For the first time, France’s National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor’s Office, or PNAT, is looking into the murder of a 46-year-old Tunisian man as a potential act of terrorism “on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, or religion.”
Over the weekend, one of his neighbours assassinated Hichem Miraoui, a hairdresser in a little community close to the French Riviera. The suspect, a Frenchman born in 1971, “posted two videos on his social media account containing racist and hateful content before and after committing the act,” the local prosecutor said.
French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said,
“Videos posted by the perpetrator leave no doubt on this point, but the investigation will determine whether these acts were racially motivated.”
The PNAT, which was established in 2019 following a series of fatal terror incidents in France, stated that it is looking into the murder as well as the possibility of a plot to carry out the crime. In other instances, the agency has come under fire for failing to look into actions that could have been racially motivated or connected to right-wing extremism. It refused to look into the death of three individuals in a shooting at a Kurdish community centre in Paris in December 2022, which infuriated the local representatives of the community. Local prosecutors were given the task of handling the recent fatal stabbing of Aboubakar Cissé, a Muslim man who was slain while worshipping at a mosque.
A lawyer for the families of Cissé and Miraoui, Mourad Battikh, said he had previously cautioned the national prosecutor’s office about their unwillingness to ignore inquiries into the April stabbing at the mosque.
Political mudslinging has also been stoked by both deaths, with France’s left-wing opposition blaming far-right and right-wing officials for encouraging such violence. Much of the criticism has focused on Retailleau, who has been a hardliner on immigration and related issues.
Why are hate crimes in France increasing despite government efforts?
The increase in hate crimes is inevitably tied to the political climate. Specifically, the politicization of hateful and discriminatory speech, particularly by political actors and media sources, is problematic. Leading up to election cycles, such as the imminent 2024 snap parliamentary elections and European Parliament elections, we have seen a marked increase in public-facing racist, xenophobic, and discriminatory rhetoric.
It appears that far-right parties such as the National Rally, have unprecedented public support. The more far-right parties become mainstream, the more they create a public discourse and political climate that supports hateful speech and intolerance.
Despite France’s ambitious national strategies and the existence of interministerial organizations, like DILCRAH, to tackle racism and discrimination, there are still challenges to implementation and enforcement. The recent government policies, such as the 2021 “separatism” law, have been critiqued for chipping away at freedoms of association and expression, especially among minority rights advocacy communities. Civil society organizations are faced with limitations that affect their capabilities in monitoring, reporting on and challenging hate crimes.
