Everyone was entitled to it, just to start off on the right foot. Before giving them the floor, the organizers of the hearing of the presidential candidates on the subject of migration, this Friday in Paris, wanted to remind each of the speakers that they were there to have “a quality discussion, over time, on complex subjects that require it, as well as respect and intellectual rigor”. A way of emphasizing that this meeting was precisely organized to hear things other than the usual shortcuts on this inflammable theme.
That’s good, the candidates – or rather their representatives, because only Yannick Jadot came in person – were there for that. All hailed this space for peaceful speech, MEP Sylvie Guillaume (for Anne Hidalgo) solemnly calling for “the stoppage of the Lépine competition for the most violent, most radical solution” on this subject. This is also why the collective of twenty associations at the initiative of this hearing deliberately chose not to invite Eric Zemmour and Marine Le Pen. “It is complicated to talk about inclusion in society with people who want to close the borders and not bring anyone in”, justified before the kick-off Benoît Hamon, president of the NGO Singa, in our columns.
“We must first stop harming the climate”
“Migration is the pollination of the human genius. It is an antidote before being a problem,” insisted David Robert, from the same NGO as the former presidential candidate, in the introduction. The more humanist visions therefore followed one another on the platform of the small room located on the ground floor of the National Museum of the History of Immigration. We will retain the proposal of Yannick Jadot, who wishes, if he is elected, to initiate an international convention on climate refugees, in order to grant them a real status. “We must first stop harming the climate, and then help the people who will first pay for global warming,” said the environmental candidate, who intends to take asylum and immigration issues out of the Ministry of Interior. “We cannot approach them from a security point of view”, he justified.
The questions asked of each speaker made it possible to go into detail on this very technical subject of migration. The “Dublin Regulation”, which requires migrant asylum seekers to file their application in the country through which they entered EU territory (often different from the one in which they find themselves), was discussed several times. Anne Hidalgo supports its deletion, as it lengthens the procedures. Jean-Luc Mélenchon is also considering it, unlike Valérie Pécresse.
Candidate LR was represented by her campaign manager Patrick Stefanini, former secretary general of the famous Ministry of Immigration, Integration of National Identity, under President Nicolas Sarkozy. He defended his two strong ideas in this area: regulating immigration by enshrining the principle of immigration quotas in the Constitution, and the need to better control the EU’s external borders. “If there is one subject where there should be a common policy in Europe, it is border control. It must be strengthened, ”he said, before summing up the will of his boss as follows: “Welcome less to integrate better. »
Massive regularization of undocumented migrants
Not really the position of the Communists, who, through the voice of Stéphane Peu, defended a massive regularization of undocumented migrants to end the status of “ni-nor”. “There are people who do not have access to refugee status or the right to asylum, and who cannot be expelled. They are immersed in an anxiety-provoking clandestinity which creates a whole black economy, ”explained the municipal councilor of Saint-Denis (93), referring in particular to housing and work. The Insoumis, for their part, assume, as on other themes, a “European disobedience” if it is necessary to make France’s voice heard. Danièle Obono, sent by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, assured that he would put pressure on his European counterparts by conditioning, for example, the French contribution to the budget of Frontex (the Community agency for border and coast guards). “France cannot finance human rights violations at the borders,” she said.
There was also a lot of talk about the temporary protection activated for Ukrainians. This system, provided for by a European directive dating from 2001, gives the right to a right of residence, access to the labor market, housing, education, social assistance and medical assistance immediately. It had never been used before, for example for Syrian or Afghan refugees. The organizers have noted that Marlène Schiappa, representative of President-candidate Emmanuel Macron, has put forward the idea of extending certain provisions put in place for Ukrainians “to other groups of people” in the future.
The collective will ensure that the fine words are respected. In the meantime, David Robert, in conclusion, was very proud to highlight the fact of having managed to speak “in a peaceful way about migration for three hours, with politicians, in France, in 2022” . “And it’s not an April Fool’s joke,” he added in stride. A well-controlled outing.