BIG urges Francophonie to address French crimes in overseas territories

The Baku Initiative Group (BIG) has called on the International Organization of La Francophonie to pay attention to the crimes committed by the French government in overseas territories under French subjugation.

BIG told Report, during the ongoing Francophonie Summit in Villers-Cotterets and Paris, biased and distorted provocative statements were voiced against Azerbaijan with the support of France.

BIG noted that the adoption of documents by the culturally-focused Francophonie against a sovereign non-member country, outside its mandate, not only seriously undermines the organization's reputation but also demonstrates that it is being used by France as a means of pressure and political tool against other states.

The Baku Initiative Group, which is operating to contribute to the decolonization process and combating neocolonialism with respect for international law, has called on the Francophonie to pay attention to the crimes committed by the French government in overseas territories which are under French yoke.

BIG recalls that in response to peaceful protests against the gross violation of the rights and freedoms of the Kanak people by the French government in Kanaky (New Caledonia), more than 10 civilians were killed by French security forces and hundreds were arrested. About 10 participants of the demonstrations are subjected to pressure as political prisoners in the prisons of metropolitan France.

In Mao'hi Nui (French Polynesia), the French government is trying to shut down Tefana Radio, the voice of freedom and local traditions, by all means. France prohibits the use of the Corsican language in state institutions on the island of Corsica. In the illegally annexed Mayotte island of Comoros, the French government applies the Balladur visa, preventing Mayotte from communicating with other brotherly islands of Comoros, thereby forcing the indigenous people of Mayotte to forget their culture, language and traditions and live by the rules of French culture.

The French government pursues a policy of assimilation in French Guiana, Martinique and Guadeloupe, relegating local languages to the background and forcing aboriginal children to study according to the French education system that does not take into account local history, geography and culture. This is a small list of the countless crimes that France has committed and continues to commit in its overseas territories. France pursues a targeted policy of destroying national identity in its former and current colonies and, unfortunately, has largely succeeded.

Given the above, the Baku Initiative Group makes the following calls to the International Organization of La Francophonie:

Issuance of a statement by the secretary general of the Francophonie condemning these crimes of the French government.

Holding a special session during the Francophonie Summit on the crimes committed by France.

Sending a special investigation commission to the territories that remain under French yoke to evaluate the crimes committed. Submitting the report to be prepared by the commission to the UN Special Committee on Decolonization. The Baku Initiative Group is ready to provide its expert support to the commission to be sent to the territories.

BIG alse called on the French government to refrain from the mandatory use of the French language in state bodies, official correspondence, courts, in public places in the French colonies.