The premises of the border police in Menton – Philippe Blet // SIPA
- “Each month, the French police summarily expel dozens of unaccompanied children to Italy in violation of French and international law,” according to the NGO Human rights watch.
- Testimonies collected until April 2021, also from volunteers and humanitarian workers on the Italian side, corroborated this observation.
It evokes a “violation of French law and international law”. Human Rights Watch denounced on Wednesday the summary refoulement of young migrants under the age of 18 at the Franco-Italian border in Menton, handed over to Italy according to the NGO with forms falsified by the police and without information on the possibility of seek asylum.
“The French border police have no legal authority to determine who is a minor and who is not,” said Bénédicte Jeannerod, France director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a report. “Instead of hasty judgments based on appearance or arbitrariness, it should direct these young people to the child protection authorities so that they receive adequate care,” she adds.
From Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia or Sudan
“Every month, French police summarily expel dozens of unaccompanied children to Italy in violation of French and international law,” according to HRW, who investigated on the spot in November and documented examples. Two Sudanese aged 17 and 16 were notably expelled with false birthdates entered by the French police giving them 27 and 20 years, says the NGO.
Testimonies collected by HRW until April 2021 from volunteers and humanitarian workers on the Italian side (Diacona Valdese, WeWorld, Kesha Niya) corroborated this observation. The countries of origin of young people are varied: Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Côte d’Ivoire, Sudan, Guinea and Tunisia.
HRW also deplores the “abusive” or even “traumatic for children” detention of people turned away in prefabricated police units at the French borders. The prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes has been called into question many times since 2017 on this subject, including by the courts.
80 people on average daily returned to Menton
On April 23, the Council of State ruled that “in the absence of an alternative at short notice”, the situation of these prefabs did not justify that the premises be closed while calling on the competent authorities “to the greatest vigilance ”.
Small surface area, number of people retained, no sleeping arrangements: “This results in a situation of great discomfort which can be difficult to bear for people in a situation of particular vulnerability and is likely to infringe their dignity”, writes the Council of ‘State.
According to the latest official figures available, an average of 80 people were returned to Menton daily at the start of 2021, in application of the controls reinstated by France in 2015, a year marked by several deadly attacks.
The Alpes-Maritimes department indicates for its part to have welcomed more than 7,500 young foreigners presenting themselves as unaccompanied minors since 2017, forcing the administration to constantly adapt its reception systems and knowing that 80% quickly packed up to continue their journey. elsewhere.