When France temporarily blocked trains from Italy headed to French coastal destinations over the weekend, the move marked a dramatic escalation in the two countries’ spat over how to handle migrants fleeing unrest in North Africa — and raised legal questions about fundamental travel accords long embraced many European Union member states. But the clashes over the trains carrying Tunisian passengers from Italy in to France — and E.U. points beyond — are even more significant in reflecting a deep and hardening anti-immigration sentiment across Europe — one that’s now being exploited by mainstream conservatives who once shunned the stigmatization of immigrants as the toxic reserve of the xenophobic extreme right.
The simmering Franco-Italian row boiled over the morning of April 17 when French authorities barred trains from Italy’s border town Ventimiglia from crossing into Menton, France. The reason: a group of some 300 French protesters were aboard what they dubbed the “dignity train” carrying around 60 Tunisians who hold temporary residence papers granted by Italy. The protesters were attempting to denounce France’s contention that those Italian-issued visas don’t grant automatic travel rights to other nations in the open-border Schengen zone. Instead, Paris argues that the holders of those temporary documents — issued after the Tunisians illegally entered Italy to flee turmoil at home — must also carry passports and proof of financial support to qualify for unrestricted travel under terms of the Schengen treaty. French authorities also justified blocking the train on the grounds that the protesters on board hadn’t obtained demonstration permits in France. Before France lifted its blockade of Italian trains late Sunday afternoon, Italy had filed an official protest, calling the stoppage “illegitimate and in clear violation of general European principles” on free circulation of people and goods. On Monday, the E.U. backed France’s decision to temporarily halt the trains for “public order reasons.”
But one also being played elsewhere in the E.U. Earlier this month, UK premier David Cameron also pledged to cut legal immigration, and indicated new arrivals would have to try harder to integrate than their predecessors. Critics claimed that Cameron’s comments were a nod to the rising influence of the British Nationalist Party, a move akin to Sarkozy’s defensive bow to his extreme right and Berlusconi’s long partnership with the rising might of neo-fascist forces. Similar temptations are also at work in Belgium, Sweden, Hungary and the Netherlands, where anti-foreigner parties have made significant gains in recent elections. Those were capped on Sunday by Finland’s nationalist, anti-immigration, E.U.-phobic True Finns party winning a whopping 19% of seats in parliament.
Such victories are signs that the embers of xenophobia are indeed aglow
throughout Europe. But cynical efforts by mainstream conservatives to fan the flames in a bid for votes could soon find the blaze raging out of control.
See pictures of Immigration in Europe.
Europe Hails the Arab Protests, but Fears a Flood of Migrants.
