Since the reception of the Ocean Viking ship, 123 passengers have been released by the courts, due to lack of time necessary to process the files. While many have denounced a political and judicial failure on this issue, Mathilde Panot stressed this Sunday in “BFM Politique” that this judicial decision is not necessarily unjustified.
“They say that they were ‘released’, but I remind you that these people have not committed any crime. Justice has decided that they can circulate”, declared the president of the rebel group to the Assembly.
Mathilde Panot says she is “in favor” of these people being able to remain on French territory while their asylum application is being examined, and recalls that these arrivals represent “one person for every 500,000 French people”. “We’re not going to do anything extraordinary with it,” she says.
“Are we going to let people die in the sea?”
Although the question of the reception of the Ocean Viking and its passengers has often been raised in recent days, Mathilde Panot recalls that international maritime law indicates that when a person needs to be rescued at sea, they must absolutely be. It also calls for strengthening or creating effective European mechanisms.
“Something that scared me this week. (…) We let 27 people die, including a young girl in the Canal. There are already 24,000 deaths in the Mediterranean,” the deputy specifies.
Denouncing the position taken on the side of Italy, where power has been in the hands of the extreme right since the election of Georgia Meloni, Mathilde Panot rejects what she calls a “let die at sea” strategy.
“The solution cannot be the ‘let die at sea’ strategy. Are we going to let people die at sea? I don’t agree.”
“The ultra-right continues to fuel the fear of immigration”
Regarding the controversies that have arisen in recent days on this issue, Mathilde Panot accuses the extreme right and Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin of reinforcing fear of immigration in France by addressing issues like this.
“They constantly tell us about an uncontrolled wave of migration. Of course, people are imagining je-ne-sais-quoi ”, explained the deputy this Sunday.
“Every time a tough issue in domestic politics (comes up), you have the far right, aided by Emmanuel Macron’s gunman in far-right lands, namely Mr Darmanin, constantly raising fears of immigration,” he said. . he concludes, stating that many French people are “delighted to welcome refugees and their children so that their school does not close.”
Source: BFM TV
