Who sleeps where? Me and others. We've never had this
many people before... I feel like Don Quijote,
fighting windmills. This is
where I cook. Alexandra Oxacelay looks after people
living on the margins of society. I hear a lot of people say they feel
bothered by the sight of beggars. How is that possible? What
bothers me is that we allow this — people sleeping outside
in sub-zero temperatures. Alexandra has joined the fight
against Luxembourg's new poverty — and for people like Serge who can’t
find an affordable place to live. I'm angry with the government,
because they don't do anything. They do a
lot of talking - like spending 210
million on new apartments. But... where
are they? Luxembourg:
A financial hub, and home to countless
shell companies along with the European
Court of Justice. In the Grand Duchy, every 1
in 15 residents... is a millionaire. In the shadows of the fancy
stores and office buildings, lies the home of
Stephan and Ferenc. Alexandra met the two
Hungarian men on the street, and is determined
to help them. Stephan and Ferenc live under
a bridge together with their dogs: Chili and Pitti. They've been here
for seven years now. Temperatures are expected
to drop to minus 7 tonight. But that doesn't seem
to bother them much. I have a lamp...
with a power pack... For reading
at night. They say Luxembourg
treats homeless residents well. You get a health insurance card...
I can use it to go to the dentist. And to other doctors too. No problem.
And you don't pay for anything. Ferenc tells us how he lost his
teeth from years of drug abuse — and that he was given
these dentures free of charge. In Hungary: this
is unthinkable. I don't care where I live — whether
Hungary or here. Here is better. I have no family. Hungary is
racist, with crazy politicians. Victor Orbán — is a horrible man!
There's no racism or aggression here. There’s good money here.
And good charities. It's... heaven! What’s ‘heaven’ in
German... ? ...Himmel! Alexandra has spent the past 25
years looking after homeless people like Stephan
and Ferenc. Homelessness
is so visible now. What's also new are
the tensions with Roma — the organized begging.
We never had that before. I'll sometimes get a call from a
shop owner asking me to come over and take in a homeless
person near their business. They say... 'it hurts our image,
and it puts off customers'. But that's unbelievable! It
sounds like they're saying: 'Come and clean
up our streets'. It still feels like people are trying
to sweep the issue under the rug. Alexandra runs a charity association
called "Stëmm vun der Strooss" or "voice of
the street". It’s an extremely
high-pressure job. Outside, dozens of people in
need are waiting for a hot meal. In the office, Alexandra and her
colleagues have to organize everything for their end-of-year
party in two weeks’ time — with hundreds of
homeless people. The guest of honor has just
confirmed he'll be coming: The head of state, Grand
Duke Henri of Luxembourg. It's noon, and a
growing stream of people arrive at Alexandra's
soup kitchen from the area around
the railway station. Most of the people in need
have a migrant background. But they're also joined by
long-time Luxembourgers. A retired nurse, Massard Alberti is extremely worried
about rising prices in the country. ...Even if you have
a decent pension, it's getting harder
and harder to live here. Everything's really expensive.
Even clothes. Everything. This is why Alexandra
felt compelled to set up a clothing
outlet one floor up. Everything's free. We get our clothes
from collections that we do regularly. We also created this
workshop to provide jobs. Alexandra's team is
helping José Rodrigues find a sweater,
pants and a cap. Last summer, José left his home
country of Portugal to come here — with big hopes... I wanted to work here, but
there are hardly any jobs. And what kind of
work do you want? Construction. But there's
nothing to do right now. José knows he'd be doing far worse
if it weren't for Voice of the Street. He can't afford
an apartment — and is currently
sleeping in a shelter located above a center
for drug addiction. Luxembourg is a rich country,
but that doesn't guarantee you work. Things are going downhill
with the construction sector. And if you don't have
an address, like me, you get practically
zero help from the state. Worst case: I'll go
back to Portugal. When the construction
industry was booming here, people like José
were in big demand. Now — like many others —
he's falling through the cracks. Poverty in Luxembourg is
becoming increasingly visible. At the same time: the country
tops the European GDP rankings. In 2022 Luxembourgers earned
an average of 119,230 euros. In Germany the figure was
46,150. And in France: 38,590. Yannick Wirtz is a
painter and decorator in a similar
situation to José. He's out of work. To qualify for welfare,
residents have to be 25. He's 22. It's getting difficult to
find anything these days. There are more and
more foreigners coming in. And they get everything
blown up their a**. Luxembourgers are left
to get by on their own. There are a lot of French
people coming over to work because they don't
earn as much back home. And they get jobs in places
Luxembourgers don’t stand a chance. We're basically left out in the cold,
and they get to have a nice life. They take care of the foreigners
— but not us. That’s why I say: Luxembourgers have
been left high and dry. We can look as much as we
want, but we won't find anything. Yannick is angry about increasing
competition on the job market. I'm the kind of person
who likes working. I don't want to
live off the state. So... if I'm offered a job as a
heating technician or a tiler, then I'll do it. Even if I don't have any experience.
