The History of Chinese Immigration in France and the Evolution of French Immigration Policy
With the opening of China's economy and the reform of state-owned enterprises, an increasing number of Chinese from the mainland have flocked to France. Today, Chinese immigration in France has gained attention from the French government and even widespread concern from European society. How has the Chinese immigrant community in France formed, and what are their circumstances in France?
The History of Chinese Immigration in France: Three Peaks of Chinese Immigration
France prohibits the classification of its population by race, making it difficult to estimate how many Chinese or people of Chinese descent live in France. According to "Le Monde," the estimate is around 600,000 to 700,000, with more than half residing in the Greater Paris area.
First wave of immigration: During World War I from 1916 to 1918, Britain and France recruited about 140,000 Chinese laborers, most of whom returned home after the war, leaving over 3,000 survivors, some of whom were from Wenzhou. Around the same time, Wenzhou people, hoping to escape the war and seek a living abroad, brought famous Qingtian stone carvings and handmade leather goods, exiting from Manchuria in Northeast China, traveling overland to France.
Second wave of immigration: From 1975 to 1985, France accepted 150,000 refugees from Cambodia and Vietnam, many of whom were of Chinese descent from Chaozhou. At the same time, Wenzhou people also began to leave China during the reform and opening-up period and connected with Wenzhou people who had remained in France since the early 20th century.
Third wave of immigration: From 1990 to 2010, with increased exchanges between China and abroad, many immigrants to France during this period came from the three northeastern provinces of China.
In 2002, China and France signed an administrative agreement on mutual recognition of higher education degrees and diplomas, and now there are about 30,000 Chinese students pursuing further studies in France. Subsequently, as friendly relations developed between China and France, more and more Chinese immigrants moved to France for work and life needs.
The History of Chinese Immigration in France: Main Composition of Chinese Immigrants
France is the sixth largest immigrant country in the world, with approximately 6 million immigrants, accounting for 10% of the total population. Among them, the Chinese and overseas Chinese are conservatively estimated to number over 550,000, with most residing in the Greater Paris area. The main groups of Chinese immigrants are twofold: one group is from Chaozhou, who immigrated to France in the 1970s from Southeast Asia, and the other group is from Wenzhou and Qingtian in Zhejiang, who began immigrating after the 1980s.
The Evolution of French Immigration Policy
France is an ancient country located in Western Europe. From the 19th century to the early 20th century, it was the second strongest country in the world after Britain. Despite being occupied by Germany during World War II, France has always been a world power with significant influence in politics, economics, military, technology, and culture. To this day, France remains one of the wealthiest and most developed countries in the world. French immigration policy mainly includes two aspects: immigration control policies regarding entry and naturalization, and policies for the social integration of immigrants.
The Evolution of French Immigration Policy: From Lenient to Strict Immigration Policies
France is the birthplace of the first declaration of human rights in the world, advocating a republican model of freedom, tolerance, and integration, which has long been regarded as the guiding principle of immigration policy.
(The principles that current French law must follow originate from the "Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen" of 1789.)
After World War II, during the presidencies of Charles de Gaulle (1959-1969) and Georges Pompidou (1969-1974), France had only slight regulations on the immigration acceptance process, with the government integrating immigrants through "assimilation," hoping that immigrants would adapt to French society and achieve natural assimilation.
The presidency of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (1974-1981) marked a turning point in French immigration policy, as immigrants gradually became the backbone of society. The original focus on single male laborers shifted to family reunification immigration, leading to the emergence of a new immigrant society.
In the mid-1970s, the French government announced a complete ban on immigration and implemented a series of immigration control policies. On one hand, this was due to the fact that France no longer needed to import immigrant labor from an economic or demographic perspective; on the other hand, the global economic downturn led to severe unemployment in France, which society blamed on immigrants, resulting in a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment.
