Yrys
Army.ca Veteran
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Colonial Soldiers Want More From France
In World War II, soldiers from Morocco, Algeria, Senegal and other colonies
fought the Germans side by side with French troops. But six decades later,
some former colonial fighters say they are still battling to receive the same
financial benefits afforded native-born veterans. Many still live in France,
where they collect government payouts and send the money to their families
who live thousands of miles away.
In France, Foreign-Born Veterans Still Fight for Equal Treatment
BORDEAUX — France has a long tradition of drawing on colonial troops
to help fight in its wars. As long ago as end of the 18th century, Napoleon
used troops from the French colonies in his Egypt campaign.
More recently, soldiers from countries like Senegal, Morocco, Mali, Algeria
and Cambodia have fought under the Tricolore, either during the two world
wars or in subsequent campaigns in places like Indochina and Algeria. But
in the wake of France’s painful postwar decolonization, the rights and benefits
of those soldiers were restricted by a series of laws, in contrast to the treat-
ment of native French veterans.
Helped by shifting public opinion, the colonial veterans have in recent years
won important concessions from the government, gaining better pensions and
access to other social benefits. Yet they contend that they are still not afforded
equal treatment. “We were brought up with the French, we lived with them, we
worked for them, we fought by their side, and we are proud to have done it,”
Mohammed Mechti, 90, a Moroccan who helped liberate France, said in an
interview at his state-supported assisted-living home in Bordeaux. “And now,”
he added in a mix of French and Arabic through a translator, “I’m left with the
question, ‘Do they love us?”’
On Aug. 15, 1944, two months after the Allied landings in Normandy, a French
force of 200,000, with an estimated 65 percent of them from former colonies,
landed in Provence with the U.S. Seventh Army. They fought through the suburbs
of Toulon and Marseille, moving on to help repel the Germans from the eastern
Vosges Mountains and Alsace before crossing the Rhine. Historians estimate that
about 40,000 troops of African origin died liberating the country.
Mr. Mechti fought at Monte Cassino in Italy alongside Senegalese, Algerian and
British troops and recalls scaling peaks to outflank German troops. As France’s
empire unraveled, President Charles de Gaulle cited financial constraints and the
cheaper cost of living in Africa and Asia in 1959 to link the veterans’ pensions to
the cost of living in those regions, freezing them at a low rate. That policy
endured for decades.
But advocates pushed for reform, and in 1986 the government passed a law allowing
many of the former fighters to live in France. They received a newly created social
payment that provided benefits like housing and health care.Many veterans, like
Mr. Mechti, returned to French soil, choosing to end their days collecting basic state
payouts to support families in their homelands.
Most headed initially to Bordeaux, where a tribunal processed their claims. There,
they walked the streets while their claims were processed. Once legitimate, they
could receive the minimal benefits as long as they remained on French soil for nine
months a year. Many did, returning home for three months.
In 2006 the film “Indigènes” focused national attention on the plight of the foreign
veterans. The attention prompted then-President Jacques Chirac to order that their
pensions be raised. An increase, costing about €110 million, or $155 million, a year,
was agreed on in 2007. But the raises only affected their basic retirement pensions,
which climbed to over €450 a year from about €100, and disability pensions for those
injured in combat.
A separate, more significant, military retirement pension, for those serving at least
15 years in the army, was not affected and remained frozen for non-French soldiers.
The military retirement pension — unlike the basic pension — can be claimed by
widows and surviving children, making it more costly to the state. According to
calculations by the opposition Socialist Party, the military retirement pension for a
Senegalese soldier is €159 a month, and €70 for a Moroccan. A French-born soldier
receives up to €600 a month.
There are no concrete estimates of the number of former fighters from the colonies
who are alive. Alain Rousset, a Socialist lawmaker who has backed a draft law
seeking to help the veterans, estimates there are approximately 80,000 left worldwide.
Not all would be eligible for full pensions.
In May, Jean-Marie Bockel, then minister for defense and veterans, said in a statement
that “further efforts must be made.” He added: “The government is acting on the issue
to reach a good and just solution.” More recently, Hubert Falco, the current veterans’
minister, said: “Since 2007, former soldiers all benefit from the same allowances
whatever their nationality. The government has thus put an end to an inequality of
treatment.” He skirted the issue of the military retirement pension but said future
decisions would be “guided by the spirit of justice.”
