WIMEREUX, France (Reuters) – In the early hours of Thursday on a seaside in northern France, a small group of police with torches tries to stand in the best way of dozens of migrants heading for the ocean carrying a gray dinghy.
It’s tense. The police are outnumbered. The migrants – who hope to make it to Britain on the ultimate stretch of their lengthy journeys fleeing struggle and poverty – are screaming. They ultimately push past the police, who stand apart.
“Thank you, thanks,” says one lady, blowing kisses within the path of the police.
The migrants, together with kids, some bundled up in opposition to the chilly in jackets and woollen hats, some crying, leap onto the dinghy and head out into the Channel – one of many world’s busiest delivery lanes – in direction of the coast of England.
The arrival of migrants on rickety boats has been a rising supply of rigidity between France and Britain, particularly after 27 migrants drowned final month.
Britain says France shouldn’t be doing sufficient to police its seashores, whereas France accuses Britain of getting lax labour legal guidelines that entice unlawful immigrants.
On the seaside in Wimereux, close to Calais, the police – about 10 – appear resigned. “They simply need to go to England, that is it,” one mentioned of the group of principally Kurdish migrants.
During the standoff, a number of the migrants shouted: “Help us we would like go to UK, please!” When a small group stepped out of the sand dunes with the dinghy, others stepped in entrance of the police to block their method and permit the boat to attain the water.
“I’ve a dream, go UK, I’ve a dream, I’ve a want,” one migrant mentioned.
Some of the migrants gave up, fearing the overloaded dinghy was too dangerous.
Some time later, one other dinghy, with about 40 folks on board, set out from the identical seaside.
(Reporting by Stephane Mahe, Manuel Ausloos, Pascal Rossignol; Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Janet Lawrence)
