E/CN.4/1996/72/Add.3
page 5
Composition of the population
2
17.
Metropolitan France has 57.2 million inhabitants, of whom 3,580,000 are
foreigners (6.3 per cent). According to the last census, conducted in 1985,
the foreign population remains numerically stable, a fact which tends to call
into question alarmist statements about “the invasion of France by
foreigners”. This population is composed mainly of:
Portuguese:
649,714
Algerians:
614,207
Moroccans:
572,652
Italians:
252,759
Spaniards:
216,047
Tunisians:
206,336
Turks:
197,712.
18.
The fact that no statistics on foreigners from countries in Black Africa
have been provided by the French authorities suggests that the former account
for a very small percentage of the foreign population in France. It may
therefore be asked why they are among the most frequent victims of xenophobia
and racial discrimination, as will be seen below.
I.
MANIFESTATIONS OF CONTEMPORARY FORMS OF RACISM,
RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AND INCIDENTS
A.
Racial discrimination and exclusion
19.
According to a study by the National Institute for Demographic Studies
(INED), 3 racial discrimination against persons of non-European origin is
particularly evident in two areas: employment and housing. Immigrant
populations and, in general, persons of certain ethnic origins have problems
obtaining decent housing suited to the size of their households and experience
excessively high levels of unemployment. The survey, which is based on the
way the victims of discrimination perceive discriminatory acts and on the
perceptions of other persons residing in France, makes it possible to
understand the discriminatory practices of the actors involved (institutions,
employers, employment agencies, temporary employment agencies, owners, real
estate agencies, etc.), which are difficult to observe in action.
2
The statistics provided in this section are taken from the eleventh
periodic report of France to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination (CERD/C/225/Add.2, para. 10).
3
1992).
INED, Etude sur la mobilité géographique et l'insertion sociale
(Paris,