All Included

Author: admin

  • Welcome United – Fighting for equal social rights

    Welcome United – Fighting for equal social rights
    Call for transnational action days in September 2017

    We won’t get used to what is happening right before our eyes and what is declared as normal: death at sea, push backs and detention, exploitation and no rights. These conditions shape the daily lives of hundred thousands all over Europe and of those who still seek to come here. People are being insulted, spat on and beaten. The solidarity of hundreds of thousands is mistreated and stamped on. We are looked at with a lot of suspicion. They build fences to prevent us from entering. They deport us to make us disappear. But we are here. We will stay. We have our hopes. We have our dreams. We live. Welcome united.

    We will not give up. We remember the summer of 2015. Hundreds of thousands opened Europe’s borders. No one could stop them because they didn’t let anyone stop them. They just began to walk. On Friday September 4th, thousands of migrants trapped in Hungary, at the Budapest train-station Keleti, took the road, starting the „march of hope“, opening the Austrian borders. And further on to their families and friends all over Europe. Freedom of movement did not remain a demand anymore. The movement took its freedom. For the right to have rights, for the right to presence, to protection, to help and to a future. The “march of hope” remains an unforgettable event in the long history. And in our collective memory of struggles for the right to escape and to migrate.

    Now we still face an ongoing rollback. With new repressive laws and more racist agitation. But we continue to come from the global south. To leave misery and war, which comes from the global north. We cross the sea from Libya, we overcome the fences from Ceuta. Or we find and invent other paths into the fortress of Schengen. In underground railroads against the EU-border regime.

    Day in day out, we seek to resist the injustice of the current order. The small and the large protests have become part of our lives. The hopes of 2015 have not yet been suffocated. These hopes have found expression in the acts of solidarity of thousands of people in all over Europe and beyond. Hopes and solidarity which also inspires and infects the transit- and destination societies. For a better life for all. Whether it’s about the right to dignified housing or work, to education, mobility or health care. We don’t accept to be treated just as cheap labor, that can be exploited or dismissed when needed. We fight for the freedom of movement against the European government of mobility, against low paid jobs, deportations and pushbacks. Social and political rights exist for everybody everywhere. Without exceptions and from the very start. In solidarity and against any kind of divide and rule.

    We continue to fight for the refugees’ and migrants’ right to presence, and also for the right to our presence. We provide everyday support. We protest state persecution and deportation. We strike against the borders and against exploitation and precarious labour conditions of all, migrants as well as non migrants. We rise up against the new right-wing populism and old forms of fascism. We are here and we stand with those who came. We are the ones who arrived. Welcome united!

    In the transnational action days we want to create spaces for all those voices and stories that are usually not heard or that are supposed to remain unheard. Everyone who cares about the common good and solidarity should come out. Everyone who can no longer bear that people are forced o stay in miserable conditions or left to suffer and die at Europe’s borders, should come out. We know well that many have fought for years for their future. Now is the time to raise our voices together. We are more than we think! We’ll come United!

    Against this background we call for decentralized actions and local meetings around the anniversary of the march of hope, starting from the 2nd of September 2017 – in your city, your village, your neighbourhood. Be creative!
    And we invite delegations from all over Europe to come to Berlin at the 16th of September to join a big antiracist parade.

    Welcome united! We’ll come United!

    First Signatures:
    Network of Social Support to Refugees and Migrants, Diktio, Athens, Greece
    Clandestina,Thessaloniki, Greece
    Second Home, migrant community from Ljubljana, Slovenia
    Welcome Initiative, Zagreb, Croatia
    Coordinamento Migranti Bologna, Italy
    Aktion Zunder, Switzerland
    Autonome Schule Zurich, Switzerland
    collectif R, Switzerland
    solidarités sans frontières, Switzerland
    „wo Unrecht zu Recht wird“, Switzerland
    Association des Travailleur Maghrébin de France, Strasbourg
    Missing at the Borders, France
    Get-Together Network in Germany
    WatchTheMed Alarm Phone with groups from Berlin, Bremen, Bristol, Cologne, Hamburg,
    Hanau, Istanbul, Izmir, Leipzig, Munich, Netherlands, Strasbourg, Tunis, Zurich
    Moving Europe
    Afrique Europe Interact
    Welcome to Europe

    Contact: kmii-hanau@antira.info <mailto:kmii-hanau@antira.info>
    Website of Get-Together Network in Germany:
    http://www.welcome-united.org

  • Evacuation du camp de réfugiés de Choucha – 2017

    19 Juin 2017

    Une opération d’évacuation du camp de réfugiés de Choucha à Ben Guerdane a commencé dans la matinée du lundi 19 juin 2017. L’opération a été lancée avec la présence d’un grand nombre d’agents de sécurité et de l’armée nationale.

  • European Civil Rescue Organisations Stand Up Against Smuggling Allegations

    SAR is not criminal

  • Superfortress Europe

    [FR] [NL] plus bas / hieronder

    [ENG] On the significance ot the Valletta-treaty for Niger – Money, knowledge and technology in exchange for shifting Europe’s borders:
    excellent documentary Superfortress Europe (46 min; 19/02/17)

    arton6058VPRO Backlight is participating in the research project Security for Sale, an initiative of dutch internet Correspondent. Journalists from Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Netherlands, Belgium and Italy explore the expanding European security industry: https://thecorrespondent.com/10221/security-for-sale-the-price-we-pay-to-protect-europeans

    [NL]

    Over de betekenis van de Valetta-overeenkomst voor Niger kijk naar
    Superfort Europa (46 min; VPRO Tegenlicht 19 febr 2017)

    VPRO Tegenlicht doet mee aan het onderzoeksproject Security for Sale, een initiatief van De Correspondent. Journalisten uit Zweden, Denemarken, Duitsland, Frankrijk, Nederland, België en Italië onderzoeken de uitdijende Europese veiligheidsindustrie:
    http://www.vpro.nl/programmas/tegenlicht/lees/bijlagen/2016-2017/superfort-europa/gidsartikel.html
    https://thecorrespondent.com/10221/security-for-sale-the-price-we-pay-to-protect-europeans

    Europa’s zuidgrens ligt niet meer aan de Middellandse Zee, maar midden in Afrika (Correspondent)
    Niger en de buitengrens van Europa (VPRO Tegenlicht)

    [FR]

    Bientot aussi en francais le documentaire Super Fortresse Europe (fait parti du projet de recherche Security for Sale, une initiative du journal digital Neérlandais Correspondant: des journalistes de la Suède, du Danemark, de l’Allemagne, de la France, des Pays-Bas, de la Belgique et de l’Italie explorent l’industrie de la sécurité européenne en expansion: https://thecorrespondent.com/10221/security-for-sale-the-price-we-pay-to-protect-europeans).
    Enquête de Basta! (aussi Security for Sale):
    Migrants, Schengen, terrorisme : comment le complexe militaro-industriel européen prospère sur la peur

  • The European travel document. Yet another step to deport by all means

    [eng. below]

    http://www.migreurop.org/IMG/pdf/cp-valettelpe-final_fr.pdf

    Le Laissez-passer européen, un pas supplémentaire
    vers l’expulsion à tout prix

    Alors que des hauts fonctionnaires africains et européens se réunissent à Malte les 8/9 février 2017 à mi-parcours du processus de la Valette, l’Union européenne fait un pas de plus pour restreindre la mobilité des personnes migrantes et imposer sa loi aux pays d’où viennent la majorité d’entre elles, sous la forme du « laissez-passer européen », adopté sans bruit en octobre 2016.