As long as you can pay me. Yannick isn’t the only
one who feels this way. Many people on the
street feel disadvantaged. It's really time the government
had their eyes opened, and provided full
housing benefits. You have all these immigrants
being welcomed with open arms. And to be
perfectly honest: Our government doesn't give
a damn about Luxembourgers. They don't really
do anything for US. Since becoming
unemployed, Yannick — like the two
Hungarians Stephan and Ferenc — has been making his way to Alexandra's
soup kitchen every lunchtime, where he can get a
hot meal for 50 cents. And one floor up in
the same building... ...the Voice of the Street's
very own newspaper team are working on their next
edition... another little enterprise designed to give people like
Serge Kappler a path back to work. At first I thought: how am I
supposed to start writing articles?! But I got down to
it, and started writing — at first at home
and by hand. The editor was
really impressed. And then they sat me down
at the computer over there, and I started
writing. The street paper
covers a range of issues: From conservative politicians
demanding a ban on begging to renewable
energy. Serge himself mainly writes
about the housing shortage — with tips from
editor-in-chief Frédéric Braun. It's a niche that traditional
media don't cover. We're in touch with
people and their problems, which we learn
about first-hand. And we report in a language
the same people understand — with their
priorities in mind. That's our strength. We
are the voice of the street. Serge and his colleague Marylène
Fautsch are both welfare recipients. They know from personal
experience what it means to be poor in the Grand
Duchy of Luxembourg. It is tough when you
don't have any money. People who do have money
can afford everything they want. But if you don't,
it's difficult to get by. It's not as if there's one group
with everyone sticking together. No. You have the rich and the
poor. And there's a big divide. The two distribute the street
newspaper to subscribers here in the wealthy old-town
area of Luxembourg City — like the Ministry
of Culture. Stëmm vun der Strooss
with the newspapers. From Serge and
Marylène’s perspective, there's something rotten
behind the sleek façade. They want the government to take
action against the rise in hardship. In 2022, 19.4%
of the population faced poverty or
social exclusion. Serge believes the most pressing
issue is the housing market crisis. He himself has chronic
inflammatory back pain and is no longer
fully fit to work — and he is also suffering from
the aftermath of a failed marriage. I was married
for 16 years. And when we got divorced, I
had to leave our apartment. The law here says that
the husband has to go. Because he is someone
who lives on social benefits, known as a “Revi”
in Luxembourg, it's been difficult for
him to find an apartment. The conversation
started out really relaxed. But when said where I
worked and what I earned, the mood suddenly
changed and the guy said: no. Because "Revis" are considered
anti-social — too lazy to work. At the same time: Serge's neighborhood
has become increasingly hip — and... increasingly
expensive. They want to turn this
into a luxury neighborhood. There are apartments being built where
you'll soon be paying 800,000 euros for a 35-square-meter two-room
flat. It's far too expensive here. This tiny room
is Serge’s home. As you can see:
it's pretty humble. That there is what I survive
on: the microwave. His 18-year-old son sleeps
on the couch across the room. And this shared single-room
apartment doesn't come cheap. I'm paying 770 euros for 20 square
meters. I don't even have a kitchen. It’s a good thing I get along with my
ex — so I can cook at hers sometimes. Otherwise, it'd just be bachelors'
meals: microwaved or canned. I'm mad at the government,
because they don't do anything. They do a
lot of talking - like spending 210
million on new apartments. But... where
are they?? There are so many vacant
places — there's the answer. I've registered for apartments all
over the place, but nothing happens. And the private market
is out of the question. For Alexandra, the housing
shortage is an explosive issue that could divide Luxembourg
society even more... but she's determined
to do something about it. For years, sociologists have been
comparing it to a ticking time bomb — a situation that politicians
have been ignoring for far too long, says Antoine Paccoud, an expert
on the housing market in Luxembourg. He says the main problem is an extreme
concentration of land ownership — and related real
estate speculation. There is enough
land for housing — except it's owned by a
small portion of the population. Our studies show that
0.5% of Luxembourgers own 50% of the
building land. Ultimately, there are
about 3,000 wealthy families who've inherited these
extremely valuable properties. And they have no
interest in building housing. The dynamic economic
development means that their properties will increase
in value by 5 or 10% a year anyway. ...Over the last 8 years, property
prices have soared by 74%. And rents by 41%. Recently, the government has started
to build affordable social housing. It’s a policy change that's come
far too late, says Antoine Paccoud. So, at the moment
in Luxembourg, only 2% of the housing in the
country is affordable housing. So this is extremely low
for standards of Europe, especially for neighboring
countries who have you know, been investing in this kind of
housing for the last 100 years. Luxemburg is starting extremely
late and from an extremely low level. So ideally we should get
this sector up to 15, 20, 25%. He wants to see
people like Serge, Yannick and José spared the
consequences of outdated policy. Patrick Clement can also
speak from experience. He spent five
years on the streets - an apartment was a
luxury he couldn't afford. But Patrick
got lucky. He pays a relatively modest 580
euros a month for an apartment including a kitchen,
bathroom and basement. A subsidized flat provided
by Alexandra’s organization. I couldn't cope with the
situation I was in at the time, and got involved
with drugs. But luckily I got help from Alexandra
and Stëmm vun der Strooss. They said:
you're not an idiot, and it's not too late to
make something of your life. Otherwise, you'll never
get out of this vicious cycle. Patrick's
hardship began when his ex-girlfriend
died in a tragic accident. This was followed by alcohol,
cocaine and heroin abuse. I was an addict — which
you might not notice now. I was deep into drugs,
because of my ex's death. I went through a lot
of things on the street. And then there was this place
you could go and you were told: ‘You're in good hands and
there's someone who'll listen to you'. Patrick's been
clean for 14 years — and now spends his afternoons
working for "Voice of the Street". Without them, I'd
still be on the street. Or rather: I wouldn’t be here.
