# France formally repeals Code Noir slavery law

> Parliament unanimously votes to remove the 1685 royal edict that legalised slavery from French legislation, nearly 180 years after abolition.
- Title: France formally repeals Code Noir slavery law · RFI | Shortify
- Summary: Parliament unanimously votes to remove the 1685 royal edict that legalised slavery from French legislation, nearly 180 years after abolition. France's…
- Keywords: france, code noir, slavery, parliament, colonial law, reparations, guadeloupe, reunion, news, world, formally, repeals
- Source: RFI — https://rfi.fr/en/france/20261021-france-turns-page-on-code-noir-as-parliament-approves-symbolic-repeal
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: france, code noir, slavery, parliament, colonial law, reparations, guadeloupe, reunion, news, world
## Parliament votes to repeal Code Noir
France's Parliament unanimously approved the formal repeal of the Code Noir and related slavery legislation on Tuesday, closing a legal chapter left unresolved since abolition in eighteen forty-eight.
## What the Code Noir did
The Code Noir, issued in sixteen eighty-five, reduced enslaved people to the status of movable property that owners could buy and sell. It prescribed brutal punishments including branding, mutilation and death for escape attempts.
## Why the repeal matters symbolically
The texts ceased to have legal effect after abolition in eighteen forty-eight but were never formally repealed. Overseas Territories Minister Naïma Moutchou said the repeal removes an unacceptable remnant of colonial past.

> The Code Noir organised and legitimised slavery. It has no place in our legal system, not even as a relic.
## Debate over scope of repeal
Senator Evelyne Corbière Naminzo argued that legislation governing slavery in the Indian Ocean should be explicitly mentioned with the same weight as the Code Noir applied in the French Antilles.Rapporteur Louis Vogel defended broader wording.

> When we talk about a symbol, we must not leave anyone out.
## Reparations question remains open
The repeal leaves aside reparations, a longstanding demand in French overseas territories.The French state compensated former slave owners for their loss, but emancipated people received no compensation.
## Key takeaway

France's Parliament unanimously repealed the Code Noir and related colonial slavery laws, formally removing them from legislation nearly two centuries after abolition in eighteen forty-eight.