Sixty-five people were rescued, but authorities were unable to revive a baby found unconscious. At least 52 migrants have died trying to cross the channel this year, authorities say, marking a six-year high.
A baby drowned when a boat carrying migrants capsized in the English Channel off the coast of France, French coast guard authorities said Friday morning.
Sixty-five people were rescued.
The accident took place off the coast of Wissant in the Pas-de-Calais region on Thursday evening.
A French navy patrol boat and a helicopter were used in the rescue and recovery operation. Authorities also said search is ongoing to find people who are still potentially missing.
I was thinking the same thing, but I’m an American with limited knowledge of the social situations in Europe. Would someone explain the situation better for me? What are the pressures forcing people to make dangerous trips like that? I know refugee displacement is an issue, but that doesn’t explain an illegal crossing of the channel to me, compared to staying somewhere in France for example?
People tend to go where they have connections like friends or family members who are already there; or they are more familiar with the local language/customs. Basically, they believe that their integration into the system of their final destination will be smoother for some type is social reason.
The reality is that they likely didn’t enter Europe in France, and they never had the intention of stopping there.
This is obviously a very contentious issue, because, as you correctly point out, there is no objective reason to think a refugee would be safer in the UK than in France. So the anti immigration types will keep using this as their reasoning.