The criminal court of Saint-Denis de La Réunion on Thursday sentenced Salime Mdéré, first vice-president of the departmental council of Mayotte, to three months suspended prison sentence and a fine of 10,000 euros for provocation to commit a crime.
Initially prosecuted for
“incitement to racial hatred”
, the elected official was acquitted of these proceedings.
On April 24, 2023, questioned on the public channel Mayotte the First about the explosion of violence in the small archipelago, Salime Mdéré declared: “
These delinquents, these thugs, these terrorists, we must at some point, we must perhaps be killed.
I weigh my words.
Perhaps we should kill some
. ”
These comments aroused the indignation of several human rights defense associations.
They criticized the elected official for making the link between the increase in delinquency and the significant presence of resident immigrants without residence permits in this French department in the Indian Ocean.
The prosecution took up the case and requested that the case be judged in Reunion.
Context of migration crisis
At the bar of the court, Salime Mdéré repeatedly repeated
“remarks that do not resemble (him)”
.
“I spoke out of exasperation”
, he defended himself,
“people must not go and confront delinquents or young people”
.
The prosecution had requested a three-month suspended prison sentence against the Mahorais elected official for inciting hatred.
The partial acquittal of Salime Mdéré comes as the 101st French department continues to be faced with a serious migration crisis and an explosive social and security situation.
The situation has led several groups of residents to demand urgent measures from the State to guarantee the safety of property and people.
Visiting this territory on February 12, the Minister of the Interior and Overseas Territories Gérald Darmanin announced a constitutional revision aimed at removing land rights in Mayotte.