Old Calais Jungle : “do not show weakness because the smugglers are still here” – Europe1

REPORTAGE

In Calais (in the North), two months after the evacuation of the Jungle, a important device remains in place to deter the return of migrants. The prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais, wished to deny this week the rumours of a re-enactment of several camps in the wild in the region of Calais. And even if there was here and there a few attempts at passages to the Great Britain, the migrants have practically disappeared.

A permanent vigilance. If the migrants are political parties, the police, himself, has hardly budged. They are more than 400 CRS on-site. Patrols, anti-squat, sometimes assisted by a helicopter, watching the houses and warehouses abandoned. In the vicinity of the bypass port, the wall of anti-intrusion has been built in spite of the use of the town hall. The purpose of this device is clear : discourage any attempt to return to the camp.

“It is important not to let your guard down too quickly.” “It is important not to show weakness, because the smugglers, themselves, are still there,” explains Fabienne Buccio, préfète of the Pas-de-Calais. “They watch what we do, and Calais will always remain attractive because of its proximity with the United Kingdom. It is important not to let your guard down too quickly.”

Since the passage of migrants is a lucrative business. For 1.000 or 2.000 euros, sometimes more, these smugglers guided the migrants in the port to circumvent the controls to the boarding of the ferries. The groups that are most organized are the Albanians : they are staying in the hotels in the city centre and in the evening, we saw lurking in the parking lots of the port area.

miners ready for anything. If there is no massive return of migrants, the associations collect always some minors whose cases have been rejected by the United Kingdom. They then try to cross the English Channel by their own means. These young people are willing to risk their lives to join their families.

“These young people do not have the financial means to pay the smugglers so they just try to pass by their own means,” said Christian Salome of the Auberge des migrants. “What I fear is that we have a lot of deaths as last Saturday, where a youth fell out of a truck. I think that is the risk.” In order to avoid that migrants put themselves in danger to go to England, the associations are calling for the creation of a centre of permanent home in Calais.