Fresh protests hit France over murder of 12-yr-old girl

Hundreds of people have marched to the streets in Paris, France to protest the murder of a 12-year-old girl identified as Lola found in a suitcase last week.

Far-right politician Eric Zemmour and hundreds of others gathered in Paris to protest against the murder of the girl.

Lola’s body was found in a suitcase in Paris last week and two people have been arrested as suspects in connection with her death, Zemmour led people to protest on Friday.

Euronews reports that Lola’s parents urged protesters to “urgently cease” using “the name and image of their child for political purposes.”

Lola’s parents urged demonstrators to not politicise her death, saying they wished “to be able to honour the memory of their daughter in the serenity, respect and dignity which is due to her.”

France’s right-wing political parties have seized the fact that the woman arrested for the murder is an Algerian immigrant that had already been ordered to leave the country.

They were demanding that President Emmanuel Macron’s government should clamp down on illegal immigration and that authorities should enforce immigration laws in France.

A French Senate report found that while 143,226 deportation orders were issued in 2021, only 9.3% were carried out, down from 15.6% in 2019.

Government spokesman, Olivier Veran, has conceded the enforcement of orders to quit French territory was not “satisfactory”.

Meanwhile, authorities said the main suspect was seen on CCTV exiting the building in the afternoon, carrying heavy luggage including the suitcase in which Lola was discovered.

Moreover, an autopsy revealed that the victim had died of cardio-respiratory failure with the manifestation of asphyxia.

Aside from Paris, the French capital city, smaller protests also took place in other cities, such as Lyon and Metz.