“In Mayotte, the State fights poverty with violence”

2023-06-14 22:01:28

Informed of the serious and systemic violations of fundamental rights in Mayotte, we, lawyers, members of the Union of Lawyers of France (SAF) or the Association for the Defense of Foreigners’ Rights (ADDE), went there from April 11 to May 3. The findings that we have made require us to warn about what is happening in Mayotte, including outside of any operation of “recovery” (“Wuambushu”) of the territory.

We have noted major difficulties in accessing lawyers and courts, leaving 80% of the island’s population uninformed of their rights and totally isolated when they find themselves the target of expeditious and frequently illegal methods of the State. We felt the danger represented by the exercise of the defense of the most precarious and foreigners. Mayotte, although neglected by the metropolis, saw its electorate vote, in the last presidential elections, nearly 60% for the National Rally, making this territory an important electoral breeding ground for this party in the run-up to the presidential election of 2027.

The climate of hatred between French and foreigners (or perceived as such) is allowed, even maintained by the State. This climate is maintained first by the creation of “sans-papiers”. On an island where 40% of the population lives in precarious housing, access to the residence permit is, in practice, extremely complicated. Dematerialization of the procedure, obligation to produce supporting documents that are impossible to obtain (for example: proof of address for a sheet metal box) are all obstacles to obtaining this card, even when all the conditions are met for the right of residence is acquired.

27 lawyers for more than 300,000 inhabitants

A climate of hatred then maintained by identity checks at any time and in any place, leading to confinement and deportation without prior study of the (French) nationality, the right of residence, without access to a lawyer or, a fortiori, to a judge. Although already condemned by the European Court of Human Rights, France persists and blindly moves away.

Also read the interview: “In Mayotte, Comorians are not foreigners”

A climate of hatred also maintained by the destruction, without prior validation by a judge, of entire neighborhoods, some of which have existed for more than forty years. Without a proposal for rehousing, without a place to store their furniture (often their only economic “wealth”), families find themselves on the street, leading to job loss and dropping out of school.

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