Nächste Runde, diesmal ist es Di Maio, 5 Sterne, der Macron angreift. Die französische CFA-Politik sei eine fortgesetzte Ausbeutung der ehemaligen Kolonien und sei eine der Ursachen der Migrationsbewegungen.

NYT | 22.01.2019

Mr. Di Maio, a member of the populist Five Star movement, which is skeptical of the European Union and Mr. Macron’s more internationalist views, set off the diplomatic spat with France when he said that Mr. Macron “first lectures us, then continues to finance public debt with the money with which he exploits Africa,” according to ANSA, the Italian press agency.

But the currency, its history and the issues around it have had little to do with the debate over African migration to Europe until now.

Die NZZ zum gleichen Thema.

«Frankreich macht Afrika arm»

Di Maio warf Paris in einem Interview vor, Afrika auszubeuten und damit die Flüchtlingskrise zu verschärfen. «Bestimmte europäische Länder, Frankreich an erster Stelle, haben nie aufgehört, Dutzende von afrikanischen Ländern zu kolonisieren», sagte er. Jene Afrikaner, die ihr Land Richtung Europa verliessen, täten dies auch wegen der Politik, die Frankreich auf dem Kontinent verfolge. «Sie macht Afrika arm und veranlasst die Menschen zu fliehen.»

Die EU müsse sich dieser Sache annehmen und Länder wie Frankreich, die zur «Verarmung» Afrikas beitrügen, sanktionieren. «Von nun an bringen wir die Migranten, die in Italien landen wollen, nach Marseille», sagte Di Maio drohend. Sowieso verdanke Frankreich seine führende Stellung in der Weltwirtschaft vorab seinem ausbeuterischen Regime in Afrika, fügte Di Maio hinzu. «Frankreich gehört heute zu den führenden Wirtschaftsmächten dank dem, was es in Afrika tut.»

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Deliberate provocation or fair point? What’s behind the latest Italian-French spat over fueling migration?

Italy’s deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio, accused France of fueling migration through neo-colonial policies in Africa. The statement caused the French authorities to call in the Italian ambassador in Paris. So what’s behind Di Maio’s statements?

Italian deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Five Star Movement (M5S) Luigi Di Maio said he didn’t want to cause a diplomatic incident when he made his latest statement about France fueling migration through ’neo-colonial‘ policies. Di Maio said that France was stunting African development through financial policies. Although he didn’t elaborate, France’s financial involvement in Africa is most easily symbolized by the currency union of the CFA, the west African Franc and the Central African Franc, of which 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa are now members. 

Since independence from their former colonial masters, the CFA has been taken to mean „African Financial Community“ but when it was set up in 1945 the same acronym stood for „French Colonies of Africa“, making it easy to take a pot-shot at the CFA today as a symbol of a neo-colonial relationship. The currency was linked first to the value of the French Franc and now to the Euro. In order to stabilize the exchange rate, CFA members are asked to keep around 50 percent of their reserves in the French national bank. 

Di Maio’s statement did however, cause a spat between the two countries. The Italian ambassador in Paris, Teresa Castaldo was summoned to the foreign ministry on Monday, although the incident has not yet been written up on the French government’s diplomatic website. […]

InfoMigrants | 22.01.2019

„The African Currency at the Center of a European Dispute“