Squatters occupy Paris office building to press housing as presidential campaign issue


PARIS -- Homeless families and their supporters have taken over an upscale office building in Paris and set up a mock housing ministry in a bid to keep housing rights on politicians' agendas before spring presidential elections.

The plight of France's homeless and others living in poor conditions becomes a hot-button issue each winter. But with presidential elections on the horizon this year, it has taken on real political meaning and encouraged groups to take action.

A group calling itself the Children of Don Quixote recently set up tents for the homeless in the French capital -- and invited Parisians to spend the night in them. Associations made a push to register the homeless for the April and May two-round vote before last week's deadline.

The enthusiasm on behalf of the homeless, and those housed in cheap hotels, appears to be spreading.

President Jacques Chirac spoke out on the matter in his annual New Year's Eve address to the nation, pledging to work to "make the right to housing a reality." On Tuesday, the conservative government studied a first draft of a bill that would allow the homeless to take their plights to court. They hope the bill will be adopted before parliament ends its session Feb. 22.

Two leading presidential candidates, conservative Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist rival Segolene Royal, have responded to the homeless issue. Sarkozy designated a noted lawyer to follow the issue, and Royal spoke by telephone with the Children of Don Quixote.

France, with a population of some 63 million, has about 86,500 homeless people, according to a 2001 study by the INSEE statistics agency. But the Abbe Pierre Foundation, which works with the homeless, estimated last year that the figure is closer to 150,000.

The squatters, including at least 10 families, took over the empty building in central Paris sometime last week, but their presence only became clear Monday, when a fire alarm went off, according to Yves Manet, deputy director general of the Lyonnaise de Banque group, which owns the building.

By Tuesday, families were busy outfitting the offices with bathtubs, showers and kitchens. Groups that organized the takeover were using some floors for their "ministry" to press politicians to take action.

A statement from the Right to Housing group said the action was taken on behalf of all those who could not find a proper dwelling, including people expelled from their apartments or artists with irregular incomes. Most of the approximately 50 people who took up residence in the office building had been living in cheap hotels.

Squatter organizers said the building, in a trendy neighborhood across the street from the old Bourse, or stock exchange, was unoccupied for years before they "requisitioned" it.

"We cannot accept that there are buildings that are empty while there are people freezing outside," said Alexandre Archenoult, a coordinator for Macaq, one of the three housing rights groups behind the takeover.

He said the squatters accessed the 10,800 square foot building through an unlocked window.

"We are going to stay here until we can find something else," said Hafida Sadek, a 47-year-old mother of two who was evicted from her apartment in September. She had been moving from cheap hotel to cheap hotel, she said.

"It's nice here, certainly better than out there," she said, pointing through the picture window to the cold rain pelting down outside.

http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/world/BO38834/

good for the squatters. im glad to see people forcing this issue into the public's consciousness. we need more high-profile actions like this.

Hurray for everdyay insurrection. The occupation of 'private spaces' and transformation into 'open spaces' is by far one of the most insurrectionary acts under capitalism — but more importantly it is an everyday insurrection, an everday fuck you to capital.

They should take over some fucking condos next, and stay!

Viva les SDF

Nice to see this, I hope La Defense is filled with squatters soon!

Yeah I hope this spreads and creates a real revolutionary fervor.