Starting in 1981, the left-wing government (Mitterrand 1981-1995) advocated an "insertion" policy for immigrants, incorporating new ideas into immigration governance principles, emphasizing "establishing conditions for foreigners that are not subject to deportation restrictions," "legalization of illegal immigrants," and "granting foreigners the freedom to assemble and associate," focusing on equality, welfare, and rights for immigrants to improve their lives. However, since the first co-governance in 1986, the French government replaced the previous "insertion" policy aimed at improving immigrant lives with a more liberal "integration" approach, which gradually became the mainstream of immigration politics.
Immigrant integration policies can alleviate racial tensions within French society and enhance the work and living rights of immigrants. Since 1986, through two co-governances and the right-wing government starting in 1995 (Chirac 1995-2008), France has adopted measures to control or restrict immigration entry and strictly regulate illegal immigration to ensure domestic employment. On the other hand, to facilitate industrial/business development and knowledge economy growth, selective immigration policies have been adopted, welcoming economic immigrants, skilled immigrants, temporary immigrants, and seasonal workers.
The Evolution of French Immigration Policy: Immigration Policies Influencing Elections
Since 2000, immigration issues have been used as political leverage, becoming a powerful weapon for presidential candidates to attract voters.
(In the 2017 French presidential election, immigration issues remained one of the most important campaign topics.)
In 2002, in the French presidential election, the far-right party National Front, characterized by its opposition to foreign immigration, saw its candidate Marine Le Pen defeat the then Prime Minister Lionel Jospin in the first round and challenge the traditional right-wing candidate, then President Jacques Chirac. The rise of the anti-immigrant far-right party shocked the political landscape in Europe and the world.
Le Pen attributed France's decline to immigration issues, consistently shouting anti-immigrant slogans. The French newspaper "Le Figaro" reported under the headline "Who Voted for Le Pen?" that, based on voting rates, a large number of workers, farmers, artisans, and small business owners who previously belonged to traditional left-wing parties shifted to the far-right party, with 30% of workers voting for Le Pen; 20% of farmers also voted for Le Pen; and 19% of artisans and small business owners supported Le Pen. This indicates that immigration issues have transformed from merely complex social problems into political issues, reshaping the voter base of traditional French political parties.
The Evolution of French Immigration Policy: Increasingly Strict Immigration Policies
On July 9, 2003, the French National Assembly passed a new immigration bill submitted by the Ministry of the Interior. This new bill aims to further strengthen the crackdown on illegal immigration, focusing on severely punishing crimes such as human smuggling, sham marriages, and employing illegal workers. The swift passage of this bill reflects the French government's concerns about the increasingly rampant illegal immigration activities amid a poor economic situation.
After the Paris riots in 2005, the French government undertook extensive reforms regarding immigration issues: first, reforms of existing departments related to immigration affairs; second, the establishment of new departments; and third, the introduction of new policies and regulations. Scholars have summarized these reforms and adjustments into three characteristics: first, the implementation of strict selective immigration control policies externally; second, increasing anti-discrimination efforts at the individual citizen level to promote social equality; and third, proposing to reshape national identity and respect fundamental national values at the group level of citizens.
(Today, the French police are closely monitoring immigrant communities.)
In May 2007, Nicolas Sarkozy, representing the right-wing forces in France, won the presidential election and adopted a tougher immigration policy, advocating a reduction in the number of illegal immigrants and implementing selective immigration policies to favor qualified workers entering France. As entry policies tightened further and issues concerning the second and third generations of immigrants in French society gradually increased, the focus of immigration policy gradually shifted to social integration policies.
In 2010, the Besson Law (also known as the New Immigration Law) further tightened policies for "bad" immigrants, such as stripping French nationality from those who have been in France for less than ten years and convicted of attempted murder of public authority personnel (police, gendarmes, firefighters, etc.); habitual thieves or aggressive beggars can be deported. On the other hand, the immigration law relaxed policies for "good" immigrants, such as establishing reward measures for foreigners who excel in "civic responsibility, science, economy, culture, or sports," and expediting the processing of naturalization applications for them.
From relatively lenient to gradually tightening, from actively accepting Third World immigrants to selective strategies, over the past decade, France's immigration policy has gradually evolved into a stringent restrictive policy, which is significantly related to the economic and social structure of France, as well as the conflicts and contradictions between minority ethnic groups and mainstream French society.
