Start of a Refugee Protestcamp
Start of a Refugee Protestcamp
Friday 4 April 2014 at 1 p.m. | Göttingen | Jacobi Church Square
Solidarity Demonstration: Friday 4 April 2014 at 5 p.m. | Göttingen | Jacobi Church Square
Dear citizens!
We refugees from Göttingen and surroundings have decided to establish a protest camp at theJacobi Church Square, starting on Friday 4 April 2014 at 1 p.m., as an initial point to make our protest public. At the same day we’ll demonstrate from 5 p.m. together with supporters for a right of residence and for equal rights – we’ll start in front of the church Jacobi and then move through the city center.
We are refugees from different countries, living in Göttingen and surroundings. The reason for our protest are the degrading and bullying living conditions which we are exposed to day-to-day, and the never ending fear of being deported. The racist legislation in Germany enables all this.
Which are the problems of us refugees?
People fighting for freedom are being persecuted in more than 120 countries. They loose their lives by execution, torture or inhuman prison conditions and also by massive exploitation.
In Turkey, Syria, Bahrain, Zimbabwe, Togo, Nigeria, Congo, Egypt, Thailand, Tunesia…… we experience protesters being beaten until they bleed. In 2011 oil workers on strike in Western Kazakhstan have been murdered and raped. The violent abolition of striking mine workers in South Africa is well known and we won’t forget that.
In Peru, Chile, Sri Lanka and Ukraine cops make disappear political activists by legal manners.
Since 35 years imprisonment, torture, execution, murder, rape and terror against different-minded people has been ruling in Iran. This remained unchanged with whatever figure of the theocracy which has been taken over the power – whether Chatami, Ahmadinejad, or the nowadays president Rohani.
European politicians often claim not to be responsible for the world’s crimes. But they justify the crimes being committed in various countries by indicating them as safe countries of origin. And they do this in order to be able to deport us refugees smoothly.
The instruments of repression over there are not a form of government of the past and they don’t rise out of nowhere. Their present allies give them foothold and stability. From Europe they receive the best weapon technologies for suppressing liberation movements. Western governments, especially Europe, provide excellent assistance for worldwide suppression – and they do it in very different ways. Sometimes by destroying means of existence (water, food), sometimes by privatisation due to high level of debt, sometimes by war of resources. All these are consequences of an economic-political objective. Small and big weapons are delivered to conflict and war areas and to dictatorships in order to get profit. And also with the intention to heat up local conflicts.
We fled to here because of very different kinds of repression. We searched shelter and safety. Now this right to get asylum is denied to us. The violations of human rights are quite well known at all responsible authorities in Germany and in Göttingen also. But our experience now is that they ignore the reasons for our migration – this is part of the degrading policy of the federal government and of the German authorities. We assume that they don’t want to take a clear position in order not to put at risk the investment of German companies in these countries.
That’s why we are living here for years without any future and without perspective: it’s because we are only “persons with exceptional leave to remain for humanitarian reasons”. This means that we don’t have a safe residence permit status and that we can be deported at any time. Our life here is still affected by fear and insecurity. We are not allowed to work nor to do a vocational training nor to study at a university. We are forbidden to leave an assigned area of residence, because we are subject to the so-called mandatory residence. This way of living destroys our souls and bodies.
We decided not to accept this racist practice any longer. We are protesting in order to put an end to this day-to-day threat. Your support motivates us in our resistance for equal rights and a right to stay.
We demand:
• Freedom of movement !
•Work permit !
• Sufficient school education and vocational training !
•Approval of our procedure for granting the right of asylum !
•Right to stay !
•Equal rights !
We are looking forward to various kinds of support:
• Visit us and our protest camp, daily from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Inform passers-by, spread flyers, create information boards
• Let’s organise in common small events like readings, concerts, games....
• Let’s paint banners together
• Cook and eat together with us – and donate us foods
• Have a look at our to-do-list what we are in need for from day to day
• Donate money for the infrastructure of the protest camp
• Join one of our working groups (press, infrastructure, ...)
• Bring along your friends
•…
Speak to us! Ask us! Join in!