The stick, do you remember that? On Calais, Dunkirk, and the Channel

“If we allow our humanity to be undermined by allowing people to drown at sea on our coasts, or by allowing lifesaving healthcare to be withheld, we risk turning our backs on the most vulnerable as well as the principles by which we provide healthcare”.                                                                         Lucy Jones, Director of Programmes   Today, around 600 people live in informal camps in Calais, and around 800 in Dunkirk. On a daily basis, they are evicted from these makeshift settlements, the police take their tents and sometimes even remove personal objects such as food, medication, and phones. People are exhausted, stressed, angry, and because of the constant evictions feel like they have no personal space in which to retreat, rest and be at peace. Many suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) because of their journey or their life back home. They are forced to live life in limbo, with little support and in very difficult circumstances. We conducted a survey in Dunkirk in March 2019, and we found that: Nearly 60% of responders say they don’t have sufficient access to drinking water. 80% don’t have access to a shower and 87% don’t have access to toilets More than 50% report that they haven’t received medical care when they experienced a health issue Around 52% said they don’t have enough to eat Almost 69% say they don’t know the emergency number t...
Source: Doctors of the World News - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Uncategorised Source Type: news