The
French parliament was brought to a halt after a far-right MP shouted
"They should go back to Africa" as a black colleague talked about
immigration.
Grégoire
de Fournas, a member of National Rally (RN), said later his remark had
not been aimed at Carlos Martens Bilongo himself but at migrants trying
to reach Europe by sea.
Mr Bilongo said he had been born in France and the remark was "shameful".
Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said there was "no room for racism".
The
National Assembly's bureau would meet on Friday and decide on the
"necessary sanction", the liberal politician told reporters.
Mr
Bilongo had been questioning the government about a request by the SOS
Méditerranée non-governmental organisation for help in finding a port
for 234 migrants rescued at sea in recent days.
When
Mr de Fournas made his remark, the Speaker, Yael Braun-Pivet, demanded
to know who had spoken. Then, as MPs chanted "Out! Out! Out!", she
suspended the session, declaring, "This is not possible."
Mr
Bilongo, an MP from the the left-wing party France Unbowed (LFI), said:
"Today it's come back to the colour of my skin. I was born in France, I
am a French MP."
Mr
de Fournas tried to defend himself, saying he had been referring to the
"boat transporting migrants to Europe" but he later apologised to Mr
Bilongo for "the misunderstanding" his comments had caused and if he had
been hurt by them.
LFI
leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon tweeted that the MP's comments were "beyond
intolerable" and he should be kicked out of the National Assembly.
Immigration
featured prominently in the RN's presidential and parliamentary
election campaigns this year, with party leader Marine Le Pen proposing a
referendum on major reductions in immigration if she became president.
In the parliamentary election in June, the party increased its presence in the National Assembly tenfold, winning 89 seats
