Dismantling #Migrants camps in France: Complaint lodged to European Commission

Evictions and the destruction of slums which do not lead to shelter or housing provisions are not acceptable, argues Foundation Abbe Pierre.

That’s why, six months after the eviction of 280 people from a squat in Jean Jaures High School (Paris 19°), and in the context of a spectacular wave of evictions, Abbe Pierre has asked the European Commission to check how far European law has been violated by France.

The complaint concerns this eviction, as well as the living conditions of migrants, especially those who are asylum-seekers on high vulnerability (including pregnant women, children, disabled people) which has led them to enter a vacant institution. As the housing minister admitted: "This action didn’t happen under satisfying conditions," to such an extent that NGOs that were usually on the ground left after the eviction, because of the "lack of minimum conditions for enjoyment of fundamental rights and dignity of individuals".

After the eviction (during which several witnesses described "useless violence" by police forces), only 74 people would have directly enjoyed shelter - others were taken to police stations. Some have even have received orders to leave French territory.

Foundation Abbé Pierre aims to emphasize how policies and political orientations are bordered by European rules, which also protect human rights. Breaching these rules, even once and even in emergency cases, raises problems that are not only legal, but also humananitarian towards migrant people who are seeking protection to which they are entitled.

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