The departmental council of Bouches-du-Rhône was called to order on March 8 by the administrative court of Marseille: it must update the list of young people posing as MNA and has 15 days to shelter them.
Several associations, among which MSF, Médecins du Monde or Cimade, had taken legal action in summary proceedings because, according to them, the department does not respect its obligation to shelter young migrants presenting themselves as minors. The court agreed with them.
“We have had young migrants hosted by MSF for months, it’s comfortable for the department”, explains Ludivine Erragne, in charge of legal advocacy for the French mission of Médecins sans frontières for unaccompanied children. The NGO began to welcome them when it realized that trying to treat them after their often traumatic journey was impossible without accommodation.
MSF then turned to the departmental councils concerned, in Bouches-du-Rhône but also in Île-de-France, Gironde, Indre-et-Loire… “When we tried everything we could with the department without result, we seize – alone or with other associations – justice ”, tells Ludivine Erragne.
And the decisions have all gone in the direction of associations. “The texts are clear on child protection: young people must be sheltered until a final decision of a judge” concerning their minority or majority, recalls the lawyer.
From the moment a young person presents himself as a minor, he must be taken into the care of child protection services and obtain emergency accommodation until his age is determined. If he is a minor, he remains supported by social assistance for children. If he is judged to be of legal age, the support stops.
Political battle
No question for her to therefore qualify the recourse to justice as a “political act”, emphasizes Ludivine Erragne, far from the turmoil that has shaken the city of Marseille since the conviction.
After the installation of tents in front of the town hall on March 2, the municipality hosted in a gymnasium the 44 young people on the street and attacked the failings of the department. The president of the latter, Martine Vassal (LR), loudly disputes the lack of involvement of its services on the issue of unaccompanied minors.
“Marseille and Provence, it is a land of welcome, not a land of abuse”, declared the president of CD13 at the microphone of France Bleu Provence. For her, young people not taken in charge are not minors and do not concern the department.
1/2 Regarding #migrants (#MNA), some prefer to promote human trafficking and exploit poverty. The irresponsibility of such behavior, compels the @ departement13 to mobilize 50 million euros per year, or 4,000 € per month and per migrant.
– Martine VASSAL (@MartineVassal) March 2, 2021
2/2 These resources could be made available to our inhabitants in extremely fragile situations. But some voluntarily ignore the suffering that already exists in our territory.
Stop the exploitation of distress!– Martine VASSAL (@MartineVassal) March 2, 2021
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