Advocates and opposition politicians say that foreign-born veterans still suffer
discrimination. They backed a court case against the government, and in October
2008 they won a revaluation of the pensions of six former Moroccan soldiers;
a claim by a Senegalese veteran was rejected. The case is still being studied by
the government, but for now there is little sign of legislative movement.
“It’s a question of will,” said Christelle Jouteau, a lawyer representing the Moroccans
in Bordeaux. “Things could change if the government wants it.” She said the obstacle
now appeared to be budgetary. “Legal time is much longer than human time,” she said.
“It is difficult for these men because they are so old.”
Mr. Rousset proposed his bill in October 2008. It calls for fully unfreezing the remaining
pension, among other measures, and would also allow the veterans to live in France or
abroad without affecting their pension. Lacking government backing, the law has not yet
been accepted for debate by the Parliament.
In Bordeaux, the main concern of a half-dozen Moroccan veterans at a recent meeting was
not financial. They said they had generally been well treated and that they slept well, ate
well and received adequate medical care. But they grew somber when discussing their
separation from their families. “Even if they give us less than we get now, it’s more
important to have family — either here or there,” Mr. Mechti said.
All six entered the army for financial reasons and as a means of escaping colonial
oppression. Once in the army, they said, they were sent on the most dangerous
missions. “It was extremely violent, we didn’t have great equipment,” said Abderrahmane
El Mahdaoui, 93, who faced enemy fire in Italy and Provence. “When we liberated France,
I remember a small boy asking his mum to lift him up so that he could kiss the liberators.”
Others spoke about their naïveté.
“I didn’t know about France, Indochina, and I had no idea what war would be like,” said
Salah Lyamani, 75, who fought in Southeast Asia. “I survived — only by the grace of God.”
These days, the veterans spend much of their time chatting, praying and watching television.
Mr. Lyamani said he would prefer to be able to claim his pension in his home country, or
bring his wife to France to help care for him.
“We fought for France, and history showed we were right,” said Mr. El Mahdaoui, the Moroccan
who fought Germans in Europe.
In World War II, soldiers from Morocco, Algeria, Senegal and other colonies
fought the Germans side by side with French troops. But six decades later,
some former colonial fighters say they are still battling to receive the same
financial benefits afforded native-born veterans. Many still live in France,
where they collect government payouts and send the money to their families
who live thousands of miles away.
In France, Foreign-Born Veterans Still Fight for Equal Treatment
BORDEAUX — France has a long tradition of drawing on colonial troops
to help fight in its wars. As long ago as end of the 18th century, Napoleon
used troops from the French colonies in his Egypt campaign.
More recently, soldiers from countries like Senegal, Morocco, Mali, Algeria
and Cambodia have fought under the Tricolore, either during the two world
wars or in subsequent campaigns in places like Indochina and Algeria. But
in the wake of France’s painful postwar decolonization, the rights and benefits
of those soldiers were restricted by a series of laws, in contrast to the treat-
ment of native French veterans.
Helped by shifting public opinion, the colonial veterans have in recent years
won important concessions from the government, gaining better pensions and
access to other social benefits. Yet they contend that they are still not afforded
equal treatment. “We were brought up with the French, we lived with them, we
worked for them, we fought by their side, and we are proud to have done it,”
Mohammed Mechti, 90, a Moroccan who helped liberate France, said in an
interview at his state-supported assisted-living home in Bordeaux. “And now,”
he added in a mix of French and Arabic through a translator, “I’m left with the
question, ‘Do they love us?”’
On Aug. 15, 1944, two months after the Allied landings in Normandy, a French
force of 200,000, with an estimated 65 percent of them from former colonies,
landed in Provence with the U.S. Seventh Army. They fought through the suburbs
of Toulon and Marseille, moving on to help repel the Germans from the eastern
Vosges Mountains and Alsace before crossing the Rhine. Historians estimate that
about 40,000 troops of African origin died liberating the country.
Mr. Mechti fought at Monte Cassino in Italy alongside Senegalese, Algerian and
British troops and recalls scaling peaks to outflank German troops. As France’s
empire unraveled, President Charles de Gaulle cited financial constraints and the
cheaper cost of living in Africa and Asia in 1959 to link the veterans’ pensions to
the cost of living in those regions, freezing them at a low rate. That policy
endured for decades.
