Thousands of people in France have protested against changes to immigration laws and the expulsion of migrants from the island of Mayotte.
According to the news agency AFP, on Saturday, thousands of people protested in many cities, including Paris, the capital of France. Among the protesters were migrants who were not registered in France.
Demonstrators marching in Paris held up a large banner that read, “We don’t want Interior Minister Gerald Darman’s laws.” They are against repression, imprisonment, and deportation and welcome the migration policy.
Organisers said 2,300 people took part in the demonstration in Paris.
The immigration bill, which has been postponed by the government until autumn, is being criticized by various sections.
Abubakar, 31, who joined the protest, told AFP that “this is a racist law that aims to criminalise foreigners” and that more people will face “deportation” through it.
A sub-contractor of the Post Office Department, who was among his colleagues among the protestors, said that they have been on the move for 17 months to get official documents legally.
He said that the problem is not immigration; it is exploitation and bullying.
said the Post Office subcontractor, who, along with his colleagues, obtained their official documents to live and work in France.
Demonstrators also protested against the authorities’ Operation Vomboche (repatriation) on the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte. The operation is supposed to be aimed at deporting illegal immigrants back to their countries.
The French island is mostly inhabited by people from neighbouring Comoros who live in precarious shanty towns.
Marie-Christine Virget, vice president of the French Human Rights League and former member of the European Parliament, said the treatment of undocumented Comoran citizens does not befit a country like France.
In the southern port city of Marseille, where around 300 people demonstrated, Seyed Mohammadi, a Comoran leader, said: “The operations in Darmanin-Bille and Meute are connected.”