    Le plan d’action lancé à La Valette en novembre 2015 par l’UE, ses Etats membres et 35 Etats africains vise à « lutter contre l’immigration irrégulière, le trafic d’êtres humains et les causes profondes de la migration forcée ». Actuellement en cours d’évaluation, il s’appuie sur la « coopération extérieure » pour obtenir la signature, par des  Etats « tiers », d’accords de réadmission destinés à expulser plus facilement les personnes migrantes.

    Avec le laissez-passer européen (LPE), l’UE marque une étape supplémentaire de la stratégie d’externalisation de  sa politique migratoire depuis vingt ans. Ce document de voyage, délivré par les Etats membres de l’UE – et eux  seuls -, permet d’expulser une personne sans qu’elle ait été identifiée par le pays « tiers » dont elle est supposée  être originaire, et donc sans laissez-passer consulaire, au mépris de ses droits et du principe d’égalité entre Etats  souverains (garanti par la Convention de Vienne).

    En dépit de l’opposition exprimée dès novembre 2015 par les responsables africains présents au Sommet de  La Valette et réitérée début 2017 par la société civile et le gouvernement maliens, le LPE – malgré ses défauts  majeurs de forme et de fond – est bel et bien déjà utilisé.Au-delà des effets négatifs immédiats d’une mesure  d’éloignement sur les personnes, le flou total qui caractérise la mise en œuvre du LPE laisse craindre un nombre  important de violation des droits, en atteste le nombre de questions sans réponse que pose l’utilisation de ce  document (voir liste ci-jointe).

    A l’heure où la machine à expulser gagne en puissance (coopération avec la Turquie, l’Afghanistan, la Libye, nouvelles prérogatives octroyées à Frontex), les droits fondamentaux ne sont même pas évoqués dans le texte paru  au Journal Officiel de l’UE sur le LPE.

    Les réseaux africains et européens d’organisations de la société civile signataires du présent communiqué  réclament que les Etats membres de l’UE suspendent immédiatement l’utilisation du LPE et que l es autorités  européennes fournissent et publient sans délai les informations complémentaires et indispensables concernant sa  mise en œuvre (voir liste des informations ci-jointe).

    La mobilité est un droit, et non un outil de chantage diplomatique.
    7 février 2017

    ________________________________________________________

    [eng]

    http://www.migreurop.org/IMG/pdf/pr-valettaeutd-final_en.pdf

    The European travel document
    Yet another step to deport by all means

    Mid-way in the Valletta processes, and as African and European high officials are meeting in Malta on 8/9 February 2017, the European Union is crossing a step further in its attempts to limit mobility of migrants and imposes its rule on countries where most of migrants originate from through the use of the “European travel document”, a document adopted last October 2016 and almost unnoticed.

    The action plan established in Valletta in November 2015 by the EU, its Member States as well as 35 African states  aims to “address irregular migration, human trafficking as well as the root causes of forced migration”. Currently  under mid-term review, the action plan bases upon “external cooperation” in order to get “third” states’ signature on  readmission agreements. Those agreements should facilitate the removal of migrants.

    The European travel document (EUTD) marks yet another step in the EU’s strategy to externalise its migration policy  or over twenty years. This travel document is issued exclusively by EU Member States and enables the  deportation of a person without s/he has been identified by the “third” country h/she suspected of coming from, i.e.  without the person being issued a consular travel document regardless of the person’s rights and of the principle of  equality between sovereign states (guaranteed in the Vienna Convention).

    Despite the strong opposition of African leaders against the European travel document as soon as November 2015, a position reasserted in early 2017 by civil society and the Malian government, the EUTD is already in use, irrespective of substantial shortcomings both in the format and in the content.

    Beyond the negative and immediate impact of a removal order on people, it should be stressed that the complete  vagueness on the use of the EUTD may lead to serious human rights violations, as illustrated by the number of  interrogations and uncertainties (see attached list).

    As the deportation apparatus is gaining in strength (cooperation with Turkey, Afghanistan, Libya, as well as  Frontex’s new prerogatives), it is worth noting that fundamental rights are not even mentioned once in the related  regulation published in the EU Official Journal.

    The undersigned European and African networks of civil society organisations hereby call on the EU Member States  to immediately suspend the use of the EUTD, and call on the EU authorities to provide publicly and with no delay complementary and indispensable information on its use (see attached list of required information).

    Mobility is a right, not a tool for diplomacy bargain.
    February, 7 th , 2017

  • Voluntary Code of Conduct for Search and Rescue Operations undertaken by civil society Non-Government Organisations in the Mediterranean Sea

    Voluntary Code of Conduct for Search and Rescue Operations undertaken by civil society Non-Government Organisations in the Mediterranean Sea

  • Le Mali refuse le Paissez-passer européen et appele les compagnies aériennes à ne pas les accepter / Mali refuses EU-Laissez-passers and calls airline companies not to accept them

    [EN] below

    Voici le refus de Laissez-passer européen de l’Etat Malien 29 dec. 2016 avec lequel deux migrants en provenance de France ont été renvoyés par le mème vol à l’aéroport international de Bamako.

    refus LP UE Mali

    (en-dessous copie du Laissez-passer Européen)

    Communiqué Association Malienne des Expulsés

    L’utilisation du laissez-passer européen par certains pays européens constitue une violation de la Convention de Vienne

    vendredi 6 janvier 2017

    Le mercredi 28 décembre 2016 les services de sécurité maliennes (Police des Airs et des Frontières) ont procédé au refoulement de deux personnes arrivées au Mali le même jour par les vols Aigle Azur ZI 521 et Air France AF 386. Ces deux personnes supposées être des maliens étaient détentrices de laissez-passer européens comme document de voyage alors que ces documents n’ont aucune base juridique et légale.

    L’utilisation du laissez-passer européen par certains pays européens constitue une violation de la Convention de Vienne du 24 avril 1963 sur les relations consulaires dans la mesure où ces migrants expulsés vers le Mali n’étaient pas accompagnés par des documents délivrés par les services consulaires de la République du Mali.

    Pour rappel, le gouvernement du Mali à travers le Ministère des Affaires Etrangères, de l’Intégration Africaine et de la Coopération Internationale avait déjà mis en garde les autorités françaises contre l’utilisation des laissez-passer européens. Une note verbale a été émise dans ce sens le 27 juin 2015 et prévoyait le renvoi systématique par les mêmes vols des personnes expulsées au Mali et ne possédant pas de documents délivrés par le Consulat du Mali.

    L’Association Malienne des Expulsés (AME) se réjouit et félicite le gouvernement de la République du Mali pour le refoulement vers la France des deux personnes expulsées au Mali. L’AME exhorte le gouvernement et l’encourage de continuer à œuvrer pour le respect des droits des migrants et pour une relation franche entre les deux Etats.

