Calais jungle
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Calais Jungle Jungle de Calais |
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|---|---|
| Refugee camp | |
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 Location in the city of Calais |
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| Coordinates: 50°58′6.96″N 1°54′20.8794″E / 50.9686000°N 1.905799833°ECoordinates: 50°58′6.96″N 1°54′20.8794″E / 50.9686000°N 1.905799833°E | |
| Population (October 2016 (before closure)) | |
| • Total | 8,143 |
| Census by Help Refugees | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+01) |
The Calais Jungle was a refugee and migrant encampment in the vicinity of Calais, France. Many who lived in this camp attempted to illegally enter the United Kingdom via the Port of Calais or the Eurotunnel by stowing away on lorries, ferries, cars, or trains travelling to the UK. The camp gained global attention during the European refugee and migrant crisis when the population of the camp grew and French authorities carried out evictions. The French evacuated 6,400 migrants from the encampment in 170 buses, starting on 24 October 2016, with the intent of resettling the migrants in different regions of France.
On 26 October 2016, French authorities announced that the camp had been cleared.
There have been various "jungle" camps around Calais since 1999, where migrants set up camp on unoccupied land, moving to new locations when camps are closed down by the French authorities. At the same time other migrants squat in abandoned buildings. In April 2015, The Guardian reported that the "official" and principal "jungle" in Calais was located at a former landfill site, five kilometers (three miles) from the centre of town, and occupied by 1,000 of the 6,000 migrants in Calais. According to the paper, it was one of nine camps then existing in Calais. This jungle for the first time had showers, electricity and toilets, plus one hot meal served per day, but without proper accommodation.
Conditions in the other camps are poor, typically without proper sanitary or washing facilities and accommodation consisting of tents and improvised shelters. Food was supplied by charity kitchens. The French authorities have faced a dilemma of addressing humanitarian needs without attracting additional migrants.
The jungle was located in a Seveso zone (regulated by Directive 82/501/EC). To solve this issue, government action was guided by the Treaty of Le Touquet of 4 February 2003, signed by former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, committing to halt illegal immigration to the UK via Calais.
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Wikipedia