Enforced absence from former French island (5)
I believe the answer is:
exile
'enforced absence' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'former french island' is the wordplay.
'former' becomes 'ex'.
'french island' becomes 'ile' (French for 'island').
'ex'+'ile'='EXILE'
'from' is the link.
(Other definitions for exile that I've seen before include "Eject from country" , "forced to leave" , "He is forced to live in another country" , "Outcast" , "Deport" .)