French propose new refugee centre

A refugee outside the Sangatte holding camp near Calais, northern France

CALAIS, France (CNN) -- The French authorities are considering opening a second holding centre for refugees amid growing tensions over the number of illegal immigrants trying to cross the English Channel.

The existing Red Cross holding centre, at Sangatte, near Calais -- established in 1999 -- currently holds an estimated 1,200 refugees.

It was only designed to accommodate 600, however, and French authorities argue that a new centre is needed to house the spill-over.

The proposed 20-acre (eight-hectare) camp will be in the grounds of a psychiatric hospital at Bailleul, 23 miles (37km) from the Channel port of Dunkirk. Like Sangatte, it will be run by the Red Cross.

"Government officials have been in touch with us recently to assess if we are a suitable location for a new immigrant centre," Dominique Colas, the hospital's Deputy Director told Britain's Daily Mail newspaper.

"We are one of several sites being considered. Bearing in mind the nature of the work we do we would not be opposed to the opening of any facility to help people in distress."

The proposed location of the new camp, however, has provoked anger in the UK.

A spokesman for the British government, which has already called for the closure of the Sangatte camp, told CNN that the siting of the new camp was "a matter for the French authorities."

Opposition politicians, however, have complained that its proximity to a Channel port will merely encourage refugees to try and cross over to England.

There has, over the last year, been a substantial increase in the number of illegal immigrants crossing from northern France into the UK, most of them originating from Afghanistan and the Kurdish regions of Turkey and Iraq.

Refugees from the Sangatte camp have been involved in daily attempts to cross the Channel, usually via the 37-mile Channel tunnel, whose entrance, at Coquelles, is just one mile from the camp.

'Tolerant country'

British Home Office statistics show that whereas in December 2000 only 27 refugees managed to pass through the tunnel, by July 2001 this figure had risen to 808.

This does not include those who are apprehended at the French side of the tunnel -- 100 of them alone on Saturday night -- nor those who try to cross the water by other means, such as on ferries or by motorised dinghy.

One Turkish couple were recently rescued while trying to paddle across the Channel on a lilo.

"There are many reasons why refugees wish to come to the UK in particular," Peer Baneka, spokesman for the London-based European Council on Refugees and Exiles, told CNN.

"Some have friends or family already in Britain, others simply perceive it as a particularly tolerant, democratic country.

"Probably the main reason is that the UK recognises as refugees people who are persecuted not just by the state, but by non-state entities as well.

"The Taliban, for instance, are a non-state entity, which is why you get a lot of Afghanis trying to get to Britain. France, Germany and Austria simply don't recognise them as refugees."

The UK government has introduced increasingly stringent measures to try to stem the tide of immigrants.

In April 2001 they brought in the Civil Penalty, making hauliers liable for a £2000 ($2,910) fine for each illegal immigrant found on their vehicles.

From October 2001 the penalty is due to be extended to Channel tunnel operator Eurotunnel, which has already installed more than £3 million worth of security measures at each end, including razor wire, 300 security guards, heat sensors and infrared cameras.

The flow of immigrants, however, shows little sign of abating, a situation that is leading to increasing tension both in France and the UK.

The mayors of Sangatte, Coquelles, Frethun and Peuplingues recently joined local farmers in complaining about the number of asylum seekers on their streets, while the UK has witnessed an increase in attacks on immigrants.

The absence of any coherent pan-European policy on refugees, combined with the determination of the asylum seekers themselves, means that this tension is unlikely to recede in the foreseeable future.

"People are desperate and simply closing the borders is not going to solve the problem," says Baneka.

"Countries need to become more respectful of the needs of refugees, and to work together to develop cross-border solution."