The homeless living in a camp under the Ville-Marie highway have just obtained a new reprieve: Judge Chantal Masse, of the Superior Court, orders the Ministère des Transports du Québec (MTQ) to wait another 10 days before to evict them to undertake work where they are located, near Atwater Avenue.
“We are very very pleased with the judgment rendered by the Superior Court today by Judge Chantal Masse. [C’est] a judgment that recognizes that these people have the right to life, to be protected, but also to be treated with dignity, which has not been done to date”, declared the director general of the Legal Clinic itinerant, Me Donald Tremblay, at a press conference Tuesday evening.
The decision, rendered late Tuesday afternoon, follows steps taken by the Traveling Legal Clinic, which challenged the eviction of the campers in court. A first eviction notice had been served on them last November, but the government backed down at the last minute to give them time to find a place to relocate. Then, at the beginning of March, they were told that they had to leave before March 31, the date of the start of the work.
“This is another small victory for human rights. I can’t wait to see a negotiation where real solutions will be found for people living under the highway. Real solutions that can be put into practice immediately, not years from now,” said Resilience Montreal Executive Director David Chapman.
Me Éric Préfontaine, who represents the campers in their proceedings before the courts, also said he was “very happy” with the judgment rendered on Tuesday. “Judge Masse was very human in her approach,” he said.
In March, an agreement was reached with the government, which was to seek solutions to house the campers before their eviction, but these discussions ended in failure.
Looking for accommodation
In her decision, Judge Masse points out that campers have nowhere to go. “Many of these people suffer from mental health and addiction problems and some live with a partner or have pets, which disqualifies them or makes it extremely difficult to access the support provided through many programs and resources such as shelters or subsidized housing,” she wrote.
“Access to subsidized housing is also not accessible in the short term for these people, both because of the formalities to be completed, which are complex for these people, and the waiting lists. »
During the hearing, the judge deplored the lack of effort made by the government, through the CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, to find housing for campers, taking account of their particular needs.
“These people cannot go to shelters because of the living conditions they have. They must be housed with an accompaniment. Today, we are very officially asking the government to get out of its position and come and do the thing that must be done, which is to be human and help these people reintegrate into society. “said Mr.e Tremblay.
The magistrate is now asking the CIUSSS to continue working to find places to house the inhabitants of the camp together.