    L’AME invite les Etats membres de l’Union Européenne à renoncer à l’utilisation des laissez-passer européens et le gouvernement Malien à mettre fin sans délais aux opérations d’identification de nos compatriotes en Europe.

    Enfin, l’AME s’interroge sur le sort des migrants expulsés sur la base du laissez-passer européen et qui vivent actuellement au Mali.

    Le Président
    Ousmane DIARRA

    L’Association Malienne des Expulsés et All Included sont membres de Afrique-Europe Interact

    Afrique-Europe-Interact est un petit réseau, constitué début 2010, organisé au niveau transnational. Participent à ce réseau des activistes de base, venant pour la plupart du Mali, du Togo, de l’Allemagne, de l’Autriche et de la Hollande ; parmi eux, de nombreux réfugiés, migrants et expulsés organisés de façon autonome.

    Observatoire de la Société Civile Ouest Africaine sur le Plan d’Action de la Valette: Déclaration de dix ONGs de dix pays de l’Afrique de l’Ouest
    LP EU 2016 France

    [EN]

    Mali/EU: Two returnees sent back to France as Mali rejects EU laissez-passer document
    On 29 December 2016, the Malian government produced a statement announcing its refusal to recognise the validity of the EU laissez-passer document used to return two of its citizens, who were sent back to France following their arrival in Bamako on 28 December 2016. The Malian authorities also invited air carriers to refrain from transporting its citizens on the basis of recognition of the validity of such documents, noting that they will be made to fly them back to Europe.

    Statement by the Government of the Republic of Mali (29 December 2016)
    Two (02) people, holders of European laissez-passer documents arrived in Bamako on Wednesday 28 December 2016 at around 8:00 p.m. on flights Aigle Azur ZI 521 and Air France AF 386. The Malian security services adopted measures to return them to the border. Consequently, they were placed on board of the same aeroplanes again and left the Malian territory.
    For a long time, the Government of the Republic of Mali has clearly indicated to its European partners that it opposes the use of European laissez-passer documents to expel our compatriots or people who are presumed to be Malians.

    This use of the European laissez-passer documents contravenes international conventions and does not enable Mali to lend the assistance which is required to our compatriots, nor to prevent the expulsion of non-Malians to Mali nor, especially, to ascertain that our compatriots are not mistreated, that all their rights are respected and their dignity is safeguarded.

    In any case, the Government of the Republic of Mali could not accept that some people, who are merely presumed to be Malians, may be expelled to Mali on the basis of such a document, and clarifies again that only a passport or a Malian laissez-passer may provide a right of access to Malian territory.

    Consequently, the Government of the Republic of Mali invites all air carriers not to allow people who are holders of European laissez-passer documents on board of their flights travelling to Mali, as they will returned to the border on the same flights.

    All our partners will be reminded through the appropriate channels of all these provisions, about which they have already been notified.

    Bamako, 29 December 2016

    For the Government,

    The Minister of Statistical Economy and Communications,
    and Government Spokesman

    Use of the European laissez-passer by certain European countries constitutes a violation of the Vienna Convention
    Statement by the Association Malienne des Expulsés, 6 January 2017
    On Wednesday 28 December 2016 the Malian security services (Air and Border Police) enacted the refoulement of two people who arrived in Mali on the same day in flights Aigle Azur ZI 521 and Air France AF 386. These two people who were presumed to be Malians were holders of European laissez-passer documents as travel documents although such documents do not have any legal and judicial basis.

    The use of European laissez-passer documents by certain EU countries constitutes a violation of the Vienna Convention of 24 April 1963 on consular relations, insofar as these migrants expelled to Mali were not in possession of documents issued by the consular services of the Republic of Mali.
    We recall that the Malian government, through the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, for African Integration and for International Cooperation, had already warned the French authorities against using European laissez-passer documents. A verbal note was issued to announce this on 27 june 2015, envisaging the systematic return using the same aeroplanes of people expelled to Mali without being in possession of documents produced by the Consulate of Mali.

    The Association Malienne des Expulsés (AME, Malian Association of Expellees) welcomes this and congratulates the government of the Republic of Mali for these returns to France of the two people who were expelled to Mali. AME exhorts the government and encourages it to continue to act for the sake of respect for the rights of migrants and for a frank relationship between the two States.

    AME invites the Member States of the European Union to give up on the use of of European laissez-passer documents and for the Malian government to immediately put an end to its operations to identify our compatriots in Europe.

    Finally, AME is concerned about the fate of migrants who have been expelled on the basis of European laissez-passer documents and who currently live in Mali.

    The President
    Ousmane DIARRA

    Translations by Statewatch
    The original versions of both statements (in French) are available on the Dutch website All Included, which also includes a copy of the European laissez-passer document issued by the French authorities, at: http://www.allincluded.nl/posts/le-mali-appele-compagnies-aeriennes-barrer-acces-aux-personnes-avec-laissez-passer-europeen/
    The website of the Association Malienne des Expulsés, http://www.expulsesmaliens.info/
    and the 6 January 2017 statement,
    L’utilisation du laissez-passer européen par certains pays européens constitue une violation de la Convention de Vienne: http://www.expulsesmaliens.info/L-utilisation-du-laissez-passer.html

    L’Association Malienne des Expulsés and All Included are members of Afrique-Europe Interact

    Afrique-Europe-Interact is a small, transnationally organised network that was founded in early 2010. It consists of grassroots activists mainly from Mali, Togo, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands – many of them self-organised refugees, migrants and people who were deported.

    Déclaration de la Société Civile d’Afrique de l’Ouest sur le Plan d’action Valletta

    Observatory of the West African Civil Society on the La Valletta Action Plan: Declaration of ten NGO’s from ten West-African countries

     

  • Mali ontkent’ leugenachtige informatie’ over Koenders EU-akkoord met Mali over terugkeer migranten en eist rectificatie

    De Malinese minister van Buitenlandse Zaken, Internationale Samenwerking en Afrikaanse Integratie, S.E.M. Abdoulaye DIOP, heeft in een persbericht 12 december 2016 een ‘démenti formel’ – een formele ontkenning – uitgevaardigd. Hierin wordt een EU akkoord met Mali over terugkeer van migranten ten stelligste ontkend. Een dag eerder – de dag van het bezoek van minister Koenders aan Mali 11 december – verspreidde het Nederlandse Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken het nieuwsbericht van een terugkeerovereenkomst onder de titel ‘Koenders sluit namens EU akkoord met Mali over terugkeer migranten’. Naar aanleiding van de mediaberichten (o.a. “EU, Mali sign deal to return refugees”) ontstond een heuse rel in Bamako.

    De Malinese minister Diop (die zelf Koenders had uitgenodigd) verklaarde in een persbericht:
    “Het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken, Internationale Samenwerking en Afrikaanse Integratie ontkent deze leugenachtige informatie ten zeerste waarvan zij de ware intenties niet kent. De verspreiding van valse informatie is een overtreding bestaande uit het verspreiden van desinformatie voor manipulatie doeleinden (….). Om de controverse te beëindigen wijst het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken van Mali erop dat er nergens sprake is geweest van een ondertekening van welk overeenkomst dan ook die het mogelijk zou maken onze landgenoten die irregulier in Europa verblijven uit te zetten.” (volledige tekst onderaan of hier)
    „Van de kant van de regering van Mali verwerpen wij deze verklaring volledig”, zegt Diop. „Want er is geen akkoord getekend over de terugkeer van migranten. De verklaring weerspiegelt niet de punten die zijn besproken.” Hij noemt het belangrijk dat Nederland het bericht corrigeert.
    Europarlementariër Sargentini zei in VPRO Bureau Buitenland dat ze over de kwestie vragen gaat stellen aan Eurocommissaris Mogherini.

