Thousands of European citizens will not be able to vote in the next elections, even if they want to: homeless people (SDF).
According to Feantsa, a network of associations in this area, nearly 900,000 citizens in the 27 member states of the European Union live on the streets, in emergency structures or in temporary accommodation.
Although it is difficult to calculate the exact percentage, it is certain that many of them are citizens of one of the EU countries, and not necessarily of the one in which they are located. Although they theoretically have the right to vote, they are often physically unable to go to the polls.
In several countries, such as Italy, there is in fact a major administrative obstacle: to vote, you must have a residence. However, very often, these people do not have one.
Even in other states like Belgium, they need a permanent address where they can be registered, explains to Euronews Maria José Aldanas de la Feantsawho has conducted research into the voting rights of people with housing difficulties in EU countries. “Living in temporary housing, in shelters or on the streets, it is difficult to register for a permanent address.”
“These people have the right to vote, but in fact, they do not exercise it,” notes Manuel Lambertfrom the Human Rights League association, which is also committed to guaranteeing the rights of other vulnerable groups, such as prisoners or people suffering from mental disorders. “The egalitarian principle according to which everyone has one vote is not enough in these cases. Specific policies are needed to break down the barriers.”
In this sense, the European Parliament called for reconsidering the proof of residence as a condition for voting. As Feantsa reports, two directives are currently under discussion on the issue, but it is too late for these elections.
A union for the “homeless” in Brussels
Many people will therefore be excluded from the polls. And it’s not just about people sleeping on the streets or in metro stations, but also people who find themselves in complicated housing situations, with all the nuances that entails.
That is why Laurent d’Ursel, secretary of the Immenses union, challenges the term “homeless”. Immenses is an acronym which means: “Individual in a huge material shit, but not without demands.”
Laurent d’Ursel describes the members of his union as “homeless”. People who come together with the idea of giving each other a helping hand, not only to meet their basic needs, but also to participate in recreational and cultural activities. “Tonight, they will sleep in a social service center, at a friend’s house, in a squat or in a hotel,” he explains to Euronews.
Every Monday morning, an operational meeting is organized to set appointments for the week: support interventions, events, language courses and even weekend excursions. It is held in a room located near the Midi station in Brussels, a place very popular with people in housing difficulty, who can take a shower and wash their clothes there for a symbolic euro.
The topic of voting, which had never been discussed before, was put on the agenda. Most of those present are European citizens, but not everyone has the opportunity to vote. This is the case of Joellea middle-aged lady with a Middle Eastern past and a rather precarious current life.
“I don’t have an address, because I lost my home, and I don’t even have an identity card anymore, because my papers were stolen. I’m Belgian, but I don’t exist as a citizen of my country and if you don’t exist administratively, well, you can’t vote.
In principle, in Belgium, it would be enough to obtain a reference addresswhich could even be temporary accommodation, to be registered in a municipality and receive official communications.
But the procedures are often long and complicated, and those who change accommodation, most often against their will, have to start all over again.
“I cannot return to my official administrative address, because they no longer let me enter the building: it was a retirement home, from which the police expelled me,” tell Roberto Marzipani. This German citizen, who speaks English better than French, has a background as a photographer, as evidenced by a few well-taken photos during the interview. He has not lost his job and when he encounters people lying in dangerous places, he photographs them to share with his fellow trade unionists.
Other members, like Tony Or Pretty, can vote in their place. He is the son of a Belgian and a Portuguese woman and would like to be able to vote from here for Portuguese candidates. She underlines, in Flemish, how complicated it is to be interested in the elections for people like them.
Is voting the least of the problems?
Voting is hardly one of the interests of people in housing difficulty. Often because they do not receive the correct information on voting dates or necessary registration.
But perhaps also because of a generalized feeling of distance between electoral competition and real life: according to experts, priorities are other, and when we have to think about what we eat or where you sleep, it becomes difficult to worry about who you should vote for.
ADVERTISEMENT“The result of the election, the impact of the result of their vote on their personal situation, is infinitely distant. When you live in an emergency, in survival mode, it is certainly not the priority”estimates Laurent d’Ursel, also a candidate in Belgium, but in the national elections with the Ecolo list.
Any thoughts on the subject, he said, however, are up to the people concerned. Which, at least within the union of “Immenses”do not seem ready to give up their rights, nor so far from politics.
There are those who violently criticize the President of the European Commission without naming her, those who would like to fight against injustice and poverty in their country of origin, those who, even in a difficult period of their lives, shine with their civic sense: “If you don’t vote, you can’t complain that things aren’t changings”.
