Confinement in a detention center, consular discussions… France has tried everything to deport people to Syria, “scandalous and illegal” procedures, denounced this Friday several NGOs and associations which are calling for a “clarification” from the French government.
These attempts date back to October 2022, when two prefectures, those of Haute-Garonne and the Paris police prefecture, began “demarches with the Syrian embassy” in France, “while diplomatic relations between France and Syria have been officially severed since March 2012”, reported the organizations Amnesty International, La Cimade and Revivre, in a joint press release.
Two cases that call into question a status quo that is several years old: no expulsion to this country fragmented by a long civil war.
“Scandalous and illegal attempts in international law”, summarized the organizations for the defense of immigrants.
“Our organizations are asking the government to clarify its position by reminding the prefectures of France's international obligations, which absolutely prohibit the return of a person to a country where they risk death, torture and other ill-treatment.
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"The authorities come to break France's commitments"
“We had never seen that in recent years.
It is shocking that in a frantic quest for the execution of the OQTFs (obligations to leave French territory), the authorities come to break the commitments of France, which ensures that it no longer has diplomatic relations with Syria, ”laughed Manon. Fillonneau, head of migration issues at Amnesty International.
"We would not imagine deporting someone to Ukraine" today, she added.
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Even if the two people concerned were finally released by the judge of freedom and detention (JLD), the simple fact of having initiated the procedure by placing them in administrative detention centers (Cra), one in Toulouse and the other at Mesnil-Amelot in the Paris suburbs, constitutes a violation "in full knowledge of the facts (of) international and European rules", noted the authors.
Especially since, according to these organizations, it was only the refusal of the Syrian embassy to issue a consular pass for lack of a valid identity document "that made it possible to prevent the expulsion requested by the French authorities. ".
“She would risk being exposed to torture”
“France must proclaim loud and clear its attachment to the Geneva Convention: France must not detain or attempt to deport any person to a country in which they risk being exposed to torture, inhuman treatment or degrading, and where his life or freedom would be threatened”, the signatories further claimed.
"There is a little music at the moment, which says that Syria is more and more secure", resumes Manon Fillonneau, who recalls that the persecution of people returning to Syria after having sought refuge abroad "is perfectly documented”.
The Interior Ministry replied on Friday that there was "no deportation to Syria".
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However, “it is sometimes necessary to request, via consular contacts, the Syrian authorities to verify the Syrian nationality of a foreigner in an irregular situation claiming it, in particular to avoid that all (…) take advantage of Syrian nationality to thwart deportations to their country of origin,” the Interior Ministry added.
In 2022, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least 3,825 people died in the violence in Syria.