    De Association Malienne des Expulsés (AME) heeft sinds jaren in Bamako succesvol actie gevoerd tegen een terugkeer-overeenkomst. Migratie is een belangrijke bron van inkomsten voor een arm land als Mali. De AME heeft na bezoek aan het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken in Bamako maandag j.l. verzekerd dat er geen sprake is geweest van ‘verraad van de kant van Mali’ en dat ‘de beslissing van categorische weigering om een terugname-overeenkomst te ondertekenen nog steeds geldig is’. Sinds het Valetta-akkoord tussen Afrikaanse staten en de Europese Unie uit nov. 2015 oefent de Europese Unie grote druk uit op Afrikaanse landen om de onderlinge Afrikaanse grenzen te sluiten voor migranten en om migranten uit Europa terug te nemen. In febr. 2016 zetten tien West-Afrikaanse NGO’s waaronder de AME de ‘Observatoire de la Société Civile Ouest Africaine sur le Plan d’Action de la Valette’ op om op te komen voor migrantenrechten als vrijheid van beweging en om te ijveren voor veilige legale migratie. De AME bereidt zich momenteel voor met een grote mobilisatie tegen een mogelijke terugname-overeenkomst.

    Amsterdam, 16 december 2016
    All Included

    De AME maakt deel uit van het Afrique-Europe Interact netwerk waar ondergetekende All Included ook deel van uitmaakt

    Meer informatie:
    – Déclaration de la Société Civile Ouest Africaine a l’issue de la réunion sur la mise en oeuvre du plan d’action de la Valette par les etats membres de la Cedeao
    – Afrique-Europe Interact:”do not sign any readmission agreement or contracts concerning the acknowledgement of EU-laisser passer”
    – De Association Malienne des Expulsés (AME) keert zicht tegen een ondertekening van een “overnameovereenkomst” die het mogelijk maakt Malinesen zonder papieren van Europa te verdrijven zonder instemming van een Malinese consulaat: http://news.abamako.com/h/145434.html

    COMMINIQUE DU MINISTERE DES AFFAIRES ETRANGAIRES, DE LA COOPERATION INTERNATIONALE ET DE L’INTEGRATION AFRICAINE (DEMENTI FORMEL)
    Le 12 décembre 2016, le journal L’Orient LE JOUR a révélé dans sa parution que le Mali a signé un Accord avec l’Union Européenne sur la Migration. Selon ce journal, l’UE signe le premier accord avec un pays africain sur le retour de demandeurs d’asile, en faisant allusion au Mali.
    Le Ministère des Affaires étrangères, de la Coopération internationale et de l’Intégration africaine dément fermement ces informations mensongères du journal dont il ignore leurs vraies intentions. Le délit de diffusion de fausse information est une infraction consistant à répandre des informations erronées aux fins de manipulation.
    La visite au Mali de SEM Bert Koenders, Ministre des Affaires étrangères des Pays-Bas s’inscrit dans le cadre du dialogue de Haut niveau sur toutes les questions de coopération notamment la migration, initié entre le Mali et l’Union européenne depuis le Sommet de La Valette tenu les 11 et 12 novembre 2015.
    Dans la pratique diplomatique, il est courant que des visites de cette nature soient sanctionnées par un communiqué commun, conjoint ou de presse. Celui-ci fait ressortir les sujets discutés et fixe les échéances. Aussitôt après la rencontre, le communiqué a été diffusé immédiatement et nulle part, il n’a été question de signature d’un quelconque accord qui permettrait d’expulser nos compatriotes en situation irrégulière en Europe.
    Un communiqué conjoint n’a pas la valeur juridique d’un accord en droit international.
    Il importe de signaler que ces “journalistes” de L’Orient LE JOUR n’ont pas agi en professionnel car toute information avant sa diffusion doit obéir à des règles de vérification.
    Par conséquent, le Ministère des Affaires étrangères, de la Coopération internationale et de l’Intégration africaine invite tout un chacun à lire le texte de communiqué commun qui a été largement diffusé. (voir le site web du Ministère des Affaires Étrangères www.diplomatie.ml).
    Bamako, le 12 décembre 2016

  • JOIN US IN ‘THE FLOWERS CAMPAIGN’

    In October 2016, the United Nations announced that 3800 people had died in the Mediterranean Sea since the beginning of the year. With more boats sinking off the Libyan coast recently, this number has unfortunately increased, setting a tragic new record in 2016. More than ten thousand men, women and children have thus died over the last two years. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 22000 migrants have perished since the year 2000, their crafts having sunk in the waters of this sea-cemetery. Although this tragedy leaves us with a heavy conscience and a heavy heart, no viable solutions have been found to end this situation.

    campagne-des-fleurs-1

    Migration has become a dangerous undertaking for an entire swathe of humanity:
    For those human beings who are considered second-class citizens and no longer have the right to freedom of movement; who are unable to flee the conflicts, bullets and bombs decimating their families; to whom exodus is denied even after seeing their cattle succumb to drought, their harvests decimated, their fishing and agricultural activities prohibited following occupation of their land and waterways;  for populations living under the oppression of corrupt leaders that are supported by an economic system that ensures they remain in power against the will of the people.

    Migrants arriving to settle in certain countries are victims of collective expulsion. They are more and more arrested; Suffer physical and moral abuse and in the worst cases are killed to the detriment of international rights and under the watchful eye of African leaders and the international community.

    This desperate situation should have incited the international community to renew its commitment to the values of solidarity and sharing rather than egocentricity, selfishness and the pursuit of profits. Alas, the governments in both the North and South have responded to this tragedy by introducing xenophobic policies that infringe human rights and by proclaiming assistance to migrants an offense. Laws are continually being adopted to facilitate free-trade and the transfer of money, encouraging tax evasion, yet, at the same time, the mobility of human beings is being restricted through tighter visa requirements. Human life now has less value than a bottle of Coca Cola.

    Convinced that securitarian, xenophobic and repressive policies are totally ineffective in solving the existential crisis undermining our societies and in celebration of International Migrants Day on the 18th December, the member organisations of the West African Observatory on Migrations are launching “the Flowers Campaign”.

    On the 18th December, the Flowers Campaign aims to pay homage to all the migrants that have died on the borders and in the seas, oceans and deserts of the world. On this occasion, the West African Observatory on Migrations invites all citizens that support solidarity and justice to join us in paying homage to the migrants that have perished by throwing a flower into a stream, lagoon, river, sea or ocean. To also honour the migrants that live near our homes, we invite you to participate by offering them a flower or the drawing of a flower as a token of your esteem.

    Together, let’s unite forces to oppose xenophobic laws and promote global diversity.

