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President of the French Delegation for Overseas France, Senator Micheline Jacques, visited the archipelago of Mahor to check that the emergency bill meets the needs of the local population.
How can we ensure rapid reconstruction, while remaining as faithful as possible to the needs of the people of Mahor? For several weeks now, members of parliament have been examining the emergency bill for Mayotte, designed to facilitate the reconstruction of the archipelago following the passage of cyclone Chido. Senator Micheline Jacques has been appointed rapporteur for the Economic Affairs Committee.
Including elected representatives from the island
After several hearings in Paris, the president of the French Overseas France delegation visited Mayotte from January 24 to 27. She went to meet Mayotte's inhabitants and those involved in the island's reconstruction, to assess their needs and check that the measures in the emergency bill were in line with the reality on the ground. The rapporteur recommended the inclusion of Mayotte's elected representatives in the reconstruction process, as well as the simplification of procedures.
The emergency bill was examined in plenary session in the Senate on February 4 and 5, before being unanimously adopted. A new version of the text drafted by the joint committee was approved by the National Assembly on Wednesday February 12. The law will be definitively adopted on Thursday February 13 if the senators vote "in favor". As Micheline Jacques reminded us during a question to the government on Tuesday February 5, Mayotte needs urgent help. "Now that the emergency text has been examined, we need to turn our attention as quickly as possible to reconstruction with the program bill you have announced", Micheline Jacques declared, asking government representatives for an exact timetable. To this question, François Rebsamen, the French Minister for Regional Planning and Decentralization, replied that the program law for Mayotte should be presented in two months' time. The Chairwoman of the Senate Delegation for Overseas France pointed out that the law had been awaited for 5 years by elected officials in Mayotte. The senator (LR) took the opportunity to ask the State to take action to regulate migration to Mayotte. Her wish was granted, as the following day, Thursday February 6, the National Assembly approved a text aimed at tightening the right to land in Mayotte. Children born in Mayotte will now be able to obtain French nationality if both parents have been resident for three years at the time of their birth. The text will now be submitted to the Senate.
Densifying the security forces
In addition to focusing on Mayotte, the Senate delegation for Overseas France, which she chairs, has also adopted a report entitled "L'action de l'État outre-mer : pour un choc régalien". In particular, the report recommends increasing the presence of security forces in Saint-Barthélemy, by giving territorial police officers the status of judicial police officers. For this recommendation to be adopted, however, the organic law would have to be amended. A meeting with the Minister of the Interior is scheduled for February 19 to discuss this issue. The French Delegation for Overseas France is also looking into the issue of disability in the French overseas territories, with the launch of a study on the subject. Saint-Barthélemy's needs will certainly be examined.
