French Prime Minister François Bayrou has stood firm on his use of the term “submersion” to describe immigration in Mayotte and elsewhere, despite sharp criticism from the left and members of his own camp.
Bayrou reiterated his position in the National Assembly on Tuesday, saying the scale of illegal immigration in Mayotte, where migrants from the Comoros make up about 25 per cent of the population, justified the term.
“Anyone who sees the situation in Mayotte understands that “submersion” is the most appropriate word,” he said, referring to the French archipelago in the Indian Ocean between Madagascar and the coast of Mozambique.
The remarks drew sharp condemnation from opposition lawmakers, who accused Bayrou of borrowing far-right rhetoric.
Socialist group leader Boris Vallaud challenged him in parliament, asking whether he had “consciously adopted” the language of the far-right. After hearing Bayrou’s answer, he said he was “overwhelmed by a sense of numbness.”
Green Party leader Cyrielle Chatelain also condemned Bayrou’s words. She noted:
“If you govern with the prejudices of the far right, we will end up governed by the far right, and you will have been complicit.”
She further accused him of fuelling “fantasies and conspiracy theories” and of pandering to far-right sentiments. Bayrou denied the allegations, saying he did not need lessons in “civility and brotherhood.”
In defence of his position, he said the real problem was the failure of integration, which he said had reached a “dead end” due to barriers related to employment, language and core values.
Mayotte’s immigration crisis
According to the Interior Ministry, 320,000 people officially live on the island, with another 100,000 estimated to be illegal residents.
The migration crisis around Mayotte is far from being resolved. Despite appeals from international organisations, the French government has no intention to stop deporting illegal migrants from the island.
Mayotte is of strategic importance for French politics and economy, as it allows to control trade routes around Madagascar and South Africa as a whole and maintain a share of its influence in the region. France’s military and naval bases are located on the island.