    West African Observatory on Migrations
    Observatoire Ouest Africain des Migrations
    Observatório Oeste Africano das Migrações
    www.obsmigration.org
    Tél / Whatsapp:(+228) 90794412 <+228%2090%2079%2044%2012>
    14BP173 Lomé-TOGO

  • bijeenkomst met Alassane Dicko uit Mali

    [english underneath]

    debat over het La Valletta migratieakkoord tussen de EU en Afrika en de betekenis voor West-Afrikaanse bevolking

    met gast Alassane Dicko uit Bamako/Mali

    dinsdag 13 sept. 20 uur
    Dokhuis Galerie | Plantage Doklaan 8 te Amsterdam

    eten vooraf: 19 uur (5 euro; graag reserveren op antwoordapparaat 020-3795236 maandag uiterlijk)

    alassane_p1020343

    Alassane Dicko is een activist uit Bamako die zich inzet voor de sociale beweging in Mali (migratie, externalisatie van grensbewaking, gentrification, landroof). Na jarenlang secretaris te zijn geweest van de Association Malienne des Expulsés (AME) is Alassane nu actief binnen de Malinese sectie van Afrique-Europe Interact (AEI) onder de leus Vrije Migratie en Duurzame Ontwikkeling. All Included is vanuit Nederland actief lid van AEI. AEI is actief in Mali, maar ook in Togo. Meer over Togo en AEI.

    Onder het mom van de vele doden in de Middellandse Zee sluiten de Europese Unie en Afrikaanse regeringen in nov. 2015 een migratie-akkoord in La Valletta/Malta. De Afrikaanse landen zeggen onder zware druk toe hun grenzen te gaan sluiten voor migranten met als beloning een noodfonds van twee miljard euro voor ontwikkelingsprojecten. Tijdens de top roept Afrique-Europe Interact middels een persconferentie in Bamako de Afrikaanse leiders in een open brief op niet mee te werken aan een plan die onvoorwaardelijk uitgaat van de belangen van het westen zoals het terugnemen van uit te zetten migranten en sluiten van de grenzen tussen de Afrikaanse staten. Een duurzame ontwikkeling ten bate van de gehele bevolking en respect voor de rechten van migranten en vluchtelingen dient voorop te staan, stelt AEI.

    Tijdens een regeringsbijeenkomst van de Economische Gemeenschap van West-Afrikaanse Staten (ECOWAS) begin 2016 nemen tien NGO’s uit West-Afrika het gezamelijk initiatief tot het opzetten van de ‘Observatoire Ouest Africain des Migrations’, een monitoring van het La Valletta Actie Plan. Zij ondersteunen als civil society het zoeken van oplossingen voor het aanhoudende drama aan de Europese kusten, in de Sahara woestijn en in de Golf van Guinee. Maar zij stellen eveneens dat de eis van migratie management de ECOWAS enorme schade zou toebrengen. 84% van de West Afrikaanse migranten leven immers in een ander ECOWAS land. De Observatoire beschuldigt de EU tevens van het uitoefenen van zware druk aangaande het ondertekenen van de Economische Partnerschapsakkoorden die de kleine lokale productie-units laat concurreren met de grote Europese bedrijven.

    Daar Nederland in de eerste helft van 2016 voorzitter van de Raad van de Europese Unie is, deelt Minister Koenders in april 2016 in verscheidene Afrikaanse landen La Valletta-ontwikkelingsgelden uit in ruil voor toezeggingen en een handtekening onder een akkoord. Door druk van de sociale beweging heeft de regering in Bamako nooit een terugnameoveereenkomst getekend waarmee het zich verplicht irreguliere migranten terug te nemen. Inkomsten uit migratie is voor de Afrikaanse bevolking te essentieel. Nu wist Koenders een handtekening van de Malinese premier los te krijgen. Mali zou het sturen van immigratiemissies naar Europese detentiecentra hebben toegezegd ter identificatie van uit te zetten ongedocumententeerde migranten. Tevens zullen de EU en Mali grenscontroles versterken en mensensmokkel tegengaan.

    Wat zal met het La Valletta akkoord veranderen voor de bevolking in Mali? En hoe heeft de sociale beweging hierop gereageerd?

    Wat zijn de andere belangrijke thema’s die spelen in Mali?

    Wat kunnen we hier in Nederland doen om de sociale beweging in West-Afrika te ondersteunen?

    Welkom op deze bijeenkomst!
    dinsdag 13 sept. 20u, Dok Gallery, Plantage Doklaan 8 Amsterdam.
    Eten vooraf: 19u (5 euro; graag reserveren op antwoordapparaat 020-3795236 maandag uiterlijk).

    Meer informatie
    All Included: http://www.allincluded.nl/posts/category/actie/acties-tegen-eu-afrika-afspraken-valletta/
    Afrique-Europe Interact: http://afrique-europe-interact.net/113-1-Home.html

    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>&
    Andere All Included-evenementen:

    “Harragas”, Algerijnse speelfilm van Merzak Allouache (2010)
    vr. 23 sept. 20u
    Cineclub in de Meevaart
    Balistraat 48A Amsterdam
    https://www.facebook.com/Cineclub-in-de-Meevaart-Balistraat-48-A-Amsterdam-665047870201773/
    trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=997zobbtT8k

    Ferdous Buffet
    zo. 25 sept. 12-16u
    at Budapest, Pesthuislaan 2 (WG-terrein) Amsterdam
    Food is vegetarian starter, vegetarian curry, drink, soup, fruit, salad.
    Nutritious meals, fruity desserts and more art.

     

    [english]

    debate on the Valletta summit on migration between the EU and Africa and its meaning for West African population

    with guest Alassane Dicko from Bamako/Mali

    Tuesday 13 September. 8 pm
    Dok Gallery | Plantage Doklaan 8 Amsterdam

    meal at 7pm (5 euros, please book by leaving a message on 020-3795236 monday at the latest)

    Alassane Dicko is an activist in Bamako dedicated to the social movement in Mali (migration, externalization of border control, gentrification, land grabbing). After years of secretary of the Association Malienne des Expulsés (=deportees; AME) Alassane is now active in the Malian section of Afrique-Europe Interact (AEI) under the slogan Freedom of movement and Sustainable development. All Included is from the Netherlands an active member of AEI.

    Under the guise of the many deaths in the Mediterranean the European Union and African governments close a migration deal in Valletta/Malta in Nov. 2015. African countries agree under heavy pressure to close their borders for migrants with an emergency fund of two billion euros for development projects as a reward. During the summit Afrique-Europe Interact calls in an open letter at a press conference in Bamako on the African leaders not to contribute to a plan unconditionally based on the interests of the West such as the readmission of irregular immigrants and the closing of the borders among African states. Sustainable development for the benefit of the entire population and respect for the rights of migrants and refugees must be to the forefront, says AEI.

    During a government meeting of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) early 2016 ten NGOs from West Africa take the joint initiative to set up the “Observatoire Ouest Africain des Migrations”, a monitoring of the Valletta Action Plan. As civil society they support looking for solutions to the ongoing drama at Europe’s coasts, in the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. But they also argue that the requirement for migration management would cause enormous damage to the ECOWAS. 84% of West African migrants are living in another ECOWAS country. The Observatoire also accuses the EU of exerting heavy pressure on the signing of the Economic Partnership Agreements which forces small local production units to compete with large European firms.

