Testimony

"You are forced to work, even with fear in your stomach": the testimony of an undocumented Malian

Undocumented Africans gathered around a fire in Saint-Denis.

(Drawing).

AFP - CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT

Text by: Aram Mbengue

4 mins

The government's immigration bill passed before the Council of State will have to be presented in January to the Council of Ministers, before its examination before Parliament.

Among the measures recommended by this text, entitled “To control immigration and improve integration”, it is a question in particular of issuing residence permits to undocumented foreign workers exercising a profession in sectors in tension.

RFI was able to meet a Malian (*) in his forties who has been living and working in France for more than 15 years.

Despite the fact that he exercises a profession in tension, he is the subject of an OQTF (obligation to leave French territory).

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How did you arrive in France?

I arrived in France in 2005 with a tourist visa.

I preferred to stay there after my visa expired and work.

I am here, I live in a home.

I work.

I made the request for regularization with the prefecture.

They reject me, they give me the OQTF sometimes, it blocks me.

I can't reapply, you have to wait two years of OQTF or one year of OQTF.

What was your project?

It was not to stay in France…

Before coming to France, we come from the village.

I came here precisely to work and help the family a little, to find small things to go and invest over there like livestock or something else, for agriculture in our fields.

I would like to return to the country to work there and to live there with my family.

My situation blocked me and I stayed there.

You have applied for regularization twice.

And the very last one that is in progress has been rejected.

You ended up with an OQTF, that is to say an obligation to leave French territory.

How did you experience this?

For the OQTF, it's really hard, very complicated for us, undocumented workers in France.

With the OQTF on your back, in the morning to wake up, it's scary.

To go to work, to get on the bus or the train, you look left, right, ahead, behind.

Really, it's hard to live.

When you see someone in front of you with the black jacket, you have to turn your back because you can't go there.

Often it happens when you arrive at the construction site, you find someone you don't know.

With the OQTF, you have to go back home, not to go to work, because when they catch you with the OQTF, it's the direct detention center.

And yet, you are obliged to continue working…

Forced, that's right.

In France today, if you don't work, you can't do anything.

Just the Navigo card for 70 or 80 euros per month, nobody gives you that.

For food, everyone now knows how expensive life is: we pay the rent, we don't have help, we have nothing.

We have to work hard to pay our rents, to declare our taxes, we pay the taxes, we pay all the taxes.

You submit all supporting documents to the prefecture.

They reject them and give you the OQTF.

It's not easy, but you have to, even with fear in your stomach, you have to go out, to go to work to help the family, to feed them and to feed yourself.

To pay your rent, to pay for your trips and clothes.

What field do you work in ?

I have been working in construction for almost 8 years.

At first, I started out as a labourer, later I became a mason.

I worked 5 years in public works to build the highway.

I worked a little in other fields, but the most is in construction.

Does your employer know your administrative situation?

At first no, but now yes.

My employer still continues to make me work.

I can work from Monday to Saturday and be paid like a person who works from Monday to Friday, because I have no papers.

So I may be paid less, with a lot of things going wrong on my payslip, but where am I going to claim or complain?

The employer seriously takes advantage of our situation, because he knows that we can't complain anywhere, especially when we have OQTF.

*

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