Human Rights Commission: Racism Cases In France Soared 32 Percent In 2023

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ANKARA - France's National Human Rights Consultative Commission (CNCDH) in a report announced that racism cases jumped 32 percent in 2023 based on data from the French Ministry of Home Affairs.

The largest increase, Anadolu reported on Saturday, occurred in racist cases of antisemitism, which amounted to 284 percent. The report also notes tolerance for all minority groups in France will fall in 2023, particularly for the Jewish community, and Muslims will be the least tolerated group.

The surge in figures could have been caused by many factors, including Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip since October 7 and polarization of debates over asylum and migration.

Reporting from Anadolu, CNCDH added that a million people were targeted by at least one racist attack in 2023, according to figures from the statistic office.

In addition, more than half of French citizens, namely 51 percent, think they no longer feel at home in France. The findings rose by eight points compared to the spring of 2022

It also said that 56 percent of France's population, seven points higher than in the spring of 2022, confirmed that there are too many immigrants in France.

CNCDH said the figures reflect the current context of the political and social atmosphere with the rise of the right-wing party National Rally (RN) which garnered more than 30 percent of the votes in the European Parliament election in June.

RN's victory prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to admit defeat to his centrist bloc, disband parliament, and announce interim elections.

RN leader Jordan Bardella said his party would focus on migration, stressing that the problem poses a burden that cannot be borne by public finances and social security systems.

The European Parliamentary Election will be held in two rounds, the first round on June 30 and the second round on July 7.