    With the Netherlands as President of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2016 foreign minister Koenders distributes Valletta development funds in several African countries in exchange for promisses and a signature under an agreement. By pressure of the social movement, the government in Bamako never signed a readmission agreement forcing Mali to take back irregular migrants. Remittances are essential for the African population. Now Koenders was able to extract a signature of the Malian prime minister. Mali would have promissed to send immigration missions to European detention centers to identify undocumented migrants. The EU also will help strengthening Malian border controls and combating human trafficking.

    Will the Valletta agreement change the situation for the population in Mali? How has the social movement responded?
    What are the other important themes playing in Mali?
    What can we do here in the Netherlands to support the social movement in West Africa?

    Welcome to this meeting!
    Tuesday 13 September. 8 pm, Dok Gallery, Plantage Doklaan 8 Amsterdam.
    meal at 7pm (5 euros, please book by leaving a message on 020-3795236 monday at the latest)

    More information:
    All Included: http://www.allincluded.nl/posts/category/actie/acties-tegen-eu-afrika-afspraken-valletta/
    Afrique-Europe Interact: http://afrique-europe-interact.net/113-1-Home.html

    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
    Other All Included events:

    “Harragas” Algerian film by Merzak Allouache (2010)
    vr. 23 Sept. 8:00 pm
    Cineclub at the Meevaart
    Balistraat 48A Amsterdam
    https://www.facebook.com/Cineclub-in-de-Meevaart-Balistraat-48-A-Amsterdam-665047870201773/
    Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=997zobbtT8k

    Ferdous Buffet
    sunday Sept. 25. 12 am – 4 pm
    at Budapest, Pesthuislaan 2 (WG-premises) Amsterdam
    Food is vegetarian starter, vegetarian curry, drink, soup, fruit, salad.
    Nutritious meals, fruity desserts and more art.

  • Rapport de la manifestation du Jeudi 9 Juin 2016 à Sokodé (Togo)

    RESEAU AFRIQUE-EUROPE INTERACT SECTION TOGO (AEI-TOGO)

    Le jeudi 9 Juin 2016, l’Association Togolaise des Expulsés a organisé une manifestation à Sokodé (Togo). L’objectif de la manifestation était de dénoncer la politique migratoire de l’union européenne en Afrique et surtout le plan d’action de la valette au sommet Afrique Europe en novembre 2015. La population de Sokodé a été sensibilisée sur quatre points :

    • Visa et tracasseries aux frontières

    • Déportations et la politique migratoire européenne

    • Situation de migrants en mer et dans le désert

    • Approches de solutions à la question migratoire en Afrique et en Europe.

    Le facilitateur de cette sensibilisation, le Coordinateur du Réseau Afrique-Europe InternAct section-Togo a expliqué les quatre points sus-indiqués.

    Dans son explication, il a apporté la lumière de la complicité des chefs d’Etat africains de refuser aux ambassades européens de donner des visa à leur concitoyen désireux de voyager.

    Le facilitateur a ensuite dénoncer la politique de l’union européenne aux participants. En effet, l’UE a crée une agence européenne dénommée le FRONTEX pour empêcher les migrations vers l’Europe. L’UE a donc signé des accords avec les pays africains membre de FRONTEX.

    Abordant la situation des migrants dans la mer méditerranée et dans le désert, le facilitateur a fait comprendre à la population d’importants dégâts en vies humines dans la mer et dans le désert. Il a souligné le décès de deux (02) jeunes gens de Sokodé dont l’un est coiffeur l’autre un photographe. Selon l’OIM, on compte plus de 5 000 morts en 2015.

    Que faut-il faire face à cette situation de départ des jeunes africains vers l’Europe ?

    Selon les participants à la manifestation, il faut : (voir la déclaration en annexe)

    Fait à Sokodé, le 14 Juin 2016

    Le Rapporteur

    Razakou ABOUBAKARI

    Thème : « Sauvons la vie des migrants »

    DECLARATION

    Le Jeudi 9 Juin 2016, le Réseau Afrique Europe Interact Section Togo à organisé une manifestation sur le thème « Sauvons la vie des migrants » dans la ville de Sokodé (Togo). En effet, Sokodé est l’une des principales villes togolaises de départ de migrants et compte au sein de sa population actuelle beaucoup d’anciens migrants expulsés d’Europe et de divers pays d’Afrique vers le Togo.

    Etaient présents à la manifestation les membres de l’Association Togolaises des expulsés (ATE), les migrants de transit (Nigérien, Malien, Peuls nomades…) le groupement des femmes migrantes de l’Afrique Subsaharienne et de l’Europe et une centaine d’habitants de la ville de Sokodé.

    L’objectif de la manifestation était de dénoncer le plan d’action de la valette sur les nouvelles politiques migratoires adoptées par l’Union Européennes. Les participants à la manifestation, à la suite des témoignages et exposé débat du thème entendus, déclarent :

    • La migration est un mouvement d’individus dans le temps et dans l’espace.

    • La nécessité de mettre fin aux expulsions des migrants dans tout pays (Afrique ou Europe)

    • L’urgence de soutenir des migrants expulsés ou refugiés.

    Ils a appellent à :

    • Ouvrir les frontières et permettre la libre circulation des personnes et des biens.

    • Revoir la p politique de contrôle des frontières par l’agence FRONTEX.

    • Mettre plus de ressources suffisantes sur le plan économique, social et culturel en Afrique pour la réduction de la pauvreté.

    • Organiser des forums à l’échelle internationale pour une résolution définitive de la question de la migration.

    Non à l’agence européenne de contrôle des frontières (FRONTEX) !

    Non aux accords signés par les Etats africains pour empêcher leur propre population de migrer.

    Fait à Sokodé, le 9 Juin 2016

  • Joint NGO statement condemning new EU policies to contain migration

    At the upcoming European Council, European Union (EU) leaders will discuss the European Commission’s Communication on a new Partnership Framework with third countries. The Communication proposes an approach which aims to leverage existing EU and Member States’ external cooperation instruments and tools in order to stem migration to Europe. The undersigned organisations express their grave concern about the direction the EU is taking by making deterrence and return the main objective of the Union’s relationship with third countries. More broadly, this new Partnership Framework risks cementing a shift towards a foreign policy that serves one single objective, to curb migration, at the expense of European credibility and leverage in defence of fundamental values and human rights.

    http://oxf.am/ZB8f

    The proposed approach is inspired by the EU-Turkey deal which although touted as a successful example of cooperation, has actually left thousands people stranded in Greece in inhumane and degrading conditions. This has particularly affected children, with the result that hundreds of unaccompanied children have been held in closed detention facilities on the islands or forced to sleep in police cells on the Greek mainland. The wider repercussions of this should not be underestimated. It is hard to see how Europe can ask partner countries to keep their doors open, to host large-scale refugee populations and prevent further movements while at the same time Member States refuse to shoulder their fair share of responsibility for protecting people who flee
    their homes. The right to asylum is being significantly undermined, and it will become more and more challenging for civilians in conflict zones to seek international protection.

