French farmers, truckers and police have all united in a major protest in Calais, France calling on President Hollande to announce specific plans for the demolition of the “Jungle” camp which houses around 7,000-9,000 refugees primarily from Northern Africa and the Middle East. Farmers and truckers have parked their trucks and tractors on major freeways effectively creating a blockade of the Calais port.
Banner reads Hollande, what are you doing?’ (@NickMartinSKY News) Hollande qu’est-ce que tu glandes? #Calaisblockade http://pic.twitter.com/8ghxbE9USi
— Gilles Klein (@GillesKLEIN) September 5, 2016
Truck drivers block roads in protest against Calais ‘Jungle’ https://t.co/yVrL0gqoiq http://pic.twitter.com/wp8yXNDXxO
— Ruptly (@Ruptly) September 5, 2016
Accorded to RT, violent crime within the camp has been on the rise and presents an increased danger to Calais residents. Reports have surfaced of some migrants attacking passing motorists, throwing various objects at windscreens and cutting trees in an attempt to hijack vehicles. There have also been reports of migrants threatening drivers with chainsaws and machetes.
One local Calais resident described the chaos to The New Observer as follows:
“They turn up in the center of the town, numbering 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, all over the place. They smash cars with iron bars. They assault people; they even assault children. They rob and they rape. What we endure is unimaginable.“
Tensions over the Calais jungle have grown after Great Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. The Touquet Agreement signed between France and Great Britain calls for border checks to be performed on the the French side of the English Channel. As such, 1,000’s of asylum seekers from North Africa and the Middle East seeking to reach Great Britain have been stopped in Calais.
That said, there is a rising tide of people in France now calling into question the validity of the Touquet Agreement in the wake of Great Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. A few weeks ago we reported on comments made by Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy calling for the destruction of the Calais Jungle and for “Britain to deal with asylum seekers in Britain.” Per Reuters:
“I’m demanding the opening of a center in Britain to deal with asylum seekers in Britain so that Britain can do the work that concerns them.” Nicolas Sarkozy told a political rally in Touquet in northern France.
Sarkozy said Britain should manage the asylum process, accepting those it wants on British territory and organizing charters to remove those who are rejected.
“The jungle should not be in Calais or anywhere else, because this is a republic and those with no rights to be here should return to their country,” Sarkozy said.
Below is a live feed of the protest underway in Calais.
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