France mulls military-run correctional venues for child offenders in Mayotte

On a visit to the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte on Tuesday, Interior and Overseas Minister Gerald Darmanin said he would work on proposals for juvenile offenders to be sent to correctional venues run by the military.

The French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte is located off the east coast of the African continent. AP - Sony Ibrahim Chamsidine

The venues would be places of "rehabilitation" and "correction" for children without parents or proper guardians, Darmanin told journalists during a visit to a hospital in Mayotte.

He is to present the proposals to French President Emmanuel Macron next week.

A la demande du Président de la République, j’ai annoncé lors de mon déplacement à Mayotte avec Jean-François Carenco plusieurs mesures que le gouvernement entend mettre en œuvre pour les Mahorais.
Le détail 👇https://t.co/9k1DIGRHBj

— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) August 22, 2022

Darmanin said that the police and gendarmes had told him in private about minors aged as young as nine who had used machetes and axes ato attack police.

"Today the magistrates are releasing them given we do not put children in prison, but we must nevertheless offer them a place of punishment and education", Darmanin said.

The French Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti on Thursday unveiled plans for a "closed educational centre" (CEF) in Mayotte by 2024, but these places are intended for teenagers aged 13 and over.

The minister also asked the director of the national police to study the possibility of using "intermediate weapons" during scuffles involving minors.

"Obviously when we apprehend minors, even extremely violent ones, there is no possibility of firing live ammunition as we would when attacked by adults," Eric Dupond-Moretti said.

(with wires)