Since the Friday, October 13 terrorist attack in Arras, which claimed the life of French Teacher Dominique Bernard, perpetrated by a young Russian Islamist who arrived in France at the age of 5, the French government has been making a series of announcements to ward off criticism from the right and satisfy public opinion, which polls show to be anxious and eager for a tough stance.
On Thursday, October 19, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told BFM-TV news channel that "if someone does not conform to the values of the Republic, we must be able to deport them". To this end, he urged members of parliament to vote in favor of an upcoming immigration bill, to be debated in the Sénat from November 6, "the toughest and strictest presented in thirty years". The day before, French Government Spokesman Olivier Véran had promised that the bill would make it possible to revoke a foreign national's residence permit in the event of "behavior inconsistent with our values".
As a reminder, the perpetrator of the Arras attack, Mohammed Mogouchkov, was an undocumented resident of France. Since he had arrived in the country before the age of 13, however, the law protected him from deportation, except, according to current legislation, in cases of "behavior likely to jeopardize the fundamental interests of the state, or linked to activities of a terrorist nature, or constituting acts of explicit and deliberate provocation of discrimination, hatred or violence". According to the upcoming immigration bill, this protection would not preclude an Obligation to Leave the French Territory (OQTF) in the event of a "serious threat to public order".
The government's announcements are also aimed at legal immigrants. Darmanin has personally asked prefects to go through the 2,852 foreign nationals legally residing in France who are registered in the Alert Processing Register for the Prevention of Radicalization of a Terrorist Nature (FSPRT), in order to consider revoking their residence permits, a prerequisite for their deportations.
"At present, it is not possible to revoke a residence permit for behavior that does not constitute a criminal offense," said Véran. "The law prevents the interior minister from doing his job," added Darmanin on BFM-TV – in ignorance of the law. "Under the law as it currently stands, the prefect already has full discretion to not issue, not renew or revoke a residence permit from any foreign national whose presence in France constitutes a threat to public order," observed Camille Escuillié, a lawyer and member of the association Avocats pour la défense des droits des étrangers (Lawyers for the Defense of Foreigners' Rights, ADDE). "The law does not require any conviction or even criminal charges."
You have 62.17% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.