    The Commission’s proposal ignores all the evidence on the ineffectiveness of deterrence strategies aimed at stopping migration. This approach will not only fail to “break the business-model” of smugglers but increase human suffering as people are forced into taking more dangerous routes. Moreover, despite the stated commitment to respect the principle of non-refoulement, there are no safeguards envisaged to ensure that human rights, rule of law standards and protection mechanisms are in place. As a result, people risk being deported to countries where their rights are not safeguarded. Responsibility and liability for human rights violations do not end at Europe’s borders.

    We are disappointed to see that once again the emphasis on deterrence leaves no clear commitments to open up safe and regular channels to Europe for those in need of international protection and for other migrants, e.g. through resettlement, humanitarian admission schemes, family reunification, educational visas, labour mobility and visa liberalisation. Resettlement, labour migration and visa liberalisation are only mentioned as possible leverage with partner countries in a quid pro quo approach.

    Another major concern is the financing of the proposed Partnership Framework which would represent a wholesale re-orientation of Europe’s development programming towards stopping migration. This is an unacceptable contradiction to the commitment to use development cooperation with the aim to eradicate poverty, as enshrined in the Lisbon Treaty. Aid is for thebenefit of people in need, and should not be used as a leverage for migration control. EU funding should be transparent and adhere to clearly established principles, such as the Busan principles on effectiveness and the Paris principles of ownership by and alignment to partner countries’ strategies. In addition, striking ‘migration management’ agreements with countries where grave human rights violations are committed will be counter-productive in the longer term – undermining
    human rights around the globe and perpetuating the cycle of abuse and repression that causes people to flee.

    Migration has many drivers; people may be on the move in search of new livelihood opportunities, an education or to reunite with family, while conflict and violence, human rights violations, climate change, poverty and unemployment can all trigger migration and forced displacement. Any cooperation to manage migration should take into consideration this complex and multi-faceted reality, be evidence and needs-based, and ensure that the benefits of migration are maximised and the risks are mitigated.

    If the EU wants to call for more global solidarity, it needs to set the right example. The EU, a project built on the rubble of a devastating war, is about to embark on a dark chapter of its history. We urge EU leaders to choose a rights-based system to manage migration, based on a viable long-term strategic vision, rather than pursuing an unattainable and inhumane deterrence objective and thereby abandoning its core founding principles.

    As human rights, humanitarian, medical, migration and development agencies, and key implementing partners of development programmes in third countries, we call on European leaders to:

    1. Reject the current Commission Communication and develop a sustainable long-term and evidence-based strategy for migration management, in consultation with civil society and experts.

    2. Facilitate safe mobility by opening and strengthening safe and regular channels to Europe both for those in need of international protection and other migrants including through resettlement, humanitarian admission and humanitarian visas, family reunification, worker mobility across skill levels and student visas. Member States must commit to clear benchmarks and appropriate timelines for implementing a migration framework that meets
    the needs of migrants , asylum-seekers and refugees, their families, as well as the needs and obligations of Member States.

    3. Exclude any conditionality based on migration control indicators in the allocation of development aid to third countries. Development aid is a tool to fight poverty and inequality, not to manage migration. Vulnerable populations should not be punished because of concerns that are largely political.

    4. Stop any readmissions or removals of people by the EU to a third country that violate – or risk violating – fundamental rights and rule of law, including the principle of non-refoulement. Ensure access to protection, justice and effective remedy for all people in migration and asylum procedures.

    5. Ensure transparency in the development of any instruments to manage migration and accountability for human rights violations resulting from EU migration policies.6. Commit to a foreign policy and action focused on preventing and unlocking protracted crises. While the Communication mentions the need to address root causes of displacement in the long term, it does not include engagement to prevent and manage crises.

    Signatories
    ACT Alliance EU
    ActionAid
    aditus foundation
    Afrique Culture Maroc
    Agir Ensemble pour les Droits de l’Homme
    Aid Services
    Amnesty International
    Amycos
    Andalucía Acoge
    Asamblea de Cooperacion Por la Paz ACPP
    Asgi – Associazione per gli Studi Giuridici sull’Immigrazione
    Asociacion por ti mujer
    Asociacion Salud y Familia – Spain
    Association for action against violence and trafficking in human beings-Open Gate
    La Strada Macedonia.
    Association for the Social Support of Youth
    Ayuda en Acción
    British Refugee Council
    CAFOD
    Care International
    CCOO de Andalucia
    Centre for Youths Integrated Development.
    Centro de Investigaciones en Derechos Humanos PRO IGUAL
    ChildFund Alliance
    Church of Sweden
    Churches’ Commission for Migrants in Europe
    Citizens’ association for combating trafficking in human beings and all forms of gender-
    based violence
    CNCD-11.11.11
    Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado –CEAR-
    Concern Worldwide
    CONCORD Europe
    CONCORD Sweden
    Conseil des Béninois de France
    Consortium of Migrants Assisting Organizations in the Czech Republic
    Coordinadora Andaluza de ONGD
    Coordinadora Cantabra de ONGD
    Coordinadora de ONGD de la Región de Murcia
    Coordinadora de ONGD del Principado de Asturias38.
    Coordinadora de ONGD España
    Coordinadora de ONGD Navarra
    Coordinadora Extremeña de ONGD
    Coordinadora Gallega de ONGD
    Coordinadora ONGD de Castilla y León
    Coordinadora Valenciana de ONGD
    Cordaid
    Detention Action
    Detention Forum
    Doctors of the World International network
    EU-CORD Network
    Eurochild
    EuroMed Rights
    European Association for the Defence of Human Rights
    European Council on Refugees and Exiles
    European Youth Forum
    Federación Aragonesa de ONGD
    Federación de Asociaciones de Derechos Humanos
    Federation of Christian NGOs in Italy
    FIACAT
    FIDH
    FIZ advocacy and support for migrant women and victims of trafficking
    Flüchtlingsrat Niedersachsen e.V.
    Forum des Organisations de Solidarité Internationale issues des Migrations
    Fundacion 1o de Mayo de Comisiones Obreras
    Fundación Alianza por los Derechos, la Igualdad y la Solidaridad Internacional –APS-
    Greek Forum of Refugees
    Habitat for Humanity International, Europe, Middle East and Africa
    Handicap International
    Human Rights Watch
    Human Rights Without Frontiers
    Instituto Sindical de Cooperación al Desarrollo –ISCOD-
    InteRed
    INTERSOS
    Islamic Relief UK
    Jesuit Refugee Service Europe.
    Justice and Peace Netherlands
    KISA-Action for Equality, Support, Antiracism
    Koordinierungsstelle der Österreichischen Bischofskonferenz für internationale
    Entwicklung und Mission
    La Strada International
    Lafede.cat – Organitzacions per a la Justícia Global
    Le Monde des Possibles
    Macedonian Young Lawyers Association
    Menedék – Hungarian Association for Migrants
    Migrant Voice UK83.
    Migrants’ Rights Network
    Movimiento contra la Intolerancia
    Movimiento por la Paz –MPDL-
    Nasc, the Irish Immigrant Support Centre
    Norwegian Refugee Council
    Oxfam
    PAX
    Pax Christi International
    PICUM-Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants
    Plan International EU office
    Platform Minors in exile / Plate-forme Mineurs en exil / Platform Kinderen op de vlucht
    (Belgium)
    94. Red Acoge
    95. Réseau de Compétences Solidaires – Groupement d’Economie Sociale et Solidaire France –
    Europe – Afrique
    96. Réseau Immigration Développement Démocratie – IDD
    97. Save the Children
    98. SOS Children’s Villages International
    99. SOS Racisme – Touche pas à mon pote
    100. Stichting LOS
    101. Swedish Refugee Advice Centre
    102. Télécoms Sans Frontières
    103. Terre des Hommes International Federation
    104. The International Federation of Social Workers European Region
    105. The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture victims
    106. the Norwegian Centre Against Racism
    107. Trócaire
    108. World Vision Brussels and EU Representation
    109. ZOA

