In France, in Marseille, the ferry Mediterranean, one of the largest reception centers in the territory made available to Ukrainian refugees is closing its doors. Yesterday Friday ended the agreement between the shipping company Corsica Linea, owner of the cruise ship, and the French government. More than 400 people were still on board and had to leave this bubble of amenities to relocate to the city or its surroundings.
At the gates of the port, any exit is final. Aleona comes to return her access badge. “We have found an apartment to rent, we can finally be at home! », she rejoices. With her son Hugo, this 40-year-old mother, who also speaks French, wishes to point out that the situation on board is not so simple for everyone. “ There are a lot of children, but also men with big bags with all their belongings, and they don’t know where they are going. »
In addition to Marseille and the nearby region, around ten destinations have been offered in recent weeks to regions that have received fewer displaced people.
Oxana gets into a car for Istres. She explains to us that she does not know the conditions in which she will live. Beside her, her daughter Caterina. “Last week was very stressful…but the important thing is to have a house and food. »
Going back into the unknown has made the organization of the last few days confusing, explains Valentine of the SOS Solidarity association at the microphone of our correspondent in Marseille, Laura Lemeille. ” They don’t want to unanchor themselves again, they don’t want to go into other unknown territories, and therefore don’t want to leave Marseille. I think they had hoped for a very long time that there would be a second ship that eventually was completely extinguished, and it’s hard for them to imagine themselves anywhere else. »
Many of them therefore prefer to refuse the offer of rehousing to stay in the city. The Corsica Linea boat, docked in Marseille, has been welcoming Ukrainian refugees since March. At the height of the welcome, there were around 900 on board, mainly women and a third of children. The boat had been completely transformed and adapted for refugees with a crèche, a bank counter, a Pôle Emploi counter, reported our colleagues from France Bleu. Meals were provided by the ship’s crew, who remained on site.
It was the company that came up with the idea for this accommodation and signed an agreement with the Bouches-du-Rhône prefecture. This agreement ended on June 10 and it is expected that the ship will resume service on the Marseille-Algiers line after a reconditioning.