(Deutsche Welle) When French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin summoned the country’s regional prefects in June, his message was clear. The authorities in France’s regions had to take swift, decisive action against foreigners who committed crimes. Residence permits should be reviewed, and more offenders should be deported if they had committed particularly serious crimes, such as second-degree murder, drug trafficking and rape.
Even if they are not immediately deported, people who have committed a criminal offense in France receive a letter telling them what the state expects of them. “Every year, the French Republic takes in people from other countries. One of the conditions for this is strict compliance with the rules and laws that govern its territory,” the newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche quoted from a template of the letter, which concludes with a warning: “Any further crime will lead to a re-examination of your residence status, which could result in your being required to leave France.”
