...it's just the rest of the article that is a tissue of lies.
Ian 'Dim' Sparks, co-author of that other tissue of lies 'Calais migrants ambush holiday Britons at knifepoint in terrifying 'highway robberies'',* has just published an article headed 'Bulldozing of Calais Jungle immigration camp was a 'publicity stunt aimed at placating the British public', based on an interview with Vincent Lenoir of the Salam association** carried out by the French weekly news magazine l'Express in an article 'L'emprise des passeurs s'est renforcée sur les migrants' ('The influence of the smugglers on the migrants has increased'). When I say "based on", I mean it in the loosest possible sense of the phrase.
The Mail claims to have extracted a series of M. Lenoir's 'quotes' from the l'Express article, which it then proceeds to use to bash the French with and ultimately M. Lenoir and his humanitarian efforts in supporting the Calais migrants, all to push its own anti-foreigner agenda.
Here are the quotes it claims are from M. Lenoir:
"publicity stunt aimed at placating the British public" (from the headline) and another version of the same thing - [The destruction of the Jungle migrant camp in Calais aimed at stemming the tide of illegal immigration to the UK was a publicity stunt to] "placate the British public";
[The operation to bulldoze the squalid woodland camp was branded a] "total failure";
"Our immigration minister Eric Besson's claim that destroying the Jungle would solve the problem is false";
"Nicolas Sarkozy made the same claim when as interior minister he closed down Sangatte in 2002, and promised we'd never have migrants on the Channel coast again";
"We estimate there are around 400 migrants in Calais";
"But other camps are also springing up elsewhere, even in Belgium";
"And more seriously, the people smuggling gangs are back too, when Mr Besson had claimed his policy would put a halt to their activities";
"The only purpose of the Jungle operation was to appease the public in England. It was an Anglo-French publicity stunt that had no effect at all."
And for good measure, they threw in: Mr Lenoir's claims come as Calais residents are becoming increasingly frustrated at the French government's lack of action to take their town's migrant problem.
And here is our translation of the article, see if you can find where the Mail's quotes come from?
England remains their dream. The foreigners in irregular situation have come back around Calais, 4 months after the evacuation of their settlements by the police. The response of Vincent Lenoir, association Salam.
Salam helps illegal migrants in the form of distribution of food or medicines. On September 22, 2009, a vast police operation ended in the closure of the "jungle", the place of concentration near Calais of these people waiting for passage to England. "The problem is solved," said Eric Besson, Minister of Immigration and National Identity in Le Parisien, 12 January. Fabrication (fantasy) replied Vincent Lenoir.
How many migrants today wait in Calais for passage to England?
We estimate there are about 400. We distribute a little more than 320 meals, but we know that all do not come to stock up with us. One year ago, we counted 600 migrants. During the summer of 2009 a peak at 1,400 was recorded. But the Minister Eric Besson chooses the figures today which suit him. I know the night of the police intervention in the "jungle", we served 200 meals, and the next day onwards we have been seeing newcomers. The migrants want at all costs to get to England, a police operation will not be sufficient to discourage them.
Are the places where they gather the same as before?
Calais remains the main place. But it is true that we have seen more and more small settlements that nobody knows about. I have an example: we just discovered between Calais and Boulogne, about twenty kilometres away, a new place almost by accident. A dispute between residents there provoked the intervention of gendarmes. Belgium is in turn affected. The worst? The influence of smugglers has increased amongst the migrants. Yet the minister assured us that his action would make the situation worse for them.
What do you think was the real meaning of the operation?
In my opinion it was primarily intended for the British public opinion. It was a kind of communication operation outsourced to France by England. Three British channels also broadcast live the police action September 22, 2009 with support from helicopters! The Governments staged a display of their firmness. In 2002, Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy had done the same thing in Sangatte (Pas-de-Calais) and we had promised never to hear about it again! [i.e. it would be the end of the situation]
Your humanitarian work, is it more difficult to conduct?
No. We have agreements with the city of Calais and the region. They have improved the reception conditions. So a building was built where we distribute food. The place is also accommodation in case of severe cold.
So, let's have a quick look at the Mail's rather slack translation.
"Publicity stunt aimed at placating the British public" - clearly a very rough paraphrase. Yes, he did say that it was aimed at British public opinion but the words (in French of course) for 'stunt' and 'placating' did not pass his lips, and we shall be asking him to confirm this.
"Total failure" - nowhere to be seen.
"Our immigration minister Eric Besson's claim that destroying the Jungle would solve the problem is false" - a very free rendering of ""The problem is solved," said Eric Besson, Minister of Immigration and National Identity in Le Parisien, 12 January. Fabrication (fantasy) replied Vincent Lenoir."
"Nicolas Sarkozy made the same claim when as interior minister he closed down Sangatte in 2002, and promised we'd never have migrants on the Channel coast again" - not too many liberties taken there.
"We estimate there are around 400 migrants in Calais" - short of adding an extra zero, not even Spark could get that wrong.
"But other camps are also springing up elsewhere, even in Belgium" - yes Lenoir mentions Belgium and the fact that they "have seen more and more small settlements that nobody knows about", including one "we just discovered between Calais and Boulogne", but "camps ... springing up elsewhere" is pure invention. This is the translation of a magazine article not a piece of prose poetry!
"And more seriously, the people smuggling gangs are back too, when Mr Besson had claimed his policy would put a halt to their activities" - very inventive translation this one: "The worst? The influence of smugglers has increased amongst the migrants. Yet the minister assured us that his action would make the situation worse for them." He didn't sat "put a halt" to the smugglers and he never said or implied that the smugglers had gone away. You can't have it both ways Sparky, if the clearance of the 'Jungle' drove the traffickers away, then that's one up for Besson. If he didn't, then they can hardly have come back.
"The only purpose of the Jungle operation was to appease the public in England. It was an Anglo-French publicity stunt that had no effect at all." - What he actually said (allowing for our poor translation: "In my opinion it was primarily intended for the British public opinion. It was a kind of communication operation outsourced to France by England." Nowhere doe Lenoir say that the destruction of the 'Jungle' had no effect what so ever. To argue that is a gross distortion of what he said.
And the last bit about: "Mr Lenoir's claims come as Calais residents are becoming increasingly frustrated at the French government's lack of action to take their town's migrant problem." Spark must be even more rabid than we have always taken him to be to come away from having read the l'Express article and thought that that was what Lenoir was arguing. Vincent as a representative of the Calaisiens, in answer to the question "Your humanitarian work, is it more difficult to conduct (since the clearance of the 'Jungle')?" has one word to say. "Non!"
D- This is a very poor attempt at your French homework Spark. You really should be doing much better by now and I am seriously thinking of not letting you sit your 'O' Level at the end of the year. Have you thought about switching to the creative writing course?
* NB This article was first published on 21 July (see) but was the subject of a complaint (along with a large number of other Mail articles) on the paper's coverage of Calais. The paper had to publish a 'clarification' ( see foot of the article).
** One of the organisations that provides humanitarian aid to the migrants in Calais.
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