Living In 'The Jungle,' Migrants In France Seek A Permanent Home - NPR

In the French port city of Calais, a few thousand people from the Middle East and North Africa live in shabby plastic tents. They've crossed the Mediterranean and traveled through Europe to arrive here.

About two-thirds of these people will try to enter Britain, while the remaining third are applying for asylum in France. In April, the French government said migrants would be tolerated at this site, known as "The Jungle."

UNHCR has been working in France and Calais for many years. The situation now is that there are approximately 3,000 people who live here. The majority are fleeing conflicts, violence, persecution. They are refugees. And they are in need of protection. So for UNHCR, it is very important that they have access to asylum. We've been calling on the French authorities to shorten the delays for people to apply. To file an application can take months.

The delay is long. The French government has already increased their capacity to shorten the delays. So now it is more or less two months, and then an additional three weeks to get access to accomodation.

People here are living in appalling conditions. They live under plastic sheeting. UNHCR helps authorities to coordinate refugee camps in other countries, and "The Jungle" is not a refugee camp. - Read More 

Living In 'The Jungle,' Migrants In France Seek A Permanent Home

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