As in the U.S., amnesty for illegals takes center stage in France
January 21, 2008
French president Nicolas Sarkozy has made immigration a major focus of his interior policy for France in 2008. Earlier this month, he met with the presidents of both Spain and Italy to discuss the issue that is plaguing all three countries. He hopes to involve Spain and Italy to band together with France in a tougher joint policy on illegal immigrants.
Sarkozy, both as president and in his previous job as interior minister of France, has given France a tougher stance against illegal immigration than its neighbors. The president of France has long criticized a policy in other EU countries of granting large numbers of illegals residence papers, citing the massive legalization of clandestine workers seen in Italy in 2003 and in Spain in 2005.
Yet now, there has been a new and little-publicized amendment in France to last year’s hotly contested immigration law imposing DNA tests for foreigners wanting to join family members. France’s new measure focuses on keeping a limited number of people in jobs deemed important to the local as part of the overall immigration policy. The move seeks to quietly match employers in France and illegals who have necessary skills. This may signal a softening in Sarkozy’s policy, but may also be seen as a typical example of the French president’s practical style.
This year France plans to introduce quotas for would-be immigrants of different countries and occupations. Sarkozy made a campaign promise to reduce illegal immigration, and said he wanted to tailor the profile of new arrivals, apparently to more closely correspond to the needs of employers in France. The priority job lists often call for high-level skills, such as computer abilities, though some employers, in the hotel industry, for example, may call for an influx of less skilled laborers.
As for those who do not meet the criteria, expulsion and repatriation are still the official order of the days, as well as fines for French businesses that employ illegals without express permission. For voluntary repatriation, the French government pays between 300 and 3,500 euros ($439 to $5118) per couple and 1,000 euros per child to those willing to return to their countries.
“People don’t enter France without authorization, and when they do enter France without authorization they are escorted back to their country”, Sarkozy has said.
The issue of illegal immigrants in France has been a thorny one for a long time, but has been top of people’s minds here much more in recent years.
In 2006, France seemed to be on the verge of granting amnesty to thousands of immigrant families, whose children were registered in French schools.
The criteria at the time for an illegal immigrant family to receive legalization in France included bringing evidence that one of their children was born in France or arrived there before the age of 13, had been registered in the French educational system for at least two years and had no ties with his parents’ country.
The policy has obviously changed many times since, and will continue to be debated as thousands of “clandestins” in France, mostly from African and Middle-eastern countries, decide whether to step forward and take their chances of obtaining legal status, go home, or remain in the shadows.
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