Paris- It seems that the closer the Olympic Games get to… ParisShortcomings and problems that worry the organizers have come to light, including reactions against the expulsion of more than 3,200 students from their student residences affiliated with the Regional Center for University and School Business “Crous” during the period Olympiad.
About 100 students began packing their belongings on Thursday to move them to other residences, while 100 others demonstrated in front of the Ministry of Sports headquarters in protest against the seizure decision and the government’s claims that 30% of “Cross” rooms remain empty every summer.
In total, 12 student residences will be requisitioned in the Ile-de-France region this summer, to accommodate public employees, including firefighters, police officers and caregivers, who will come as reinforcements to supervise and secure the sporting event.
The office of the Minister of Sports, Olympic and Paralympic Games, Amelie O’Dea Castera, confirmed to Al Jazeera Net that “information and decisions regarding Cross Housing fall within the responsibility of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.” When asked by the Ministry and Cross, they declined to comment.
Denied takeover
This issue began last May when the students received an email from Cross in which they were informed that “accommodation will be available to the Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games during the months of July and August. The rental period will be reduced to 10 months, and the residents must vacate their places.” their residence no later than June 30, 2024.”
This announcement, in its form and content, is considered “legal” according to the so-called “unstable” lease contracts issued by the Regional Center, but it presents a distorted picture of solidarity with students in France It exposes the government to a barrage of criticism.
A number of French politicians have expressed their solidarity with the students in this crisis, including the representative of the “Proud France” party, Jerome Legavere, who described the decision to expel the students as “unjust and shameful,” and urged Minister Odea Castera to reverse her decision “because she bears direct responsibility in this matter.” The issue is in the absence of other alternatives for these students.”
In his interview with Al Jazeera Net, Le Gavre pointed out that “Paris is not yet ready to host the Olympic Games because we know that transportation will witness complete chaos, in addition to the poor condition of hospitals and the encouragement of residents of the capital and its suburbs to travel to other provinces.”
In this context, Maryam, a member of a student union, said that what is happening is “a scandal by all standards because the French president’s government Emmanuel Macron It has been making young people vulnerable for years. Today, they want to evict us from our accommodation to provide suitable accommodation for the Olympics.”
She added, “They told us that they plan to provide compensation worth 100 euros to each student, but nothing has been confirmed yet and this amount is not worth anything compared to the millions of euros that were paid in advertisements.”
Blackmail and coercion
For his part, the general director of Cross Paris, Thierry Piguet, told local media that it is important “that the first wave of students leave now, because places have already become available,” insisting that “it is better not to wait until the last minute.”
French MP Danielle Simone considered this “blackmail” and “real filth” and does not take into account the students’ circumstances and the importance of this period during which they are preparing for exams, noting that it is “a truly scandalous policy that crushes the future of our country instead of providing all support to these young people to successfully obtain their degrees.”
Simone also pointed out in her interview with Al Jazeera Net that the government’s announcements in this regard remain vague, because “they have no guarantee of obtaining another housing if they leave their rooms, so they are blackmailed and told: The sooner you leave, the better your chances will be of obtaining good housing, but if you wait “In the history of the Olympics, you probably won’t find anything.”
The representative from the “Proud France” party added, “The government’s priority must focus on ensuring that young people stay in their rooms and think of other alternatives to solve the housing problem during the Olympic period away from the students, because it is not their duty to pay the price,” likening the Olympic Games to “a party for sponsors.” “And a machine for accelerated social expulsion.”
A student participating in Saturday’s demonstration considered that she was in a better position than many: “This is my last year of study and I will not need university housing, but I am very upset because I am forced to leave my room before my graduation day on the last day of June.”
She indicated in her interview with Al Jazeera Net that she met with the head of Cross in the Creteil region, “but everything that is said to us is verbal and not documented on paper, so we are lost and do not find anything that reassures us, and even those who want to move have no idea where, when and how.”
manipulate
Since the announcement of the eviction, a number of students have confirmed the arrival of technicians and agents to carry out repairs in the residences, things they have been demanding for months without any response from the Cross administration.
One of the students told Al Jazeera Net, “I am not confident that the government will provide alternatives to housing for all those affected. I used cold water in my room for 6 months, and when I received the notice to leave, I suddenly got hot water. The Minister of Sports does not respect us, and I want to tell her: We are human beings. “We are students, we are the future of France.”
He added that he sent several emails about water leakage, power outages, and the deterioration of the student housing infrastructure, but he did not receive any response from the administration, adding, “Now they are carrying out the necessary work to receive employees in these places, which makes us feel disrespected for our previous demands.”
In turn, French MP Le Gavre confirmed this, saying, “Everyone must know that the students have been suffering in silence for years from unhealthy residential conditions, and no official in the ministry has listened to their demands, which today is undertaking urgent reforms to accommodate police personnel after the students were forced to leave their place of residence a month ago.” Or two months from the start of the Olympics.”
Because of these reforms, some students claim that the announcement of increased rents for these rooms is only a matter of time and will be revealed before the start of the next academic year.
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