  • No Border Camp July 15-24th 2016 Thessaloniki (Greece)

    Defencing Festival and Actions on Croatian Slovenian border: june 24-26th 2016

    No Border Camp Thessaloniki July 15-24th 2016

    Programme / newspaper (pdf)

    Help to raise 10.000€ for NoBorder-Camp and self-organized support for refugees in Thessaloniki

    bannerBEnoborderFor the circulation of transnational struggles against state, nationalism, patriarchy and capital

    “We want to move” (migrants’ slogan in the highway road between Athens-Thessaloniki)
    “Don’t give me food, don’t give me water, open the borders” (migrants’ banner in the occupied railway line in Idomeni)
    Calling

    You can find this call in pdf here

    Today, with neoliberalism established across the planet, it is clear that capitalist relations are being intensified, together with nationalism and patriarchy. Fences and borders are being built not only in the physical space, but also across social relationships. However, the movements and transnational struggles of migrants are constantly producing new cracks in the system, new thresholds and pathways into an unexplored world.

    More specifically, transnational and global agreements further liberalize “free” markets and the lifting of tariff restrictions further ensure property rights for the wealthy. At the same time the former social contract of the welfare state is breaking down and the neoliberal state is claiming the role of manager-partner of companies, keeping for itself solely the army and the police in order to retain some of its administrative and legislative power. Gender oppression, racism and fascism are being remobilized for the control of populations.

    However, social struggles in the form of riots, rebellions, campaigns and movements both before and during the process of this recent “crisis”, seriously challenge all this. Prime examples are the riots in the French banlieues in November and December 2005, the Oaxaca Commune in 2006, the riots in December 2008 in Greece, the magnificently widespread Arab Spring in 2011, the Indignados Citizens Movements in Spain in 2011, the London riots in 2011, the “Occupy” movement in the USA in 2011 and 2012, the uprising at the Gezi park in Istanbul in June 2013, the Brazilian Spring in 2013, the uprisings in Bosnia and other Balkan States during 2013-2014.

    The response of neoliberalism to the recent structural crisis, one that is interpreted by some as a crisis of over-accumulation, by others as a result of civil disobedience, or as the long expected explosion of “abstract labor” in a fully monetarized economy, to extend and intensify its strategy of land-grabbing and pillage of resources, of means of production and of reproduction of whole societies.

    Austerity programs in the countries of the European South, war, religious intolerance and the intensification of gender oppression in the countries of the Arab Spring are part of the same strategy. Thus, whole populations are made to abandon their homes. These people, deprived of their natural and social space, migrate, cross borders, fences, barbed wire, rivers, seas, mines and police patrols. They also face exploitation by traffickers, they are detained in concentration camps and then they are forced to search for a job (usually in the black market, often unpaid) even under extremely dire conditions. Most end up unemployed and they form a kind of reserve workforce or are forced into prostitution, trafficking networks and organ smuggling.

    While more people need to move, more fences are being built. Fortress Europe rises from the ashes of its own crisis by using police procedures and policies of control, imprisonment, pushbacks, illegalization and penalization of the populations in motion. Police and military operations are intensified, N.A.T.O enters the picture, discriminations between immigrants and refugees are constructed and finally concentration camps, hot spots and pushback centers pivot the management of migrant people.

    Migrants moving from Africa and the Middle East towards Europe have challenged and fought against borders and national and supranational policies in practice. During the last months, hundreds of thousands of populations have crossed borders, and the movements for solidarity and emancipation are flourishing. The migrants’ movement with all its inventiveness and ingenuity proves that desires, social relationships and dreams cannot be imprisoned. Their power goes beyond borders and fences.

    It also shows that the motives for migration are mostly to be found in the complex intersections of gender, ethnic, cultural, religious or class discrimination and oppression. Populations in forced mobility develop survival strategies, activate subjective capabilities, coordinate social relationships with other moving people and simultaneously, they create social networks with those they leave behind.

    Therefore, we believe that we should understand but then go beyond the idea that perceives the state, capital, patriarchy and racism as totally dominant upon human subjects, and hence also immigrants as submissive victims in need only of charity, compassion and saving.

    In the last few months, immigrants and people in solidarity with them have met within and beyond the kaleidoscopic fields opened by the crisis. We believe that meetings and struggles should be encouraged, should acquire steady and lasting structures and reinvent the joy and the charm of companionship and sharing.

    For all these reasons, we think it’s crucial that we organize an international No Border Camp this summer in Thessaloniki.

    As for the choice of the specific city, Thessaloniki, it finds itself at the core of conflicts over the control and management of immigration and of the freedom of movement, due to its geographical position in northern Greece, bordering Albania, Rep. of Macedonia and Bulgaria, with many detention camps and pushback centers at its perimeter. In northern Greece as well as in the wider Balkan area, initiatives and solidarity networks have emerged during the last few months that can empower and be enhanced by the organization of a No Border Camp here. Finally, we think that the need for the coordination of various local political collectives and also its available movement infrastructures make Thessaloniki a suitable and reliable choice for the organization of a global and transnational No Border Camp.

    Based on the above framework, the present invitation is articulated as follows:

    a) practicalities of organization

    b) objectives

    c) working groups

    d) structure

    e) themes and topics of the gathering

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    Rapport de la manifestation du Jeudi 9 Juin 2016 à Sokodé/Togo (FR)

    DSC08187Sokodé is al jaren herkomstland voor migranten. De stad werd oorspronkelijk gesticht door reizigers uit Mali. Een leven als reizende markthandelaar en vervoerder is diep geworteld in de traditie van de Kotokoli-gemeenschap. Sinds de jaren 1990 was Sokodé een centrum van verzet tegen de dictatuur Eyadema. Veel tegenstanders van het regime moesten vluchten en velen werden in de volgende jaren onder andere uit Duitsland gedeporteerd. In de afgelopen jaren kozen veel jongeren in het licht van de desolate economische en sociale situatie in de stad voor de migratie – naar Nigeria, Ghana, Gabon, maar ook naar het noorden, te weten Libië en zelfs Europa. (more…)

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    In the past two weeks alone, more than thousand people died in the Mediterranean Sea. None of them would have needed to die, if there were safe and affordable ways for refugees and migrants to reach Europe by ferry. This shows: Not the cynical methods of the human traffickers are the actual problem, but the migration policy of the EU. Because it leaves people with no option than to embark on the perilious passage on bad and completely overcrowded boats.

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