France has begun taking in migrants from Italy’s southern island of Lampedusa, with some arriving this week in Paris and more expected to be sent to a small rural village. This is happening against a background of concern expressed by locals and local politicians over safety.
Migrants from Lampedusa have been arriving in France this week, with broadcaster Europe1 reporting that the first wave of arrivals was seen in Paris. Migrants in the French capital claimed they had come from the island to the city before heading on to their final destinations in the UK and elsewhere.
The arrival of migrants from Lampedusa comes after Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin claimed last month that France would not welcome any migrants who had arrived illegally on the island after 5,000 illegals arrived in a single day.
An 18-year-old Guinean migrant named Malik, who wished to go to Germany to work in carpentry, spoke to the broadcaster, saying that dozens of others who had arrived in Lampedusa illegally by boat were in Paris waiting to continue their journey.
“It was a very small boat, with 37 people on board for more than three days. There was no more fuel, no more food. We felt death coming,” he said.
He added that when he arrived in France, he was not well received at all, saying, “It’s not welcoming here, but I understand that France is closing its borders. There are too many of us trying to come. And with us, a lot of drug dealers. It’s not right.”
Parisians, meanwhile, have expressed concern over the arrival of the migrants from Lampedusa, with residents of the city’s 18th arrondissement telling broadcaster CNews that the migrants often cause trouble and start fights.
“You regularly have clashes, cases of alcohol and drug addiction on the streets of these neighbourhoods, and unfortunately, networks of crack traffickers who take advantage of the presence of these people,” Pierre Liscia, regional councillor of the Île-de-France region, said.
These scenes are contrasted by our observations on Lampedusa itself, where locals have claimed that migrants largely stay in the hotspot reception facility and rarely cause trouble in the island’s main city.
The migrants themselves are not usually on the island for more than 48 hours, according to Serena Corniglia of the Italian Red Cross (CRI), who noted that those staying at the hotspot were free to come and go as they pleased.
Paris councillor Pierre-Yves Bournazel has called on the city to get the migrants off the streets, saying, “I am calling for a major emergency plan for the north-east of Paris, to get migrants off the streets, it is the dignity that we owe them, and thus solve the problem of local residents who are on the front line of nuisance and inconvenience.”
Some Lampedusa migrants are set to be relocated and housed elsewhere in France, including in the small village of Plainfaing, which has a population of fewer than 2,000 people and is located near the German border.
The village’s mayor Patrick Lalevée was worried about the transfer of around 30 migrants, mostly from Guinea, to private holiday accommodation.
The populist Rassemblement National (RN) also commented on the upcoming transfer of the migrants to the village, releasing a statement on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
The party of Marine Le Pen was angry that the locals and local government were not told about the transfer of the migrants and that it could harm the local tourism industry as the migrants were being housed in tourist accommodation.
“The opinion of the citizens and the municipality ignored, abysmal cost: this is the realization of the distribution plan of illegal immigrants in the villages of France required by Emmanuel Macron and Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission,” the party said.
Just last year, French President Macron’s government unveiled a plan to repopulate rural areas of France with migrants, arguing that it would combat the demographic decline of areas with ageing populations.
“The conditions for their reception will be much better than if we put them in areas that are already densely populated, with a concentration of massive economic and social problems,” the French leader said last year.
While the number of migrants arriving on Lampedusa has slowed compared to the record arrivals last month, the European Conservative has observed several landings of dozens of illegals from Thursday morning until the evening.
https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/france-breaks-word-and-welcomes-lampedusa-migrants/