Displaced group evicted from Unicorn living space
Reported on: 04.06.2021 by Kuwaiti and Iraqi exiles
One person was beaten with a baton. The people didn't consent to get on the buses, they didn't know where they were going.
One person was beaten while still in his tent. Someone lost their phone.
A person was threatened by the police, the police threatened to gas him.
An Iraqi exiled person lived for five in Germany, he had to leave Germany because his asylum application was refused. He cannot go home because he is in danger. He is afraid of being persecuted. He just wants to find a place where he will be safe, where he can start his life over.
"If it weren't for the associations we would have already died"
A person had just received money from his family, the money was seized by law enforcement the next day because of the eviction.
The FDO prevented people from urinating, one person insisted, and eventually two policemen had to escort him and monitor him to use the toilet.
People in exile do not understand why the police do not leave them alone, why they cannot go to England.
Most people told us that they were taken to different places, they had no choice but to go up. They told us that: "when you have no rights, you have to do what the police says".
They were in a hotel for 2 days, then they came back to Calais. Some of them were taken far, hundreds of kilometers from Calais, to Toulouse, Lyon ...
Displaced group evicted from Unicorn living space
Reported on: 04.06.2021 by Sudanese exiles
A 14-year-old minor was gassed by police during Friday's eviction. The police said "this is France, this is not an Arab country". The police forced him out of his tent, they pushed him. He was brought to Marseille.
Law enforcement officials prevented him from retrieving his personal belongings. He saw a person being pushed and then beaten by the police. Others were gassed, beaten, then slashed and gassed his tent while the person was still inside. He was brought to Marseille. Law enforcement officials seized the tent, not letting him get his things back after he twice asked to be able to get his things back.
One person wanted to locate his medication, but the police prevented him. The police said "you have two minutes to get out".
One person was woken up by the police with a kick on a tent, he said he wanted to stay here. The police beat him with batons, grabbed him by the collar of his T-shirt and dragged him to the bus by force.
Another person was patted down by the police, the police took € 2,000 from his pockets. They wouldn't let him take back his personal belongings. He lost everything because of the eviction. He was taken far, to Nice.
The people returned to Calais two or three days later. They took the train, they were checked several times. They must have taken several trains.
Displaced person living in Grande-Synthe
Reported on: 02.06.2021
I live in the informal living space behind the Jesuit farm in Grande-Synthe.
On the night of May 31 to June 1, 2021, I left my home with thirteen other people in a car to try to get to England. We planned to hit the beach to try to cross the Channel. We left around midnight. After driving, our car broke down. When this happened we were at this location:
A white car stopped, and I saw 3 policemen get out of the car. I opened the door and as I got out of the car one of the officers hit me. I didn't have time to talk to him. He did not say anything to me. He immediately hit me with his pistol in my right ear. I fell to the ground and my ear started to bleed. I remember there were three policemen in blue uniforms. The policeman who hit me was tall and white in colour.
The police then called for backup. More policemen arrived, I can't remember exactly how many there were. The police told us to remain seated, without moving. No policeman notified the emergency room when I was badly injured. We sat there for about 30/40 minutes. The other people who were with me in the car were not physically injured, I was the only one who was hit by the policeman.
The police then left with the other inhabitants of the place of life in Grande-Synthe and brought them back. I stayed with my friend. I called the Utopia association. They came to get me and they took me to the Dunkirk hospital center. We arrived at the emergency room at 2:33 am. At the hospital, the medical staff cleaned my wound, then the Utopia team brought me back to the Grande-Synthe jungle. I didn't want to stay in the hospital because I didn't feel comfortable.
I returned to the hospital the next day, June 1st at 1:10 pm. A doctor treated me.
This policeman hit me for no reason, I would like my rights to be recognised because what he did to me is truly inhuman.
Displaced person living in Grande-Synthe
Reported on: 13.11.2020
“It's not right, but they don't listen. They say they have this court document, I don't know what it means. They cut down all the tents and they take us away... and some policemen say racist things, they do bad things with us. At the moment, they're sending us to the hotel, but I don't like the hotel.”
Displaced person living in Calais
Reported on: 11.11.2020
“We are in a dangerous situation. But we are not dangerous.”
Displaced person living in Calais
Reported on: 11.11.2020
“The police don't want to leave us alone in the jungle. If they won't let us into the jungle, where can we go? We are refugees. The police don't respect refugees. We are humans, not animals. They think we are animals because we are refugees. We respect everyone because our parents taught us respect.”
Displaced person living in Calais
Reported on: 11.11.2020
“A week ago, my friends and I were next to the playground around 8am, the police came and told us to leave and never come back. Because of this, we had trouble sleeping, we couldn't find a safe and quiet place to sleep.”
(translated from Arabic)
Displaced person living in Calais
Reported on: 11.11.2020
“I am from Afghanistan and have been living in the jungle in Calais for six months. People's behaviour towards refugees in France is positive and I am grateful to them, but I have a problem with the police. The French police have aggressive behaviour. In winter, it is cold, but they continue to harass and evict people. What we expect from the government is to put an end to this police behaviour so that people can have peace.”
Displaced person living in Calais
Reported on: 11.11.2020
“I am Chadian. I have been given permission to say what I want to say regarding the situation here, people like us.
I am an asylum seeker because there is a situation that made me leave my home. We arrived here in France, but we were not allowed to live here in France, so everything is complicated; you sleep in the street. We lack a lot of things but we have no choice.
They informed us that we have to leave the territory, otherwise we are sent home. if we hadn't had a problem, we wouldn't be here. If we came here - we asked the government for help - it's because we really need help. That's why we're here. If you want to send us home, that is to say, you who want to kill us. It's not our government, not our family, because we ran away from death.
We came here... We thought if we came here we'd be safe, but it’s actually quite the opposite. So if there is something that you can help us with - all we ask for is help. We live as human beings too: we need freedom and to live as everyone else.”
Displaced person living in Calais
Reported on: 20.09.2020
“On several occasions during the last few weeks, riot policemen were taking a small isolated road next to the place where people in displacement were living; they sprayed tear gas on people who were walking, through the window of their vehicle without explanation or provocation.”