The murder of a 19-year-old female student in an upscale Paris neighborhood has sparked renewed calls from the French right for stricter immigration controls.
The victim, identified only as Philippine, was found on Saturday, partially buried in the Bois de Boulogne park, located on the outskirts of Paris.
Philippine, an economics student at Paris-Dauphine University, had last been seen on Friday, shortly after leaving the campus.
The suspected murderer, a 22-year-old Moroccan man identified by French media as Taha O., was apprehended in Geneva on Tuesday and is awaiting extradition to France.
He had been released from prison earlier this month after serving a five-year sentence for raping a student in 2019. Though subject to an expulsion order, it had not been enforced.
France’s newly appointed interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, has vowed to take decisive action in response to the incident.
“It is up to us as public officials to… change our legal arsenal in order to protect the French,” he stated on X (formerly Twitter).
Retailleau, who took office last week, had emphasized that his primary focus would be on restoring order.
The far-right National Rally (RN) party quickly seized on the crime as further evidence of the failings of France’s justice system.
RN president Jordan Bardella criticized the situation, saying, “This migrant had no right to be here, but he was able to offend again in total impunity. Our justice is too lenient; our state is dysfunctional. It is time for the government to act.”
The RN holds a significant position in France’s political landscape, with more than 120 members of parliament.
This gives the party considerable influence over Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s minority government, as they have the power to support a no-confidence vote and potentially topple it.
Left-wing politicians have also expressed concerns about the ineffectiveness of enforcing expulsion orders.
Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure emphasized that the suspect “should have gone straight from prison to plane.” Official figures indicate that fewer than 10% of expulsion orders in France are carried out.
Ecologist Sandrine Rousseau condemned the killing as a “femicide” and called for severe punishment but cautioned against allowing the far-right to “exploit it to spread its racist and xenophobic hate.”
Philippine’s disappearance had prompted a widespread search, including an alert issued by The Sorority, a phone app designed to assist women in distress.
Although Philippine did not use the app herself, the network issued a missing persons notice on Saturday, urging members to help locate her.
Philippine had been on her way to her parents’ home when she went missing. Described by her peers as a quiet and model student, she was also involved in the scouting movement.
Her tragic death has raised concerns about safety in the Bois de Boulogne, a park bordering one of Paris’s wealthiest districts.
The area, which has long been associated with prostitution, has reportedly become increasingly dangerous due to the presence of drug addicts and other suspicious individuals, according to local residents.
Source-BBC
