Date of the decision: The Collective complaint was registered on 18 September 2023
Jurisdiction: Council of Europe – European Commitee of Social Rights
Country: France
Legal basis: It concerns Articles 16 (the right of the family to social, legal and economic protection), 30 (the right to protection against poverty and social exclusion) and 31 (the right to housing) and Article E (non-discrimination) in conjunction with each of the concerned provisions of the Revised European Social Charter. The complainant organisation alleges that France, through the imposition of fixed fines for illegal halting to set up a home even temporarily, failed to provide effective access to housing for Travellers and contributes to the systemic discrimination of Travellers, in violation of the aforementioned provisions of the Charter.
Subject: This new complaint to the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) follows on from an earlier ERRC submission, when France was condemned by the ECSR for its failure to provide effective access to housing for Travellers. In this case, the Committee found that France had violated the Revised Charter because eight years after the introduction of the Besson Law, only a minority of relevant municipalities had implemented it, leaving a shortage of halting spaces for Travellers in the country.
The Committee also noted that many of the stopping sites did not meet the statutory requirements regarding regarding sanitation and access to water and electricity:
“The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights observes that in some cases, sites are created outside urban areas or near to facilities which are major sources of nuisance (such as electrical transformers or very busy roads), making them difficult – if not dangerous – to use, particularly for families with young children.”
The Commissioner also observed that evictions are a particularly problematic issue, plunging families into a climate of fear, and often “involve brutal methods, tear gas and the destruction of personal property”. Following some evictions, the National Commission for Police Ethics (CNDS) has found that unjustified and disproportionate acts of violence were committed. The ECSR found that Travellers “have been victims of unjustified violence during these expulsions.”
In its conclusions, the Committee stated that France had not only failed to take account “failed to adopt a coordinated approach to promoting effective access to housing for persons who live or risk living in a situation of social exclusion”
More information about this complaint can be found online.
