Originally a military base, this camp in Rivesaltes (near Perpignan) has a really dark history. It has been used to hide people away, those whom society has rejected. The Spanish fleeing Franco’s regime were put there. Then Jews, along with the other groups targeted by the Nazi regime; then the Harkis (the Algerians who fought for the French during the Algerian War of Independence) and, more recently, as a detention centre for those immigrants without the relevant visas.
The site was recently bought by the regional council and finally, after much debate, it has been decided to build a memorial, a place to remember the appalling way in which people have been treated here. It is also being used as a place for exhibitions and artists, musicians and poets come together here to respond to the site.
