Bulldozed homes, dashed hopes of Calais migrants

Their situation can be described by the proverb ‘out of the frying pan into the fire’. Their past was gloomy and future appears to be dark. They are trapped between hope and despair. They are the migrants at Calais ‘Jungle’ camp.
On Monday, over 1,000 migrants rode buses out of the ‘Jungle’ as French authorities kicked off an operation to dismantle the Calais camp that has become a symbol of Europe’s refugee crisis.
And on Tuesday, France began the demolition of the notorious camp as second batch of migrants boarded buses under a massive operation to clear the squalid settlement.
Some 1,200 police officers —some in riot gear—were on hand as several hundred migrants queued to be put on coaches for shelters across France.
“We don’t know yet where we are going, but it will obviously be better than the Jungle, which was made for animals not humans,” said Wahid, a 23-year-old Afghan.
Around 6,000-8,000 people had been living in dire conditions in one of Europe’s largest shantytowns in the hope of sneaking into Britain. The ramshackle camp in the sand dunes of northern France has been home to migrants from Afghanistan, Sudan, Eritrea, Syria and elsewhere who made harrowing journeys to escape wars, dictators or grinding poverty. Now the French authority seems to be pouring cold water on the aspirations of hundreds of migrants who dreamed of building new lives in Britain.
After treacherous journeys across land and seas, paying smugglers along the way, most reach a dead end in Calais, unable to find a way across the English Channel.
The camp is near to where thousands of lorries drive on to ferries or trains heading for Britain, just 35 kilometres across the Channel.
And despite the dangers, desperate migrants try to break into the vehicles and hide. Those with money pay people smugglers to arrange the crossing.
Rather than apply for asylum in France, most have preferred to head to Britain for a variety of reasons. Some have family networks there, while others are attracted to Britain’s reputation as a more economically vibrant country. The English language is also a big draw. In the face-saving attempt, Britain has taken in nearly 200 teenagers over the past week, mostly children with relatives in Britain, but the transfers were put on hold.
Hundreds more have been interviewed by British immigration officials and many are still awaiting a reply. They will be provisionally housed with other minors in containers in a part of the Jungle where families had been living.
More than one million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Asia and Africa poured into Europe last year. It created schism across the 28-nation bloc and fuelled the rise of far-right parties, including France’s own National Front.
Although France says they will spend 25 euros a day on each migrant in the reception centers, it is unclear clear how long they will be allowed to stay. And what will be their fate afterwards. It gives rise to a sense of uncertainty among the migrants.
There seems to be no long-term plan to rehabilitate them. Every country is divesting itself of the migrant issue citing different regulations. There are those in France who were finger-printed in some other country while they entered the EU. Now they either have to go back to the country where they got finger-printed or face deportation.
Officials have said that there will be a solution for each migrant — though expulsion may be among them for those who don’t qualify for asylum. There are many who risk being sent back to the hell from where they escaped enduring the worst. Undoubtedly, the Jungle has become a symbol of Europe’s failure to resolve an unprecedented migrant influx. It has proved a litmus test for the West.