an association helps hundreds of homeless people settle in a disused school – RT in French

On social networks, the association United Migrants claimed the “citizen requisition of vacant premises” in a disused school in the south of the capital. The prefecture and social services are in discussion to resolve the situation.

Some 200 people began the occupation of a disused school in the south of Paris on February 4, on the initiative of an association for the aid of migrants and asylum seekers. Quoted by AFP, Philippe Goujon, mayor of the 15th arrondissement assured that these people, around 150 men and 40 women and children, had “broke and entered in the middle of the night” in the school of Saints-Anges, an establishment private sector which closed its doors last summer.

“Citizen requisition of vacant premises”

During the maneuver, the United Migrants association commented on its action on social networks, noting the presence of “300 people of various nationalities”. “These 300 people are homeless while 370,000 homes are left vacant in and around Paris. Having exhausted all the temporary housing solutions with 115 and other organizations and in order to avoid sleeping in indignity for the umpteenth time on the street, they made a citizen requisition of these vacant premises, ”wrote the collective on Facebook, calling on his community as well as the inhabitants of the neighborhood to come and show their support on the spot.

The association explained that they needed water, food and blankets. “Housing is not a crime. The right to accommodation is non-negotiable. It is unacceptable that thousands of people are left on the streets,” concluded United Migrants.

As AFP reports, a member of the association present at the scene was arrested by the police and placed in police custody for degrading the premises. According to the mayor of the arrondissement, the prefecture of Ile-de-France, the police prefecture and the social services of the city of Paris are in discussion to resolve the situation.

Ecole des Saints-Anges was a private Catholic school under contract. It closed its doors 18 months ago due to a dispute with the owner of the premises.