Immigration: Macron denounces those who “cast doubt” on the French “from elsewhere” – The HuffPost

via Associated Press

“For too many years, we have so often in our speeches, as if casting doubt, as if coming from elsewhere we had to cut off part of this identity to be truly French”, he regretted.

“Cast a doubt, including in the contemporary public debate which is ours in France, by explaining that so many and so many of us, because they have origins, sometimes even first names, it is said (…) should forget the richness of their family, their culture, sometimes the ties that exist on the other side. I believe just the opposite,” he said.

The allusion is clear: Éric Zemmour, defender of the conspiracy and xenophobic theory of the “great replacement”, wants to impose on unborn children in France to wear “French first names”. But Macron’s message more broadly may also be a jab at Marine Le Pen, whose rhetoric on immigration is not so far off. In a meeting this weekend, the candidate did not hesitate to make the link between “immigration” and “delinquency”, declaring in particular: “It is up to the French to decide who populates France. It is up to the French to say who can become French. From my election it is by referendum that they will say it, I will give back to the French their country”, she assured. Recently, the acting president of the RN Jordan Bardella was indicted for having described the city of Trappes as an “Islamic Republic”. Statement that he maintains despite legal proceedings”.

“Effectively regulating migration”

“I expect all our compatriots to be totally French and European, to respect all the rules of the Republic, to love their country, but I want to say to all the children of the Republic, whatever their history, that when they come from this other shore, they have great things to bring to France and that it is a chance, that of making France bigger”.

“Our diasporas, our dual nationals are a tremendous opportunity for France and we must help them succeed, including on the other side of the Mediterranean”, he insisted, announcing a fund of 100 million euros for “entrepreneurs living in France who want to invest in the Maghreb.

He also wanted to “facilitate the movement of those who contribute to our economic, cultural and scientific exchanges”, within the framework of cooperation between States to “effectively regulate migration”. This possibility of easier movement, which he did not detail, will be on the agenda of the EU-African Union summit scheduled for February 17 and 18 in Brussels, he promised.

Last fall, the French government announced a reduction in the number of visas granted to the Maghreb country which, according to Paris, does not do enough to accommodate their nationals expelled from France.

See also on The HuffPost: Zemmour in Calais: an ex-LREM deputy gives him a report on integration for Macron