Jacqueline Desfontaines: Indigenous language in Guadeloupe lost its functionality because of French policy

As a result of France's colonial policy, the indigenous language in Guadeloupe has lost its functionality, Jacqueline Desfontaines, head of the International Committee of Black Peoples (Guadeloupe), said at the international conference "Colonialism: Erasure of Religious-National Identity" held in Baku, Report informs.

"We are now simply called a population. But we are trying to restore our rights. We want the rights of the peoples who were subjected to deportation to be ensured. France aimed to take away our Africanness. They did not even allow us to give our children names of African origin," she said.

Desfontaines emphasized that currently, the indigenous language in Guadeloupe has lost its functionality:

"We are forced to use French. Those who do not speak French on the island can be punished. We have been trying for a long time to have our culture recognized. We are also working together with other colonial territories for this purpose."