Title: Young migrants: resolving the impasse
Country: FRANCE
Form(s) of actions:
Petition
Type(s) of actions
Lobbying for a change of law.
Summary:
This was a petition launched in March 2021 by dozens of well-known persons and organisations, including the French Human Rights League. It challenged the situation migrant children (either unaccompanied or with their families) who are in France and who receive an OQTF (order to leave French territory) when they turn 18. It focused on the difficulties faced by migrant youth in accessing employment, training and key services.
Aim:
This petition was launched in March 2021 by dozens of well-known persons and organisations, including the French Human Rights League. It received about 6,000 signatures.
Main stakeholders:
French Human Rights League, 70 civil society organisations and NGOs, more than 200 public figures.
Issues addressed:
This petition raises the issue of migrant minors (either unaccompanied or with their families) who are in France and who receive an OQTF (order to leave French territory) when they turn 18. Many of these youth are in distress, says the petition, because they are at risk of being deported, live in fear, and have difficulties in accessing employment, training and key services. The petition identifies areas where the “préféctures” may reduce the arbitrary nature of decisions taken about migrant youth, i.e. by ceasing to generally suspect the official documents of youth (i.e. regarding dates of birth, my own emphasis and clarification here); ceasing to demand unattainable documents and particularly when these are not required by law; stop blocking requests for official meetings due to the digitalisation of the administration; provide access to trainings and traineeships, and obtain residence permits allowing them to be protected and stable; regularising young migrants broadly and sustainably. The open letter calls for a common reflection on migration policies based on rights and the openness of borders and hearts, rather than based on fear and closure.
Outcome:
The petition gathered more than 6,600 signatures and was accompanied by an Op-Ed “tribune” in the French daily newspaper Le Monde.
Sustainability:
No specific information found about the long-term results of this action.
Link(s): https://www.ldh-france.org/petition-jeunes-majeurs/
Data source: Internert
