“We kicked the house out”: a rally in front of the Côte-d’Or prefecture against the expulsion of two families

“We put the house on the sidewalk!” : the slogan of the activists of the Human Rights League on Friday evening, November 22, during a rally in front of the Prefecture of Côte-d'Or. They were around fifty to mobilizedespite the cold, to protest against the putting on the street of two familiesoriginally from Djibouti and Georgia. On Wednesday morning, they were expelled from the reception center for asylum seekers where they were staying, because their asylum application was rejected. Three adults and four children, aged 9 to 12, found themselves on the street, without an accommodation solution.points out the League for Human Rights.

So to denounce this situation “inhumane”, the demonstrators staged a “house” on the sidewalk of the Prefecture from Côte-d'Or to Dijon, with a table, two chairs, children's clothes and games, “since we’re putting people outside, then we’re putting the house outside!”explains Agnès Denis, the activist who had the idea of ​​this production. The situation of these two families affected her greatly: “I have often met people who lived in precarious conditions, in squats or on the street, and it’s unbearable! In winter, it’s even worse, it’s worse than ever”she elaborates. “I have a roof, I have heating, so I'm very lucky, and I think that we should all be there to say that we don't agree, and to share what we we have to share. I am a grandmother, I am 63 years old, and if I had children or grandchildren to save, I would cross the borders to give them food. We cannot continue like this! we're bringing the whole planet down.”

“Such a level of brutality and dehumanization”, for the Human Rights League

According to the Human Rights League, these two families recently arrived in France to flee dangerous situations in their country of origin, and their children are in school. For Paul Garrigues, co-president of the Human Rights League in Dijon, putting these families on the street goes against the rights of children : “Until now, when people were no longer in a system, we did not put them on the street without at least worrying about where they were going to sleep at night, especially when there are children and we is in the middle of winter”he points out. “We have never seen this, such a level of brutality and dehumanization! Finally, there is still someone, somewhere but it can only be in the State services, who decided that we could put children on the street when it starts to freeze, without asking the slightest question about the danger they are in, because it is a real danger. One of the children had just come out! 'hospital.”

“France is still a signatory to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child! There are universal and basic human rights, especially when it comes to children, which must take precedence over any consideration of the administrative situation people”he believes. Since Wednesday, these two families are hosted by the SOS Refoulement association : “We did what the State should do: we took money from the association's budget, money that we don't really have anyway, to find them temporary accommodation in an AirBNB for the weekend, to prevent them from sleeping outside But after that, we won't be able to anymore! the means to replace the responsibilities of the State”says Paul Garrigues.

Contacted by France Bleu Bourgogne, the Prefecture of Côte-d'Or responded that “the two families have had their asylum request rejected and are therefore in an irregular situation on French territory, which means that they are required to leave the accommodation they occupied“, and that a device “voluntary return assistance was offered to them but they did not follow up”. The Prefecture adds that “these families can call 115” to find emergency accommodation.