Kurdish artist Engin Celik is on hunger strike against his deportation

We demand his immediate release from the deportation imprisonment and the acceptance of his asylum!

campaign leaflet for download
example protest letter to the authorities
türkçe / deutsch

During a train ride from Frankfurt to Düsseldorf on the 7th of January 2007, he was arrested by policemen near Gießen and brought to the JVA Gießen. He was told that his asylum proceeding was decided negatively and that he would be deported. On January 15th Ergin Celik went on hunger strike to protest against his deprvation of liberty and against the intention of the German authorities to deliver him to Turkey.

Engin Celik became known in Germany with his sharp critics on the brutal politics of repression by the turkish state against the kurdish population. As a member of the theater group „Stage of dreams“, of the musicgroup „Daglara Ezgi“ and as a poet he performed on various cultural events and recieved different cultural awards for his art.
Lastly he was honoured with the first prize for his poetic work at the „International Yilmaz Güney Festival“ in Frankfurt in November 6th. Besides his intense cultural and political work, he dedicated the rest of his time for youth and human rights work. Together with others he organised seminars and dicussion workshops for young people, to support a social and progressive development and values like solidarity, courage to stand against injustice, respect, openness and selfconsciousness among the participators.

The Mig-Zentrum (association of the cultural and medial communication center of the migration e.v.) and the „International center B5“ in Hamburg were solid platforms of his creative work. Furthermore he spent much time for events, meetings , music and theatre performances all over Germany.

In human rights work he mainly participated actively in the German wide network of the „Karawane for the rights of refugees and migrants“. He saw it as his duty, to speak out against the chauvinistic and repressive State politics and to solidarize with the struggle of other refugees against political persecution, repression of freedom of opinion and for real democracy and emacipation. With the accentuation of the Karawane-slogan „ The right for asylum is a human right and not a privilege“, he joined the critics of the rigoros deportation politics in Germany. The German authorities also denied to protect him against his persecution in Turkey.
In reference to European-right and with documents about the tireless activities of Mr. Celik his lawyer submitted an Asylfolgeantrag (second application) at the Federal office in Lübeck. On January 17th Engin Celik was transfered to the deportation prison in Offenbach.

Engin Celik is in great danger. We call on all progressively thinking people to do everything possible for his release and prevention of his deportation.

We ask you insistently to appeal with the demand for release and acceptance of asylum for Engin Celik on the following adresses:

Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge
Außenstelle Lübeck
Vorzwecker Straße 103
23554 Lübeck
Tel.: 0451/4006-0
Fax: 0451/4006-199

Innenministerium Schleswig-Holstein
Innenminister Ralf Stegner
Düsternbrooker Weg 92
24105 Kiel
Telefon: 0431/9 88-0
Fax:0431/9 88-30 03
E-Mail:pressestelle@im.landsh.de

more information: http://www.thecaravan.org
contact: caravan hamburg: 040-43 18 90 37 or mobil 0174-150 84 57

send also letters of solidarity to Engin Celik:
Engin Celik
z. Zt. Einrichtung für Abschiebehaft Offenbach
Luisenstr. 24
63067 Offenbach

