While conditions in ‘the Jungle’ refugee camp in Calais have long been harsh, many residents are resisting the French government’s attempts to move them to new accommodation. Mitch Mitchell explains why, and calls for renewed solidarity with those seeking shelter.
The situation in Calais has changed from awful to desperate.
The French state have started to insist that they clear 100 metres of land in the camp, currently inhabited by refugees and makeshift shops and community kitchens. The reason for this appears to be to create a ‘buffer zone’ between the camp and the motorway, to make it harder for people to jump on lorries stuck in traffic jams.
In order to facilitate this, they have built a new camp for 1500 people, made from shipping containers. There will be 15 people per container and there will only be room for sleeping, so clothing and any belongings will have to be at a minimum.
To access these containers, people will have to pass fingerprint recognition points on the doors. Obviously, the fingerprints will be taken and recorded. It has been suggested that this is the modern version of the tattoos with which the Nazis branded concentration camp inmates.
By their very nature, these containers will have little natural light and will almost certainly be extremely cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Perhaps even more worryingly, any resident of this ‘haven’ will have to apply for asylum in France and will only be allowed to stay whilst their application is being considered.
According to Pascal, who works for Secours Catholique, a French charity set up to help homeless people that has been distributing clothing to the refugees, those who achieve French citizenship are given nothing else and will merely add to France’s growing homeless problem once they are again evicted from the new camp.
Unsurprisingly, the refugees have been resisting this move, many for some of the reasons given above and some because they already have family members in other countries, such as the UK.
The authorities have given people 3 days to facilitate the move, although there are strong rumours that this deadline has been extended by a day. They then plan to move in with bulldozers to flatten the area.
Action is being taken to resist this and activists from London2Calais and other groups are rushing out to Calais as a matter of urgency in order to give support to the refugees.
Added to this is the news coming out of Denmark that the Danish parliament are currently discussing whether to implement laws which will force asylum seekers in that country to give up money and belongings to “pay their way”. This is similar to treatment meted out to Jews who were being sent to the death camps during WW2.
It should be noted that Denmark is currently ruled by a coalition of a right wing “conservative” party and the Danish People’s Party, a far right group similar to UKIP.
So far, the British government has been silent, both on the new concentration camp and the debate in the Danish parliament.
London2Calais have called a “die-in” demonstration for this coming Saturday (16th Jan) at the Eurostar terminal at St. Pancras station. We also plan further actions both here and in France, where we will be joining with demos called by the refugees, in order to support the refugees and to keep up the pressure on the UK government to open the borders.
[…] plans for razing the southern half of the encampment occurred as authorities required migrants to clear one hundred square meters of shanties that were the sites of markets, shops, and community kitchens, to create space for one hundred […]
It’s a little hysterical to compare Denmark’s proposed policy to the treatment of Jews. Your points would come across better to the moderate reader if you didn’t use such hyperbole. I’d refrain from comparing anything to the holocaust unless it was truly warranted (such as starving of civilian populations in Syria or other extreme situations). The moving of refugees from their jungle to a new camp where fingerprints are introduced are tricky, a smart trick by the French government. They can process their asylum claims promptly reject them all and kick them out. As for the camp itself, let’s not call it a concentration camp. They aren’t being forced to work (not that I heard), barring the fingerprinting issue, they can come and go rather freely. They are refugees, but they are still in the country illegally. They are planning to get to the UK illegally and claim asylum, which I heard has very generous benefits (compared to other EU countries) to asylum seekers hence everyone wants to go there. Their reasons for doing so may be legal and warranted, such as fleeing, war, conflict and poverty, but their methods are still illegal. It may not be fair but such is the case. As for Denmark, they are giving people refugee asylum, and if they are granted they will be set up some sort of housing, perhaps a job and other government benefits. It’s meagre but it’s still a cost to Danish taxpayer. Telling refugees to pawn their cell phones to pay for less than one month’s rent seems harsh but the government also has to answer to Danish taxpayers too, which if I understand it pay an exorbitant amount of taxes. Right wing governments are popping up all over the place in Europe and the US because of the human migration crisis, not just from the Middle East but all over the world. Everyone who can is fleeing to rich western nations, which if we are honest aren’t doing so great either, we’ve got our own internal problems as well, but we are still miles ahead of a developing or third world nation. It is up to people like us to remain calm and not give in to hysteria of either persuasion. Our points will be heard and taken seriously if we present them honestly. The dearest wish of the French government right now is for UK to open the Euro tunnel right now and let migrants through, they are desperate to get these people off their hands. They are just waiting for the UK to say ‘I’ll take them.’
Thank you for writing your blog and highlighting human rights issues.