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18 Apr 2002 By Marie-Francoise Borel in Berlin Following the death of a Kurdish man on April 15, in the French Red Cross centre for migrants at Sangatte, in northern France, Red Cross Societies of the European Union (EU) are calling upon their respective governments and the EU institutions to speed up the harmonization of laws on migrants and immigration. Twenty-five-year-old Ali Sharif died in a violent incident in which two other young Kurds were injured. The shelter at Sangatte, located near the entrance to the Channel tunnel, is run by the French Red Cross, at the request of and under contract with the French Government. Security at the centre is provided by the French government. It has a capacity of about 600 people, but currently some 1,500 migrants are sheltered there and several hundred continue to arrive each week, exacerbating tensions in the shelter. Prof. Marc Gentilini, President of the French Red Cross, said, "This death underlines once more the untenable and inhumane situation endured by migrants fleeing poverty, social and political instability in their homelands. Before the centre was opened in 1999, migrants, including women and children, were sleeping out in the streets. By providing these people with food and shelter, we are carrying out our humanitarian duty towards them, and we intend to continue", he underlined. Prof. Gentilini made his remarks while attending the 6th European Regional Red Cross and Red Crescent Conference in Berlin. Some 50 National Societies are gathered in the German capital to map out a comprehensive plan of humanitarian action on migration. In a statement issued to the press, the European National Societies expressed their sorrow at the death of Ali Sharif. The Chairman of the Berlin Conference, Prof. Knut Ipsen, stated : "Disparity in the legislation of European countries and the absence of harmonized rules in the European Union encourage the growth of human trafficking and are contributing to the migrations of these vulnerable people. European Union Red Cross Societies are calling upon their respective governments and the EU institutions to speed up the harmonization of these laws, respecting humanitarian principles." Representatives of the European Red Cross Societies feel situations like that in Sangatte are a European issue, and that a political solution needs to be found by European governments. "Migrants will attempt to get to Britain, whether or not there is an emergency shelter at Sangatte", notes Robbie Thomson, advisor on population movements for the International Federation. "These people will keep coming and since they have no international legal protection, someone needs to make sure they have access to basic food, shelter and care - that is the role of the Red Cross. But at the same time, solutions have to be found to avoid having thousands of irregular, or so-called illegal migrants, in vulnerable situations. What is amazing, and this is a credit to the work of the French Red Cross, is that there have not been more deaths or injuries in Sangatte." This year, eleven people, sheltered in Sangatte, died in attempts to reach Great Britain via the Channel tunnel. Several fights have broken out in Sangatte - at the end of 2001, the largest one left 29 people injured, but this is the first death ever in the centre. Earlier this year, the president of the French Red Cross had estimated the centre was "on the verge of an exlosion". Michel Derr, director of Sangatte, said in an interview to a French newspaper, that the migrants in Sangatte were now attempting to reach the United Kingdom via other ports along the Channel, from Dieppe to Zeebrugge. A number of migrants arriving in France are attracted to Great Britain because the British government has a more liberal interpretation of the 1951 Refugee Convention. It is easier for those arriving in Britain to obtain a daily stipend and the right to work after six months, than it is in France. Related links More on migration and the VIth European Conference in Berlin |
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