a first call for his release and the acceptance of asylum is signed by many musicians aritst and human right defenders:
Dağlara Ezgi, Tiyatro Düşler Sahnesi, Tiyatro İstasyon, Tiyatro Asmin, Grup Yol, Grup Cemre, Grup Mig (Folklor), Kardelen Halk Oyunlari Ekibi (Ludwigsburg), Tiyatro Atelye (Ludwigsburg), Mavi Halk Sahnesi Tiyatro toplulugu (Frankfurt),Grup Esenyeller (Ludwigsburg), Grup Devinim,(Duisburg), Grup Isyan (Solingen), Grup Harman (Frankfurt), Grup Hasad (Mannheim), Ludwigsburg Kültür Merkezi e.V., Avrupa Demokratik Halklar Konferderasyonu (ADHK), Almanya Demokratik Halklar Federarsyon (ADHF), Avrupa Demokratik Gençlik Hareketi (ADGH), Anadolu Derneği, Anadolu Müzik Grubu, Sano’ya Gildaxe (Tiyatro), Schwäbisch Gmünd Demokratik Kültür Dernegi e.V., The Voice Refugee Forum, Stiftung der iranischen SchriftstellerInnen u. KünstlerInnen im Exil e.V. BRD und Schweden, Sozialistische Partei Iran, Goetz Steeger - Musiker, Journalist, Hamburg, Siri Keil - Künstlerin, Hamburg, Christof Schäfer - Künstler, Park Fiction, Hamburg, Susanne Hasenjäger- Journalistin, Hamburg, Hafenklang Kultur e.v., Thomas Lengefeld, Vorstand, Hambur, Dr. Florian Keil - Wissenschaftler, Frankfurt am Main, Birgit Gärtner - Journalistin, Hamburg, Dr. Michael Schiffmann- Lehrbeauftragter des Anglistischen Seminars der Universität Heidelberg, Übersetzer Herausgeber Autor, Kai Degenhardt - Musiker, Hamburg, Annette Schiffmann - PR Theater, Heidelberg, Catharina Boutari - Sängerin, Hamburg, Volker Griepenstroh - Pianist, Hamburg, Owen Jones – Musiker, Kerstin Davis - Grafikerin, Hamburg, Revolte Springen - Musiktheaterkollektiv, Berlin, Mehmet Ergin - Musiker, Komponist, Steve Baker - Musiker, Autor, Schneverdingen, Esther Bejarano- Vorsitzende des Auschwitz-Komitees in der BRD e.V., Künstlerin, Hamburg, Abbi Wallenstein- Musiker, Hamburg, Peter Nowak- Journalist, Friederike Meyer & Thorsten Seif -Geschäftsführer Buback Tonträger GmbH, Hamburg), Matthias- Kaul Musiker ( Winsen ), Astrid Schmeling -Musikerin (Winsen), Ramon Kramer -Filmemacher, Musiker, Autor, Dr. Heinz Jürgen Schneider – Rechtsanwalt, Heike Geisweid - Rechtsanwältin, Bochum, Dr. Peter Strutynski, Kassel, Rahel Puffert - Kunstvermittlerin, Autorin, Hamburg, Lucha Amada, Veranstaltungskollektiv, Berlin, Dagmar Brunow - Übersetzerin, Hamburg, Heli Schneider - Musiker, Verleger, Hamburg, Ulf Panzer - Richter, Hamburg, Marily Stroux -Fotojournalistin, Hamburg, Salinia Stroux - Ethnologin, Hamburg, Hinrich Schulze - Fotojournalist, Hamburg, Helmuth Sturmhoebel – Sonderpädagoge, Peter Imig - Shibly Band, arab. Musik, Seevetal, Rocky Beach Club - Musikagentur / Humberto Pereira, Jutta Konjer - Künstlerin, Hamburg, Manfred Kroboth – Künstler, Peter Holler - Sänger, Hamburg, Frank Baumgart - Redakteur und Moderator, Radio Jam Bürgerfunk, Remscheid, Matthias Pfeiffer - Historiker und Journalist, Jens Langbein - Komponist, Hamburg, Stephan Gade - Musiker, Hamburg, Gerd Büttner - Musiker, Hamburg, Ruben Jonas Schnell - Journalist, Hamburg, Benjamin Richter - Grafik-Designer, Verlag "Pläne" GmbH, Dortmund, Friedemann Stuhm - Mensch, Kaltscha club e. V., Dortmund, Jörn Heilbutt – Musikproduzent, Andrea Rothaug - Kulturmanagerin, Hamburg, Katja Cichowski - Kulturmanagerin, Hamburg, Ursula Richter - Malerin, Dortmund, Wolfgang Richter- Prof., Dortmund, Beatrice Ullmann – Regieassistentin, Tobias Pflüger - Mitglied des Europäischen Parlaments,Tübingen, Matthias Pfeiffer - Historiker, Journalist, Tübingen, Rudi Mika - Musik und Hörbuchproduzent, Verlag Aktive-Musik, Dortmund, Dr. Benjamin Ortmeyer, Mitglied des Vorstandes der GEW BV, Frankfurt am Main, Andreas Mann - Jurist, Berlin, Christoph Ziegler - bildender Künstler, Berlin, Club Mestizo Kollektiv Hafenklang, Hamburg, Lisa Politt – Kabarettistin, Gunter Schmidt – Musiker, Eckart Spoo - Publizist, Berlin, Kulturzentrum Bhf.-Bochum-Langendreer - Soziales Zentrum, Bochum, DJ Gärtner der Lüste – Bochum, Radio El Zapote, Bochum, Radio BonteKoe Bochum, Redaktion bo-alternativ.de, Friedrich von Mulert - Architekt AKNW, Dortmund, Stephanie-Debra Rose - Auszubildende, Verlag 'pläne' GmbH
Angelina Maccarone – Regisseurin, Bahman Nirumand - Autor und Journalist, Günter Zint, Fotograph, Rolf Becker, Schauspieler, ....