But advocates pushed for reform, and in 1986 the government passed a law allowing
many of the former fighters to live in France. They received a newly created social
payment that provided benefits like housing and health care.Many veterans, like
Mr. Mechti, returned to French soil, choosing to end their days collecting basic state
payouts to support families in their homelands.
Most headed initially to Bordeaux, where a tribunal processed their claims. There,
they walked the streets while their claims were processed. Once legitimate, they
could receive the minimal benefits as long as they remained on French soil for nine
months a year. Many did, returning home for three months.
In 2006 the film “Indigènes” focused national attention on the plight of the foreign
veterans. The attention prompted then-President Jacques Chirac to order that their
pensions be raised. An increase, costing about €110 million, or $155 million, a year,
was agreed on in 2007. But the raises only affected their basic retirement pensions,
which climbed to over €450 a year from about €100, and disability pensions for those
injured in combat.
A separate, more significant, military retirement pension, for those serving at least
15 years in the army, was not affected and remained frozen for non-French soldiers.
The military retirement pension — unlike the basic pension — can be claimed by
widows and surviving children, making it more costly to the state. According to
calculations by the opposition Socialist Party, the military retirement pension for a
Senegalese soldier is €159 a month, and €70 for a Moroccan. A French-born soldier
receives up to €600 a month.
There are no concrete estimates of the number of former fighters from the colonies
who are alive. Alain Rousset, a Socialist lawmaker who has backed a draft law
seeking to help the veterans, estimates there are approximately 80,000 left worldwide.
Not all would be eligible for full pensions.
In May, Jean-Marie Bockel, then minister for defense and veterans, said in a statement
that “further efforts must be made.” He added: “The government is acting on the issue
to reach a good and just solution.” More recently, Hubert Falco, the current veterans’
minister, said: “Since 2007, former soldiers all benefit from the same allowances
whatever their nationality. The government has thus put an end to an inequality of
treatment.” He skirted the issue of the military retirement pension but said future
decisions would be “guided by the spirit of justice.”
Advocates and opposition politicians say that foreign-born veterans still suffer
discrimination. They backed a court case against the government, and in October
2008 they won a revaluation of the pensions of six former Moroccan soldiers;
a claim by a Senegalese veteran was rejected. The case is still being studied by
the government, but for now there is little sign of legislative movement.
“It’s a question of will,” said Christelle Jouteau, a lawyer representing the Moroccans
in Bordeaux. “Things could change if the government wants it.” She said the obstacle
now appeared to be budgetary. “Legal time is much longer than human time,” she said.
“It is difficult for these men because they are so old.”
Mr. Rousset proposed his bill in October 2008. It calls for fully unfreezing the remaining
pension, among other measures, and would also allow the veterans to live in France or
abroad without affecting their pension. Lacking government backing, the law has not yet
been accepted for debate by the Parliament.
In Bordeaux, the main concern of a half-dozen Moroccan veterans at a recent meeting was
not financial. They said they had generally been well treated and that they slept well, ate
well and received adequate medical care. But they grew somber when discussing their
separation from their families. “Even if they give us less than we get now, it’s more
important to have family — either here or there,” Mr. Mechti said.
All six entered the army for financial reasons and as a means of escaping colonial
oppression. Once in the army, they said, they were sent on the most dangerous
missions. “It was extremely violent, we didn’t have great equipment,” said Abderrahmane
El Mahdaoui, 93, who faced enemy fire in Italy and Provence. “When we liberated France,
I remember a small boy asking his mum to lift him up so that he could kiss the liberators.”
Others spoke about their naïveté.
“I didn’t know about France, Indochina, and I had no idea what war would be like,” said
Salah Lyamani, 75, who fought in Southeast Asia. “I survived — only by the grace of God.”
These days, the veterans spend much of their time chatting, praying and watching television.
Mr. Lyamani said he would prefer to be able to claim his pension in his home country, or
bring his wife to France to help care for him.
“We fought for France, and history showed we were right,” said Mr. El Mahdaoui, the Moroccan
who fought Germans in Europe.
