France: Anti-squat law, the parliament triples the penalties and introduces a denunciation measure

The assembly triples the penalties for untitled occupiers and allows any person to refer the matter to the prefect about an expeditious eviction.

Droit au Logement denounces the tripling of penalties against untitled occupiers, voted on Friday morning in the Assembly, at the initiative of the rapporteur Kasbarian, with no other opposition than that of a deputy FI (E. Coquerel).
This punitive measure satisfies security obsessed people, such as deputy E. Cioti, who declares that he wants “squatters to sleep in prison”. The homeless who settle in a vacant apartment are thus labeled criminals, because the street brings them nothing but suffering and premature death.
These MPs, like all those who demand anti-squat measures, do not care about the tenants who are illegally evicted, while no prosecution is initiated, except in exceptional cases.
They are however much more numerous than the very rare “occupants of other people’s homes” that we have been receiving since the end of August.

This punitive measure pursues another goal: by raising the sentence to three years, the public prosecutor’s office can thus bring the occupants to an immediate court appearance, after having taken them into custody. It thus proceeded to expel them without involving the Prefect. [Read More]

France: an anti-squat amendment threatens untitled occupiers

Update of September 17: The anti-squat amendment supported by the Government (Ministry of Housing) generalizing the administrative eviction (by decision of the prefect and without trial) of untitled occupants was adopted in the law committees of the National Assembly on Wednesday, September 16. This proposal is excessively dangerous, and the time frame is short, since the law in which the amendment will be inserted will be discussed in the National Assembly the week of September 28.

An amendment discussed this afternoon in committee extends the expulsion without trial.
To all untitled occupants!

The proposed amendment No. 695 of the ASAP bill, inserted after article 30 bis, of the rapporteur Mr. Guillaume Kasbarian, deputy LREM and supported by the Government, extends the administrative eviction (forced eviction by decision of the prefect and without judgment), within a few days and retroactively to all untitled occupants of housing, offices, premises and vacant land. [Read More]