gedenkdemo in berlin für oury jollah

demo video

Oury Jalloh: demonstrations in Dessau and Berlin - court hearing in March

For two years now the murder of Oury Jalloh in a police cell in Dessau (East Germany) remains unpunished. Even today there has still not been any apologies made by the police or the responsible authorities. Likewise, no reparations have been made to the Jalloh family. Instead, an African friend of Oury, the person who has been most engaged in the struggle for truth and justice in this case, has suffered serious persecution. In addition, approximately ten activists of the campaign of the Initiative in Memory of Oury Jalloh have been accused of diverse "crimes."

For two years now diverse refugee, migrant and anti-racist groups have come together to break the silence and to demand truth, justice and reparations for the murder of Oury Jalloh.

On Sunday 7th of January 2007 more than 200 People protested in Dessau in fron of the police station where Oury was killed.


On this Weekend an African Community Conference took place in Dessau.


Paralel to the demonstration in Dessau there was a demonstration in Berlin taking place, too. More than 600 persons attended the demonstration there.

demo video

Fotos of the Demonstrations:
http://www.umbruch-bildarchiv.de/
http://www.attac.de/halle/oury/images/ourydemo_jan2007/
http://www.agentur-ahron.de/

In spite of constant protest, public doubt as to the thesis that Oury Jalloh committed suicide and clear reasons to begin legal procedures, the threat is real that the unexplainable delays and obstructions by the District Court of Dessau will impede legal procedures from even beginning, thus obstructing any (possible) clarification as to how and why Oury Jalloh died. In the meantime, the court has refused to hold a hearing for one of the accused police officers, and in the case of the on-duty supervisor the judge has---once again; two years after the violent death!---ordered further pre-investigations.

If they have the right to speak of suicide, in spite of the fact that all facts lead to another conclusion, then we take it as our right to speak of murder.

Now the court in dessau has agreed to trial one of the police officers. Not with the charge of murder - but an opening up to investigate what realy happened is possible, now.

The court hearing will take place from 27th of March until 30th of March in Dessau.
Landgericht Dessau
Willy-Lohmann-Str. 29
06844 Dessau

We ask everybody to attend the court hearing.

Initiative in Gedenken an Oury Jalloh

Mourning for Laye-Alama Condé

Racism Kills

about 200 persons met on the 6th of January 2007 in memory of the 2nd year of the death of Laye-Alama Condé who died 7th of January 2005.

He was killed in police custody in the city of Bremen by forcefull infusion of emertics. Until today no one of the police in duty was put to trial, politicians of Bremen, particularly the senator for inner affairs, Rövekamp, who is in responsability for the forcefull infusion of emertics, did not even feel to excuse for what happened.

Left in the Desert: Hundreds of Refugees Arrested and Deported from Morocco

Over 250 Sub-Saharan Africans have been arrested by the Moroccan authorities in raids that took place in different quarters of Rabat on December 23rd, 2006. Among the arrested were women and children refugees and asylum seekers. Six buses, accompanied by the army, then carried them to Oujda on the Algerian borders. At about 11pm, the buses crossed the border at 3 different points and the migrants were left in the middle of nowhere. Blockades by the Special Police prevented supporters from Oujda to reach the deportees and their mobile phones did not work, so they could not be contacted. There are fears that these arrests are only the beginning of a mass deportation campaign to Algeria, or even into the desert, similar to what happened in September-October 2005.

