The French government plans to relocate migrants living on the streets of Paris away from the capital to the countryside. Therefore, the authorities want to present the city in the best light ahead of the Rugby World Cup later this year and the 2024 Summer Olympics.
A circular distributed to municipal officials for information suggests that the refugees be resettled in the camp in exchange for safe housing and a broader range of affordable social services. According to the plans of the Ministry of the Interior of France, the first 500 rural camps will be installed in 10 regions of the country.
Previously, the Parisian authorities admitted that they could not provide enough housing for the growing number of immigrants. Many asylum seekers have been living on the streets of the capital for several years, setting up tents near the town hall or sleeping in underground passages. Hostel owners in the city are reluctant to provide accommodation for the homeless, preferring to leave it free for bookings, especially ahead of the Rugby World Cup in September and the Summer Olympics in June.
The Parisian authorities admitted that they could not provide enough housing for the growing number of immigrants.
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As an incentive, the French government will provide housing in towns to those illegal immigrants who voluntarily register for the resettlement program and move away from the capital. And for those who have already received a decision on deportation, the Ministry of the Interior promises to “conduct an updated study of the current situation.”
President Macron “wants to punish the countryside” because such a measure would bring to the interior of France all the problems that Paris experiences, namely insecurity, communitarianism and changes in lifestyle, said the president of the National Group, Jordan Bardell.
“What do a Sudanese migrant and a villager in Creze have in common? [департамент в центре Франции – прим.ред.]? I don’t want French towns to look like Seine-Saint-Denis or Porte de la Chapelle [гетто в Парижском регионе – прим.ред.]. Today, according to all public opinion polls, the French do not want additional immigration,” Bardella said.
According to Macron himself, such a resettlement will lead to a better distribution of accepted foreigners, in particular, in rural areas that are losing population, where classes in schools and colleges are closed. According to the French leader, conditions in the towns will be much better than in the densely populated areas of Paris, which concentrate enormous economic and social problems.
