They have an average of 90 years. They fought for France in Indochina and in Algeria. Some of his fathers and brothers fought in both world wars. The survivors of the Senegalese tirailleurs (riflemen), an infantry and artillery corps made up of young people from the colonies – not only from Senegal – have taken decades for their rights to be fully recognized. A combination of legal limbo, historical forgetfulness, and political disinterest slowed the advancement of their cause.
The French government has just taken a very symbolic decision that corrects the injustice. From now on, these old soldiers will be able to settle permanently in their country of origin and continue to receive their minimum old-age pension. They may die in the land where they were born. Until now, the law required them to reside in France for at least six months a year to collect this subsidy, of just over 900 euros per month. If they failed to meet the requirement, they had to repay a full year or more of pension to the State.
There are 37 former tirailleurs who, according to official figures, still live in France and could benefit from the measure that favors their return. Maybe they are more. At the moment, twelve of them will undertake the final return trip starting next month. The Secretary of State for Veterans and Memory, Patricia Miralles, met with these veterans and thanked them for the service they provided to the country. An exceptional state “solidarity” aid will cover the cost of moving and settling in your country, as well as the cost of your medical care. The French embassy will take care of them “so that they have the republican welcome that is due to them” and will respond to their future needs.
Some of the riflemen, interviewed by the France 24 network, told their story. Yoro Diao, 95, joined the French army in 1953 and was sent to Indochina. His mission was to evacuate wounded from the front, under the bullets. “I was baraka (lucky) because they never hurt me,” he explained. I never saw my blood spilled on the ground.” Oumar Dieme recalled that, as Senegal was a French colony, 19-year-olds were recruited by force. They sent him to Algeria. “They said it was to maintain order, but it was a war,” he clarified, still hurt that the truth was hidden from him. There were many deaths in Algeria.”
Senegalese tirailleurs were created in 1857, during the rule of Napoleon III. This military body, also called the “black army”, existed until the early sixties of the last century, coinciding with the independence of the African colonies. During the First World War, 200,000 of these soldiers participated in the fight. 30,000 were killed, a casualty ratio equal to that of all other French soldiers. Therefore, it cannot be argued that they were used as cannon fodder. They also fought in World War II and contributed to the liberation. The Nazi troops were merciless with them when they were taken prisoner, further proof of the racist ideology of Hitlerian Germany. There were several massacres. There was also a massacre near Dakar in November 1944, when French metropolitan troops shot down a protest by tirailleurs in a transit camp.
Claiming your rights has been a long and laborious process. In 2006, when the conservative Jacques Chirac was president, they were granted a revaluation of their pensions, which had been frozen. In 2016, under the mandate of the socialist François Hollande, they were granted French nationality. The guarantee of their old-age pension even if they reside outside France has coincided with the success of the film Tirailleurs, starring Omar Sy, about the role of these soldiers in the First World War.
In France there are several monuments in honor of tirailleurs. Two of them rest in the crypt of Mont Valerien, the sanctuary of the resistance, in Suresnes, next to Paris. Those who defend his memory want France to go further and have decided to launch a collection of signatures to request President Macron that the body of a tirailleur be buried in the Panthéon, the highest post-mortem French distinction.