B.L. and others v France: Inadmissibility decision in case concerning living conditions in emergency accommodation

Date: 
Thursday, January 9, 2020

On 9 January 2020, the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) published its decision in the case of B.L. and others v France concerning the living conditions in temporary accommodation.

The case concerned 23 applicants of various nationalities who were housed in makeshift tent camp in Metz, France. The first applicant, E.G, made an application for international protection after arriving in France in 2012. Following this, E.G. applied for urgent relief at the Strasbourg Administrative Court, relying on the minimum standards for the reception of asylum applicants under Directive 2003/9/EC. In November 2016, E.G.’s application for a residence permit was dismissed and she was informed that she was to leave the country within 30 days. Applicants 2 to 23 similarly made applications for urgent relief, which were all dismissed. All of the applicants complained that the living conditions in the emergency accommodation were contrary to Article 3 ECHR.

The Court was informed that applicants 2 to 23 had not maintained contact with their lawyer. It therefore concluded that the applicants had lost interest in the proceedings. The cases were struck out of the list. 

In respect of the first applicant, the Court observed that E.G. was accommodated in the Metz tent camp from March 2014 to July 2014. However, it noted, inter alia, that E.G. had not submitted specific details in relation to the living conditions and had therefore not established that she had been unable to cater for her basic needs in the emergency accommodation. The Court decided that E.G.’s claim that treatment exceeded the level of severity necessary to establish a violation of Article 3 ECHR had been insufficiently unsubstantiated. The application was declared inadmissible.

Based on an unofficial translation by the EWLU team.


This item was reproduced with the permission of ECRE from the ELENA Weekly Legal Update. The purpose of these updates is to inform asylum lawyers and legal organizations supporting asylum seekers and refugees of recent developments in the field of asylum law. Please note that the information provided is taken from publicly available information on the internet. Every reasonable effort is made to make the content accurate and up to date at the time each item is pusexblished but no responsibility for its accuracy and correctness, or for any consequences of relying on it, is assumed by ECRE.

 

 

Keywords: 
Inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
Material reception conditions
Reception conditions