests occurred just four days before the Constitutional Council’s decision on whether the law, passed in December, aligns with the French Constitution. The bill favours France’s capacity to expel foreigners and introduces stricter conditions for foreigners to access social welfare, among other disadvantages.
More than 200 popular personalities from various sectors, including the arts and unions, called the protest, which objects to the new immigration law – one of the fewest advantages of which is the accelerated procedures for skilled workers to obtain permits in the country, especially in sectors with serious labour shortages.
President Macron fully supported the law through parliament but, in an unusual move, acknowledged some articles might be unconstitutional. Le Monde, the French news publishing outlet, quoted an anonymous Interior Ministry official suggesting that the Constitutional Council could take down more than ten articles.
Other provisions also include even more disadvantages for migrants in France, such as complicating family reunification by requiring applicants to demonstrate proficiency in the French language.
The Constitutional Council is also expected to impose stricter eligibility criteria for social services and housing, as well as the reinstatement of a law abolished in 2012, making it illegal for a foreigner to be in France without residence papers.
Moreover, another provision barred migrants from accessing state healthcare providers – a move that received criticism from different actors.
On the other hand, this immigration bill will be more favourable for British second home-owners in France, allowing them to stay for more than 90 days in the country, as initially agreed upon in the Brexit agreement.
Currently, British citizens are allowed to spend a maximum of 90 days within every 180 days in France, enabling those who are not willing to go through with the administrative hurdles of obtaining a long-term visa to extend their stay in the European country.
This means that Brits would have an automatic and streamlined process for obtaining long-term visas – a completely different approach compared to other migrants in France. By Arbërie Shabani, Schengenvisa News