Paris (QNN)- French lawmakers on Wednesday voted to dismiss a high-profile public petition that called for the withdrawal of a controversial antisemitism bill proposed by Caroline Yadan. The move came despite the petition gathering more than 700,000 signatures, highlighting growing public opposition to the legislation.
Members of the law committee in the National Assembly rejected the petition, titled “No to the Yadan law,” by 30 votes to 21. The petition challenged Yadan’s proposal, which aims to expand the legal definition of antisemitism and broaden the scope of related offenses.
Supporters of the committee’s decision argued that a separate debate on the petition was unnecessary. They pointed out that lawmakers will already debate the bill itself in the full assembly on Thursday.
However, left-wing opposition lawmakers strongly criticized the decision. They said dismissing the petition ignores the voices of hundreds of thousands of citizens who signed it. The political movement La France Insoumise described the vote as “an insult” to public participation and called for protests outside parliament.
Leading opposition figure Mathilde Panot also condemned the decision. In a statement posted on the platform X, she labeled the outcome a “scandal” and pledged to escalate the issue. Panot said she would refer the matter to the president of the National Assembly to push for a full parliamentary debate on the petition.
She stressed that public pressure will not fade, describing the campaign against the bill as a “historic citizen mobilization.” Her comments reflect rising tensions ahead of Thursday’s debate, where lawmakers will face mounting scrutiny over the bill’s implications for free speech and legal definitions of 'antisemitism'.
The controversy underscores a broader political divide in France over how to address 'antisemitism' while balancing civil liberties. As the National Assembly prepares to debate the bill, both supporters and critics are mobilizing, setting the stage for a heated confrontation inside and outside parliament.
