François Hollande
VOA News
September 26, 2016
French President Francois Hollande has vowed to shut down a migrant camp in Calais by the end of the year.
During a visit to the port of Calais Monday, Hollande said the migrant camp must be “definitely dismantled.” He shared plans to relocate the residents to other centers around the country where they could eventually apply for asylum.
The French president also called on British authorities to do their part in supporting newcomers.
“I am determined to see the British authorities play their part in the humanitarian effort that France is undertaking [in Calais],” Hollande said.
It was Hollande’s first visit to the camp as president where between 7,000 and 10,000 migrants have immigrated from Sudan and Afghanistan, and are currently living there.
“We are nearing a solution,” Hollande said, adding that the closing of the camp would be finalized in accordance with “the values of the Republic.”
Officials plan to move refugees to 164 centers before winter in France.
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