Solidarity patrols in Montgenèvre by members of parliament!

From 11 December 2020 to 9 April 2021, 17 parliamentarians from the National Assembly, the Senate and the European Parliament went to Montgenèvre, the French-Italian border in the Hautes-Alpes, to undertake patrols. These were carried out alongside actors from numerous associations (Médecins du Monde, Anafé, Tous Migrants, etc.) and citizens who have been mobilised for several years at this crossing point.

The objective of these actions was twofold : 

• to provide assistance to exiled people in distress
• to observe the way in which the border police (PAF) acts towards exiled people and citizens in solidarity

This initiative is part of the particular context of increasing militarisation and border security, especially since the announcement by the President of the Republic, on 5 November 2020, of a doubling of the number of staff assigned to border control.

As the researchers and associations remind us, these closure policies do not limit arrivals but transform the borders into increasingly dangerous spaces for people.

These observations were made in the framework of the partnership with local rights organisations and the National Association of Welcoming Cities and Territories (ANVITA). The patrol activities began with the patrol activities of the national delegation of ANVITA, consisting of several of its members and coordinators, on 11 and 12 December 2020.

ANVITA salutes the commitment of its associative partners, its members and their colleagues who carried out this observation work!

Find the report of these solidarity patrols, documented with the sworn statements of the elected officials present, here.