Dismissal of the appeal against the destruction of a slum in Mayotte

This informal housing district, in the municipality of Koungou in the northeast of the island, could therefore be quickly destroyed. It is the subject of an order issued on April 12 by the prefecture, which wishes to demolish it as part of the disputed security operation "Wuambushu", aimed in particular at combating unsanitary housing.

Occupants demanded the suspension of the execution of the decree, ensuring that they had no effective solution for rehousing or emergency accommodation.

"This family of nine was offered accommodation in the Coalia emergency accommodation and integration center, south of Mamoudzou, of 50 m³, for six months. The offer is not suitable", argued Me Marjane Ghaem, family lawyer, specializing in foreigners' rights, at the end of the hearing on June 5.

An argument rejected by the judge in chambers of the administrative court of Mayotte, who concluded in particular in his order that "the proposed rehousing solutions concern all the families of the applicants who (...) have been fully informed of the consistency of the rehousing solution without the latter responding to it".

The court also recalls that the Regional Health Agency had produced "a detailed report on the accommodation conditions of the site" highlighting "the health risks in particular for children" as well as a report from the gendarmerie "relevant the many disturbances to public order and the violent clashes in this part of the district".

On May 22, in another district of Koungou, construction machinery had started the destruction of 162 huts at Talus 2, one of the largest slums in the French territory of the Indian Ocean. The prefect of Mayotte, Thierry Suquet, then announced that "the next demolition" was scheduled "for the beginning of June".

At the same time, four other prefectural decrees were filed "in the town of Dzaoudzi, in Petite-Terre and another in Bandrélé, in the south", underlines Psylvia Dewas, in charge of the reduction of unsanitary housing at the prefecture.

Eight additional decrees should be taken "within a few weeks to reach the objective of 1.000 substandard housing destroyed", had assured the prefect. Its objective: "to end the slums in Mayotte" because "people live in unbearable conditions, they put their lives in danger", estimated the representative of the State.