The tragedy which unfolded in the English Channel last Wednesday, causing the death of twenty-seven migrants off the coast of Calais, plays the role of an electric shock between London and Paris. This Monday, after a Defense Council chaired by Emmanuel Macron, the Minister of the Interior announced a battery of measures aimed at further strengthening the fight against smuggling networks. Anxious to put an end to
"the international of horror",
Gérald Darmanin announced the doubling of the staff of the Central Office for the fight against irregular immigration and the employment of foreigners without title (Ocriest). Attached to the Border Police Directorate, this structure will grow from 123 to nearly 250 specialized agents in order to target the high end of the human trafficking spectrum.
On the model of the Anti-Narcotics Office (Ofast) which has proven its worth in the face of “narcos”, this new “antipasseur” task force will be reinforced by magistrates and Bercy agents to trace financial networks but also experts in maritime flows.
From next year, it will also have seven regional branches across France, including one in Coquelles, in Calaisis.
This Tuesday, the Minister of Justice should in turn announce a
"tightening of the criminal arsenal"
against smugglers.
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“In five years, the migratory pressure in the north of France has decreased since the number of migrants has been divided by fifteen,
observed Gérald Darmanin.
However, the passages of small boats increased by 185% in the same period, since the tunnel and the port of Calais are secured. ”
Noting that
"less than 5% of migrants in Dunkirk, Calais and Grande-Synthe apply for asylum in France because most want to go to Great Britain",
which explains the
"bankruptcy"
of the rehousing policy in France, the Minister of the Interior launched an appeal to the address of London.
"Whatever our disagreements, we will not change the geography,
" he insisted.
It is in our common interest to work together to try to resolve this issue.
But it takes two to cooperate.
Between the good intentions displayed in private and the public invectives, we must get out of the double talk and engage in serious work.
We are ready for it. "
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- Migrant crisis: "There will be no questioning" of the Touquet agreements, warns Gérald Darmanin
Frontex called to the rescue
Coming back to the method and sweeping away a proposal from Xavier Bertrand, Gérald Darmanin warned:
"There can be no questioning of the Touquet agreements, which have nothing to do with illegal immigration because they had been signed in the origin to manage the legal passages through the tunnel and the port, which have now become almost impassable. ”
Calling for a
"balanced agreement",
Darmanin wants to be clear:
"The United Kingdom must do its part of the work."
For this, he urges his English partners to
"agree to reopen legal channels for people who can legitimately claim to access its territory and who, for lack of regular roads, put their lives in the hands of criminal networks".
The British are therefore urged to reopen the possibility of transfers for unaccompanied minors present in the Union but also to invest more effectively in the fight against smuggling networks
.
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Shipwreck in the Channel: "urgent that there is an agreement between EU and GB" on migration
"The United Kingdom must come out of denial,"
grumbles in Paris.
The smugglers' activity does not stop on the coasts of Calais or Dunkirk. ”
As the Deputy Minister Marlène Schiappa recalled, who took stock of the
“humanitarian system”,
the 2,200 daily meals served to migrants cost 4 million euros per year to the state budget.
And 20 million more if we consider the 14,446 people - including 2,240 minors - sheltered in one year.
Sunday, after a European meeting in Calais, a plane chartered by the Frontex agency was called to the rescue to detect cross-Channel crossings, as were two helicopters and European satellites whose images are now available to the forces. of security.
With one obsession: to avoid turning the English Channel into an open coffin.
