Corsica has moved a step closer to getting powers to make some laws locally after a French parliamentary committee approved a draft bill which would give the Mediterranean island more autonomy.
The landmark piece of legislation would allow the Corsican government to pass its own laws in areas such as waste management, urban planning and housing.
The bill would also add a new line to France’s constitution recognising the island’s historical, linguistic and cultural community.
Responsibility for policing and defence, among other areas, would remain under Paris’s control.
The extent of the proposed devolved powers for Corsica is still yet to be finalised.
Corsica has been part of France since 1769 and one of the country’s most famous historical figures, Napoleon Bonaparte, was born in the island’s capital Ajaccio.
But since the 1960s, a nationalist movement has emerged on the island, which either argues for more autonomy from France or total independence.
For decades Corsican nationalist militant groups carried out bombings of government buildings on the island, as well as property owned by outsiders.
Most armed nationalist groups have now disbanded. However, Femu a Corsica, which is the largest party in the island’s Corsican Assembly, wants the powers to pass laws, as well as further fiscal autonomy.
The draft bill still needs to be approved by France’s National Assembly and Senate, and then receive approval by at least 60 per cent of Congress.
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