In early 2024, a political and economic crisis broke out in the

French territory Overseas France (french: France d'outre-mer) consists of 13 French-administered territories outside Europe, mostly the remains of the French colonial empire that chose to remain a part of the French state under various statuses after decolo ...

of Mayotte.

Background

Mayotte is the poorest

department in France In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

. Despite this, Mayotte is wealthy compared to Madagascar and

Comoros The Comoros,, ' officially the Union of the Comoros,; ar, الاتحاد القمري ' is an independent country made up of three islands in southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. It ...

, and economic migrants have come to Mayotte in search for work. In 2018, illegal immigrants were rounded up by police which led to unrest. In 2021, 54 Members of Parliament warned of "impending social chaos" due to severe poverty and illegal immigration. In early 2023, slums were razed. Emergency vehicles announced they would not drive at night in December 2023. Droughts led to water shortages and protests were held. Mayotte has been suffering from underinvestment. Operation Wuambushu was launched by the French government. This was to combat illegal migration in the Indian Ocean.

Events

The List of presidents of the National Assembly of France, President of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet, visited Mayotte in January 2024. Police operations were conducted. A fortnight of protests broke out. Roads were blocked disrupting the economy and causing food shortages. Violence and curfews were reported. The Minister of the Interior (France), Minister of the Interior and Overseas, Gérald Darmanin, visited the island and announced that the automatic right to French Citizenship by birth, citizenship by virtue of birth on Mayotte is to be restricted; such a measure is widely supported by the population of Mayotte in order to discourage illegal immigration. In April 2024, Marine Le Pen visited Mayotte. On 16 April 2024, Overseas Minister Marie Guevenoux announced the start of an Operation Wuambushu, Operation “Wuambushu 2” , with the objective once again of “fighting unsanitary housing, illegal immigration and finding gang leaders ", this time with a goal of arresting "60 gang leaders who were targeted" and destroying "1,300 bangas, twice as many as last year". In the 2024 French legislative election, the National Rally had a breakthrough with Anchya Bamana winning Mayotte's 2nd constituency.

References

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Background

Events

See also

References