Quelle: greenleft
Tony Iltis
The situation is deteriorating in “the Jungle” — the informal settlement in the northern French port of Calais of refugees trying to reach Britain.
French police demolished the southern half earlier this year, yet the population is steadily rising and has surpassed 10,000. Neglected by governments and NGOs, the volunteers who provide food, clothing and other aid are receiving fewer donations to assist the growing population. Hunger has become prevalent, along with diseases caused by lack of sanitation.
Increased security to thwart the refugees’ attempts to cross the Channel and reach Britain has meant that refugees are remaining in the Jungle longer. This has fuelled a rise in mental health issues and violence between desperate refugees.
The growth of the Jungle, like the growth of equally squalid refugee camps and settlements in Greece — collectively housing about 60,000 people — is not because the number of refugees in Europe (about 0.5% of the population) is too high for them to be properly accommodated. Rather, it is the result of racist policies by national governments creating bottlenecks.
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