Clearing the "Jungle" at Calais is pointless

Yesterday, Tuesday, the police in France acted on the order of French minister of the interior Eric Besson to clear the "Jungle" - the encampment of asylum seekers and refugees seeking to pass into Britain from Calais. The Catholic newspaper La Croix writes in its leading article: "One thing is certain: the intervention in Calais won't solve things, it will merely shift the problem to a new location. Similarly, the closure of [refugee camp] Sangatte in 2002 didn't stem the flow of foreigners - aided by money-hungry traffickers - whose only dream is to escape from the misery or violence they face at home. The authorities fear that by tolerating such camps, cleaning them up and offering more humane facilities, they will benefit the mafia networks that organise the human trafficking and give false hopes to those eager to make the journey. ... The voices calling for more humane treatment ... don't deny that lasting solutions must be found to the flow of migrants."

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