The French government and the Calais region are to furnish water and sanitation to migrants in the area, France’s highest administrative court, the Conseil D’Etat  ruled Monday. The county has said that it will also open two new reception centers about an hour from Calais in Bailleul and Troisva. These immigrants are primarily on their way to the UK but face rough conditions that were heavily criticized in the “Jungle” migrant camp  in October. France’s Interior Minister Gerard Collomb [official profile, in French] also called for an inquiry by the Human Rights Watch into the accusations that police have routinely used pepper spray on migrants in Calais. “We don’t want to repeat the mistakes of the past but we also want to handle the problems in Calais,” Collomb said, as he wishes to avoid the ramifications the country faced after “the Jungle” in October caused international criticism over lack of human rights.

France and the EU has faced heavy criticism and changes over the past year. As the new president Macron took office, he promised  to raise border security but sees the benefits of immigration and France helping those in need. In January Amnesty criticized Europe  for targeting Muslims and anti-immigration policies. In November the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said that the governments of France and the UK were failing in their obligation to protect refugee children in the Calais Jungle refugee camp.

As carried in  JURIST on 2/8/2017