75 Haitians detained in Paris airports without visas

Seventy-five Haitians without visas are being detained at Paris’s two airports, as authorities try to figure out what to do with them. A first group of 32 people arrived at Orly airport on Thursday, and another group of 43 arrived at Charles de Gaulle airport on Sunday.

Photo: Reuters

The people, who have family members already living in France, had visas to go to Benin. Border police stopped them, suspecting their intent to use the transit visas to stay illegally in France.

"This is not spontaneous; there must be an organiser,” an official told the AFP news agency.

People can be held up to 96 hours in detention at the airport, after which they either have to go before a judge, or be deported.

Of the first group, which arrived Thursday, 30 people appeared Monday in two immigration courts.

A judge in Bobigny ordered the release 16 of them, and another in Créteil ruled the release of 14. The second decision was appealed, so the people are still being detained.

Those in detention are not allowed to enter French territory, but they can ask for political asylum. It is not clear how many of the 75 Haitians have asked for asylum.

The detentions come almost a year after the devastating earthquake hit Haiti on 12 January 2010. France had said it would help victims by easing visa applications for those Haitians who wanted to rejoin their family members already in France.