Russian blogger Ilya Varlamov caused panic among local residents in the Kaweni district of Mayotte after asking them questions during a visit to the island.
Varlamov detailed the encounters in a video published on YouTube, describing how his presence and inquiries alarmed inhabitants in the area, which is widely described as the largest slum in the European Union.
According to the blogger, Kaweni is primarily populated by undocumented migrants from the neighbouring Comoros archipelago as well as other nations. He explained that local police frequently carry out raids across Mayotte with the aim of expelling individuals who are living on the island illegally.
Varlamov said that residents in the settlement live in constant fear of law enforcement. He noted that whenever a foreigner, particularly a white person, appears in the neighborhood, locals immediately suspect that the visitor is from the police. He added that many residents shut down, and asking basic questions about where they came from triggers a light panic among them.
Fears of law enforcement and past hostility
Mayotte is an island archipelago located in the Indian Ocean between Madagascar and the coast of Mozambique. Although geographically part of the Comoros archipelago, Mayotte chose to remain affiliated with France and officially became an overseas department of France in 2011, making its territory part of the European Union. Kaweni, situated near the island capital of Mamoudzou, has grown into a major informal settlement struggling with high population density and poverty.
Varlamov is a Russian travel blogger and commentator who publishes video reports on cities, urban planning, and international travel. The Russian Ministry of Justice has designated Varlamov as a foreign agent, and Russia's financial monitoring body Rosfinmonitoring has listed him on its official registry of terrorists and extremists.
The YouTube video is not the first time Varlamov has experienced friction on Mayotte. The blogger previously recalled facing hostility on the island due to his Russian origin, stating that a local resident aggressively confronted him and told him that Russians were not liked on the island.
