- Lucy Williamson
- BBC News, Calais
October 10, 2022
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Record numbers of illegal migrants arriving on British shores not only call into question the effectiveness of increased surveillance but also the controversial plan to send undocumented migrants to Rwanda.
Hidden in the dense vegetation of the north coast of Calais, France, two men prepare to thwart new British Prime Minister Liz Truss’ plans to stop illegal immigration.
Crouching in the dark, they quickly prepare a boat to take undocumented migrants across the English Channel, which connects France to Britain.
Above them, at dawn, the roar of a UKfunded drone marks the beginning of a pursuit.
Less than a kilometer away, French guards examine the two individuals through the drone’s thermal imaging camera; the images are a riot of pink and orange.
In a matter of seconds, they climb into a special vehicle, also provided by the UK, and dash through the thicket onto the site.
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The UK has provided French police with drones to combat human trafficking networks, as well as other technological means
It takes the French guards less than five minutes to arrive, but the last 50 meters must be covered on foot through dense, spiky vegetation, chesthigh in some cases.
The two men flee as the unit approaches, leaving behind the partially prepared boat, fuel and engine, and two bags of life jackets.
Technology as a weapon
“The vegetation is playing against us,” says French General Frantz Tavart. “The smugglers know this and hide the boats here on purpose,” he adds.
British drones are valuable, the official explains, for discovering wellhidden locations “like this”. “The plane [de vigilância] earlier and didn’t see anyone or anything because they were hidden by the trees,” he says.
This 160 km stretch of coast is promoted year after year. France and the UK have invested in more patrols, better technology and different types of vehicles. And yet the number of people crossing the canal continues to grow.
At the Conservative Party Congress last week, Britain’s new Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, reiterated her determination to fight illegal immigration.
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French authorities have noted an increase in the number of Albanian migrants trying to cross the English Channel and Albanian smugglers.
French patrols say they blocked about half of the attempts to cross. However, more than 30,000 people arrived in the UK that year alone.
greater sophistication
Despite the efforts, French authorities guarantee they registered new smuggling networks this summer.
A senior French official with good knowledge of the situation told the BBC that there are now Albanian groups operating in the area, separate from the existing Kurdish and Iraqi networks.
“Albanian networks are more efficient. On this side of the canal, 40% of the people we intercept are Albanians, but they make up 60% of those arriving on the other side,” says the source.
“Our hypothesis is that they have much more experience than others in terms of criminal activity and are more used to organizing and avoiding the police. We noticed that the prices charged by the Albanian networks are higher,” he explains.
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Despite increased surveillance, the number of people who have managed to cross the English Channel in small, rickety boats this year has broken another record.
For his part, General Tavart says he cannot confirm whether the new Albanian smuggling routes are operated by established criminal groups, possibly based in the UK, but said it would make sense.
“With a trip costing around $4,000 (R$20,000) and about 40 people on a boat, do the math,” he says. “It’s extremely profitable, more so than drug trafficking, and the criminal penalties are lighter.”
Some believe postBrexit labor shortages in the UK market are contributing to the “pull factors” encouraging undocumented smugglers to set sail.
more than suspicious
Although French law enforcement agencies have registered more Albanians at the main Dunkirk migrant camp, most Albanians appear to be staying in hotels in the area, either in Paris (France) or Brussels (Belgium).
At a hotel in Dunkirk, the owner confirmed to the BBC that she had many Albanian customers in transit. The same information was given by the owner of a bar opposite the train station.
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General Frantz Tavart says the drones provided by the UK government have become an indispensable tool in the fight against illegal immigration
“I wonder if anyone is still in Albania. When I see how many are getting through here,” he says.
The surge in migrants crossing the English Channel and the emergence of new smuggling networks appear to be challenging the UK government’s deterrence strategy.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has announced its intention to send undocumented migrants to Rwanda, Africa, where it hopes they will settle if their asylum application is successful.
All or nothing
On the road outside Calais early this morning, the BBC finds Sikunder, a 17yearold Afghan, and his friends wrapped in survival blankets that glow like silver in the dark.
The youngsters had just been rescued from a boat by French police.
When asked if he knew Britain could send him to Rwanda, Sikunder replies: “I heard about it but some of my relatives in the UK told me that this plan was stopped and we could try to cross it.”
This was the young man’s second attempt at crossing and he guarantees it won’t be the last.
London is engaged in a legal battle over the legitimacy of its policy towards Rwanda. In the Calais camps, almost everyone is aware of the risk but is looking for ways to rationalize it.
Many refugees believe Prime Minister Liz Truss’ government will spell the end of the controversial initiative. However, the new prime minister reiterated her support for the measure.
Jess Sharman of the NGO Care4Calais says people are risking their lives to get to the UK because they can’t apply for asylum in France and can’t officially cross the Channel.
“They shouldn’t be here, and they’re only here because of government policy,” he says. “And that could change overnight if Truss makes it safe and legal for them.” [solicitar asilo]”.
As police forces continue to systematically destroy camps, fight gangs of smugglers and chase migrants for miles along the shaky coast, another ship laden with people from all over the world manages to reach Britain’s shores at dawn.