PARIS TO BUILD ITS FIRST REFUGEE CAMP

Paris will soon set up its first urban camps for
refugees -- one in mid-October and another later
in the year -- the city's mayor announced
Tuesday, just hours after an uninhabited migrant
camp was reportedly set on fire south of the
city.
Mayor Anne Hidalgo gave details of the city's
plans for two camps, the first of which is being
built on the northern fringe of the city -- primarily
to accommodate men for short-term stays. It
has 400 beds and will have 200 more in the near
future, she said.
It would also offer services to homeless newly
arrived migrants, such as social care, legal aid,
health and psychological care, and information
on where else to find shelter, Hidalgo said in a
statement.
"In the past two years, Paris has experienced an
unprecedented flow of migrants. Every day,
dozens of migrants arrive on our territory,"
Hidalgo said, adding that the city has already
welcomed around 15,000 refugees.
"However, makeshift camps continue to emerge
in the public space. They are unhealthy and
dangerous, and the migrants are living under
shameful conditions. This has also become a
source of disturbance for residents in the
neighborhood."
A second camp in the city's southeast is under
construction in an old waterworks site and will
open in late 2016, Hidalgo said. It would be
dedicated to serving the most vulnerable groups,
particularly families, single women and children,
she said.
Migrant camp ablaze
Hidalgo had announced the camps earlier this
year, but on Tuesday painted a picture of what
they would look like.
Her comments come as an empty camp set up
for migrants in Essonne, south of Paris, was
seen ablaze overnight. French media reports
suggest the fire was deliberately set in the area,
where there has been fierce opposition to the
camp.
Hidalgo described the action as a "disgrace,"
according to CNN affiliate BMFTV.
"Whoever did this should be incredibly ashamed
of themselves. If they think this is what our
country's value are about, they are wrong. It is
despicable, deplorable, and criminal to act this
way. I hope that we will find them and sanction
them," she said.
The plans for the camps also come after French
Interior Minister Bernard Cazaneueve pledged to
close down the notorious camp in Calais known
as "The Jungle," where migrants are still living in
the thousands in squalid conditions.
The new camps will be run by international
charity Emmaus, which says one of its main
objectives is to organize solidarity by pooling
resources between member organizations.


Source :cnn
Edited by DANIEL IKECHUKWU EKWUNIFE