On December 25, two more buses arrived in Oujda, at the police station, with Sub-Saharan Africans from Nador (another town in Morocco). This only confirms that the 'operation' was nation-wide and pre-planned by the authorities, during a time when most of the activists were on holiday.

Reports: en & fr | fr with en summary [pdf] | es | fr | de | it | Attac Morocco statement [fr] | CEAR statement [pdf] | press release by the president of EU Parliament's Human Rights Sub-Committee [fr, pdf], Au nom des engagements pris envers l’UE, des migrants et des réfugiés sont raflés au Maroc, [Deutsch] [italiano] [Español]

According to reports by Attac Morocco and other organisations, some 150 migrants, many injured, managed to return to Oujda by the evening of the 24th, while between 100 and 150 people were still "out there in the cold and rain, with no food". When arrested, they were not allowed to take their belongings, meaning some had to go in their underwear. Among them are said to be 7 or 8 children (4 under 2) and 2 pregnant women into their 5th and 7th month, as well as sick people who were refused medecine. It is worth mentioning that at least 52 of them had UNHCR documents, and another 17 cases were still being processed. One special case is said to be a Senegalese businessman who had been living in Morocco legally since 2004.

Various humanitarian organisations, including Attac, Association Beni Snassen pour la Culture, Le Développemeent et la Soidarité, Medecins Sans Frontiers, CEI and AMDH, managed to provide some first aid, as well as 100 blankets and some hot food. Not without difficulties, though.

As of 24 December, 5 migrants were still being detained at the police station in Oujda, without any reasonable explanation given as to why it was these five in particular. There were also reports about two Congolese migrants, Nsiku Yulu and Muntu Dimuru, who were taken into custody by the Algerian police. At about 9:30pm of that day, 35 people were 'located' and 2 more were arrested.

On 30 December, a new caravan was raided in Layoun, on the way to Oujda, and all 140 people were deported towards the Algerian border. There were activists from human rights groups and Attac present. They were trying to bring people back to Rabat but, out of 54 people, only 4 could make it.

Another worrying report said 4 women were raped by Moroccan or Algerian men, and that migrants were beaten with whips and sticks by the Moroccan police and the Algerian border police.

Politics

On 10-11th July, 2006, Morocco hosted the Ministerial Euro-African Conference on Migration and Development. One of the main topics was the "cooperation programs" relating to the "management of legal and illegal migration". As Gregor Noll wrote in Open Democracy, "the Rabat conference might be remembered as the occasion when some African governments sold out this human right at the behest of Europeans, in return for conditional development assistance." (See also this EU memo on 'illegal immigration', issued a few days after the Rabat conference). According to the CNN, Morocco received 76 million Euros ($100m) from the EU in August 2006 to "help manage migration, boost border security and crack down on human trafficking."

In a conference preceding the above-mentioned ministerial conference, NGO's agreed on what was called the Rabat Manifesto (pdf). Among other things it said: "We share indignation about the war that is increasingly being waged along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines. We refuse the division of humanity between some who may freely move about the planet and some who may not. We also refuse to live in a world where borders are more and more militarised, dividing our continents and trying to transform every group of countries into a fortress."

After these latest arrests, a statement by the Wali (governor) of Rabat said that this operation came within the framework of "Morocco's duties" promised at the mentioned conference. Judging also from the way this was portrayed on national TV, it seemed to be a well-prepared and well-organised operation, with cameras present and buses with the same colour, apparently owned by the same company. Moreover, the fact that this happened during the Christmas holidays, when many of those responsible were on vacation and could not be reached, is no coincidence.

There is also a 'media war' going on in Morocco between the authorities and NGO's that support migrants. According to the Council of Subsaharan Migrants in Morocco, whenever these try to inform the international public about the ongoing human rights violations, the authorities claim that 'illegal' migrants have attacked the Ceuta and Melilla fences and use that as an excuse for arrests and deportations (see this pdf report).