French leftist theatre faces bankruptcy after opening its doors to 250 African migrants for a free show… and they refused to leave and remain in the building five weeks later
A theatre in Paris which is known for its radical shows and exhibitions has been occupied by more than 250 African migrants after they were let in for a free event five weeks ago.
The Gaîté Lyrique theatre in Paris staged the conference, entitled Reinventing the welcome for refugees in France, on December 10.
It involved talks hosted by academics from top universities and Red Cross officials, and saw activists welcome in the migrants.
But when the conference was finished, the migrants, who mainly come from France’s former west African colonies, refused to leave the venue.
Still occupied, the leftist theatre now faces going out of business after weeks without revenue from ticket sales, and has had to cancel all performances until at least January 24.
Its management said in a statement last week that the number of people taking shelter in the theatre is ‘continuing to increase’ and has swelled to around 300 people.
‘The sanitary conditions are deteriorating day after day and the teams are facing this situation alone,’ it said as it called for the local authorities to find a housing solution for the occupiers.
‘Although this occupation is forced, it is unthinkable for the Gaîté Lyrique to throw these people out onto the street in the middle of winter,’ the statement added.
Daily demonstrations have been held on the steps of the theatre, which is known for hosting radical performances
Conditions have become worse as more people have joined the occupation, without support from local authorities, according to a statement by the theatre’s management
Pictures from inside the theatre show people sleeping on tables in cramped conditions
The number of migrants occupying the theatre has risen over recent weeks to around 300
A small child is seen in a buggy as people seek shelter in the theatre
An isolated minor sitting on a chair and sleeping with his arms on a table during the occupation
The 19th-century building is owned by the city council and located in Paris’s third arrondissement
Paris’s Socialist-led council, which owns the building, claims it has looked for accommodation for the migrants but that none was available.
It has called for the government to deal with the problem, but President Macron’s centrist cabinet is said to have ignored the request and is reluctant to get involved in the debacle.
The estimated the cost of the cancellations of private and public events has been estimated to stand at ‘several hundred thousand euros in direct losses’, a theatre spokesperson said last month.
The theatre’s income model – which is 70 per cent based on ticket sales and 30 per cent on subsidies – has collapsed.
Local businesses have also complained of losses due to the occupation.
The bistrot next to the 19th century venue, a popular spot for theatregoers to eat and drink before and after shows, has reported €30,000 in lost revenue so far.
‘They are ruining my business,’ the manager Elia, herself the daughter of Algerian migrants, told The Times.
‘They hang around outside my terrace, smoking joints and fighting among themselves. Not only do we no longer get theatregoers because the theatre is shut but we don’t get passers-by either. They’re being frightened away by all these young men.’
Dozens of migrants, the majority of whom are from African countries, are seen in an area of the Gaite Lyrique cultural centre
People sleep under a table, on pieces of furniture and charge cellphones during an occupation action in the Gaite Lyrique theatre
The migrants all claim to be under age 18, meaning they would be considered unaccompanied minors and given the right to be housed and assisted by local authorities.
But local officials have insisted that they are adults and that most are known to the authorities and had been sleeping on the streets before entering the theatre.
‘This is an illegal occupation of a building by recognised migrants,’ the regional authorities said in December.
The Collectif des Jeunes du Parc de Belleville, the group which organised the occupation, slammed the age test as ‘racist and expeditive’.
Named after the Paris park they previously occupied, the protest group described the theatre occupation as a focal point for their ‘antiracist and anticolonial struggle’.
There have been daily demonstrations on the steps of the theatre since the occupation began.
Videos show huge crowds gathering at the ‘general assemblies’, which begin with drums being banged and slogans blared through megaphones as they block entry to the theatre.
The Collectif des Jeunes du Parc de Belleville holds a protest outside Paris’s city hall
Videos show huge crowds gathering at the ‘general assemblies’, which begin with drums being banged and slogans blared through megaphones
A demonstration in front of the Gaite Lyrique in support of and to require immediate accommodation for those occupying the theatre
France’s interior minister Bruno Retailleau, who took on the role in September, vowed to crack down on illegal migration when he took on the role in September.
‘The French people want more order order in the streets, order at the borders,’ he said at the time, denouncing what he called ‘mass migration’ to the country.
On November 1, France reinforced its borders with six of its neighbouring Schengen members – Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and Switzerland – with increased checks.
The controls were applied to travellers entering France via land, sea and air routes from all six nations and will last until April 1, 2025 – but authorities have said they could be extended further.
A French government statement declared the checks were introduced due to ‘serious threats to public policy, public order, and internal security posed by high-level terrorist activities… criminal networks facilitating irregular migration and smuggling, and migration flows that risk infiltration by radicalised individuals’.
