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Homeless Paris pizza maker appeals to Macron to help France’s rough sleepers

A homeless pizza maker in Paris has appealed to President Emmanuel Macron to help those sleeping rough in France just as the capital gets ready to count the number of people living on the streets.

Published: 15 February 2018 17:01 CET
Homeless Paris pizza maker appeals to Macron to help France's rough sleepers
Homeless people are a common sight on the streets of Paris. Photo: AFP
Moncef, 49-years-old, told the story of how he came to be homeless in the French capital in an open letter printed in left-wing newspaper Liberation.
 
“I was born in Tunisia. I arrived last summer from Pisa, where I spent several years. I left my 20-year-old son in Italy to work at Pizza Burger in Paris,” he wrote. 
 
“Monsieur Macron, look: I am in France, I work and I don't have a roof over my head.
 
“I'm not asking for 'la dolce vita', just a small room and dignity.” 
 
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Moncef goes on to say that every night he has to call 115 — the phone number used to secure emergency shelter for the night in France. 
 
“Go on, Monsieur Macron, try it one time. Call 115. You'll wait two or three hours before telling your life story. Every day, it's the same circus. With a little bit of luck, they'll find you a place in a welcome centre (centre d'accueil).”
 
The letter also describes the shocking state of one of these centres in the 18th arrondissement in the north of the French capital. 
 
“I stayed there an hour before escaping. It was dirty and disgusting there. It's Libya. It's the shame of France,” he said. 
 
“Could you spend a night surrounded by drunks, junkies and sick people? There's mice, piss and shit. Stay an hour and you'll get ill.”
 
Moncef goes on to say that this is reason why even when it's snowing “some people prefer to walk around the streets or sleep in Metro stations.”
 
“There is no choice, far from that. I prefer to hold on to my dignity, monsieur,” Moncef finished his letter. 
 
“I am not angry with you, Monsieur President, but you must help us.”
 
A homeless man lies on a street in Paris. Photo: AFP
 
There's no doubt that the scale of the problem of rough sleeping on the streets of Paris is hard to ignore, with the sheer number of people begging in the French capital raising the eyebrows of locals and visitors alike.
 
However, the pizza maker's letter comes soon after an MP from Macron's own political party La Republique en Marche! was reported as saying that the majority of people sleeping on the streets did it by choice. 
 
 
On Thursday, Paris will see an army of 1,700 volunteers take to the streets with the aim of counting the number of people living on the streets. 
 
Dubbed Nuit de la Solidarite (Night of Solidarity) it is hoped that by having an exact figure for the number of people sleeping rough, which the government doesn't currently have, services will be better distributed. 

PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Published: 14 February 2024 13:01 CET
Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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