France Plans to Transfer Foreign Prisoners to Their Home Countries
Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin aims to reduce overcrowding in French prisons by facilitating the repatriation of foreign inmates to serve sentences abroad.
- Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin announced plans to enable foreign prisoners in France to serve their sentences in their countries of origin.
- Currently, 25% of inmates in French prisons are foreign nationals, with two-thirds of them from non-European countries.
- Darmanin stated that future agreements would eliminate the need for inmate consent in such transfers, citing a recent arrangement with Morocco as an example.
- The initiative builds on existing European frameworks but would require bilateral agreements with non-European nations, raising concerns about human rights standards in some countries.
- Critics warn the policy could lead to unintended consequences, such as France receiving its own nationals imprisoned abroad, complicating efforts to address prison overcrowding.
Le Figaro 
Sud Ouest 