And I'm grateful for their help. Voice of the Street
also runs this laundry — and has a working arrangement
with a major supermarket chain. We pick up fruit and vegetables
— everything — and bring it here. And once we've checked it, we
distribute it among various groups. Every day, Michel Conrardydrives to
the biggest supermarket in Luxembourg. It’s located in the
wealthy business district of the capital's
Kirchberg area. He collects food right before it
expires — with the help of volunteers. I'm retired and used to be in charge
of environmental issues at this store. I care about sustainability
and social issues. We can't allow food
to end up in the trash. It’s better to donate
it to people in need. When I was a
manager here, I always told Alexandra that when
I retired I'd help out as a volunteer. That's how I ended up at
Stëmm vun der Strooss. They need volunteers, and this is
my way of making a small contribution. The food-recycling
system, which ensures the
cold chain is maintained, was introduced
by Didier Lécaillon. Voice of the Street is
largely funded by taxpayers. ...but donations
are also important. A group of managers from a big retail
company has just arrived for a visit. Focus, people!
And... let's go! ...These visitors have donated
a vacuum sealing machine — and are thinking about
becoming more involved. 14 tons of food a
month — that's not bad! 14 tons that don’t get thrown away
and get used in our soup kitchens. They make 800 meals
a day across the country. The kitchens are staffed by
people who used to be unemployed. A lot of them are refugees
— like Hassan Al-Dulimi. In Iraq is war... ISIS, Daesh. From the
Daesh I come here 2015. From the war. And direct I work
in some companies. Here they learn the skills that will
prepare them for the local job market. One storey above, Alexandra
is reading some disturbing news. They'll never succeed with that!
They tried it last time. No way. The government has
passed a ban on begging. ...If it's banned, people will
be forced into a life of crime. It's just shifting the
problem somewhere else. We'll still see the people either
at gas stations or in supermarkets. But what they’re
really saying is, 'We don't want poor people in the
oldtown, where the rich people are.’ I feel like Don Quijote,
fighting windmills. I've gotten used to this
over the last 25 years — but we've never had
this many people before. We need funding to
be able to function. The next day Alexandra has a
couple of very high-profile visitors arriving for the Voice of the
Street's end-of-year celebration. The Grand Duke
and his wife. The head of state, face to face
with people who are unemployed, living in poverty
and with addiction — for Alexandra: it’s the most important
and symbolic moment of the year. 400 people in need have gathered
here — more than any previous year. Didier and other volunteers are on
hand to serve them food and drinks. For me personally: we don't
pay these people enough attention and don't talk
about them enough. Sure, we have a
lot of volunteers — but there aren't enough.
We need to do more. Grand Duke Henri takes
his seat at the first table — right across
from Yannick... ...He’s eager to tell the monarch
about things from his perspective. Property prices used to be lower.
And now, they just keep on going up. Yes, the housing
market is a huge problem. Foreigners get more
than Luxembourgers. I don't think that's right
— and I told him that. I also said I hope things change here,
because it can't go on like this. ...Yannick is angrier at
immigrants than the government — even though it's
the government that hasn't done anything
about the widening gulf between the
rich and the poor. The minister of social security
is also one of the guests. What does she have to say
about the housing shortage? It's economics — the law
of supply and demand. It doesn't always
work out on its own, so you need initiatives
to regulate the market. And have they been
successful? Not yet. Alexandra says that imposing a
ban on begging is fighting the poor instead of fighting poverty — here
in the wealthiest country in Europe. Of course Luxembourg can't eliminate
poverty around the world. I know that. But I'm not a politician. I try to
help people who are in a bad place. And if we Luxembourgers aren't
able to help people who are suffering, then which
country can?
