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Forumdiscussion during anti-racist summit from 9-11 November in Groningen, Holla

WVV | 29.10.2004 17:47 | Anti-racism | Globalisation | Migration

From 9th till 11th November the EU ministers responsible for migration and integration will convene in Groningen, Holland. They will discuss how to manage migration better and how to force people to integrate in a way the EU can benefit from those they can employ and discard of or even destroy the lives of those who are unemployable. This calls for an anti-racist, anti-classist and anti-patriarchate answer. This is why an anti-racist summit is organized during those days. This posting calls on everybody to come over and fight together for equal rights, the right for an existence and for radical changes. Underneath you can find a call to take part in the big demonstration on 10th November and a call to participate in a forumdiscussion on 10th November in Groningen, Holland

Discussion about Migration, Exclusion and Racism



Wednesday 10 November from 19.00 –22.00 hour

Part one
After an introduction the following speakers are asked a short speech of 15 minutes on their topics.

- Franck Duvell (ARAB Bremen) - The globalisation of migrationregimes 15 min.
- Adou Menebbi (EMCEMO) - The EU-migration policies and the and the consequences for the position of migrants in Europe and the Netherlands. 15 min.
- Margaret Mc Adam (No One Is Illegal) - The EU and British Refugee policy and its consequences for the position of refugees. 15 min.

After this the discussion will deal with the developments on migration, exclusion and racism on a global, EU and Dutch scale. The discussion will be held with the audience.

Part two
This part will deal with the question what we can develop against these policies.
After a short introduction by Hans Alderkamp of the anti-racist organization WVV from Groningen followed by a reaction (3 min.) from the speakers on what we can do.
Then the audience will participate in this discussion.


EU- integrationsummit under fire in Groningen

From the first July until the thirty-first December the Netherlands are holding the presidency of the European Union. This is why the EU-ministers responsible for integration will convene in Groningen from the ninth till the eleventh of November to discuss one of the five spearheads of the Dutch presidency of the European Union. The EU-ministers want “to take definite steps towards a European asylum-, migration-, and integration-policy and paying attention to the fight against terrorism and organised crime Whereby the intensification of the cooperation of police and justice of the member states is given priority”. This means that in Groningen the management of migration will be intensified. Raising new obstacles for ‘non-western’ people to prevent them from building a safe and dignified existence. All this while the global economy and the military violence of the powerful nations have pushed billions of people in devastating conditions. The EU wants to take control over this movement of people who are in search for a normal life. Forced integration, selection between ‘employable’ and ‘unemployable’, and criminalizing form the core of the repressive EU-policies against refugees and migrants. The consequences for refugees and migrants have been clear for many years: they are being kept out, shut out, locked up, isolated and deported. Inequality is rising fast. What are the newest plans of the human rights violating policies and what can we (together) do against it?

Integration is in fact a cover up for institutional racism which has to be unveiled. A clear anti-racist answer and a stand has to be taken against it. Integration is solely forced upon ‘non-western’ migrants and refugees. Their “non-western” culture is seen in a racist manner as ‘retarded’, even ‘barbaric’. Whole communities are depicted as criminal, guilty of ghetto-building and poverty. These people are labelled a danger to ‘our’ welfare state. This has become common good. However, from the site of the government it has a dual meaning. The through social struggles achieved rights are being broken down over the backs of refugees and migrants. On the other side of the same medal divide and rule politics are executed to feed everyday racism against refugees and migrants.
Since Tampere in 1999 the formation of a differentiated civic citizenship is central. The for (human) capital useful migrant will not only be forced to assimilate but will also have to deal with strongly decreased social rights.

The integration policy is only part of the worldwide applied migration management policy. Apart from national legislation based on keeping out, shutting out, locking up, isolating and deporting refugees and migrants, the EU member-states have agreed via the Treaty of Amsterdam to work towards a European asylum and migration policy. This policy no longer is exclusively about closed borders and keeping refugees and migrants out, although the idea of Fortress Europe, militarising its outer borders, and the creation of an outer shield around Europe might suggest otherwise. An important aspect within the migration management policy is the migrant’s usefulness as human capital. Migrants, completely stripped of their rights, are used as both ‘legal’ and ‘illegal’ labour-migrants to flexibly solve small crises in the economies. This often involves jobs done mainly by women. Therefore, as a group refugee- and migrant women are hit harder.

Migration is of all times. However, at this moment not only local power-structures and the creation of a ‘nation’ (based on population politics consisting of the denial of rights and exclusion), but above all the by the wealthy West created oppression, unequal divide of wealth, poverty, exploitation, war and the destruction of subsistence economic structures, are causes of flight and migration worldwide. Knowing this, refugees and migrants have to be seen as a social movement which questions the division of wealth on a world scale and the (worldwide violently being upheld) unequal divide of rights. Doing this through their continuous presence and claim for the right of existence!

We’d like to invite everyone to discuss this in depth during the anti-racist summit on 10th November at 7:00 pm in Huize Maas, Vismarkt 52 in Groningen.

Let’s fight together against oppression, exploitation, racism and the patriarchate.
The right of existence for all!






Demonstration against migration management and forced integration

Wednesday 10th November 2004
2:00 pm Vismarkt, Groningen


From the ninth until the eleventh of November the EU-ministers responsible for integration will convene in Groningen on the European migration- and integration policy, and fighting against terrorism. They will brood on plans to make life harder for non-western people in Europe. The EU migration policy is based on three main pillars. Firstly the economic selection at the gate, which only allows access to those who are useful for (or can be employed on) the European labour-markets. For all other refugees and migrants the borders are actually closed. The second pillar is criminalizing the unusable (or unemployable) migrants and refugees already living inside the borders of Europe. It are these people the EU wants to keep out, shut out, hunt down, lock up, isolate and deport. The third pillar is forced integration, which means migrants neatly have to adapt to European standards and values and have to sell themselves as cheap and flexible as possible on the European labour-markets. The integration policy is meant to create restrictive conditions for migrants. In this way they solely bring profit for the economy not the costs.

The current racist integration debate serves to create division amongst people in the lower classes of society. Decreasing solidarity makes it easier for the European governments to further break down social and economic rights. The lower classes are confronted more and more with repression and control, through forced labour and a break down and shut out of collective provisions. These deteriorations hit migrants and refugees first.

The EU is also responsible for the forced fleeing or migrating of millions of people worldwide. Next to the US and Japan, the EU plays an increasingly bigger role in enforcing and keeping the global economic and political inequality. The capitalistic powers enforce their policies on the rest of the world through for instance the WTO, IMF and Worldbank. They use neo-colonial politics, support dictatorships and warlords, and conduct war. All this results in oppression, exploitation, poverty, genocide and ghetto-building.

Everybody has the right to lead a dignified existence and to choose where they want to live. Economic costs or profits are never allowed to make the difference. We want to fight for those rights, fight against oppression, exploitation, racism and patriarchate and for worldwide radical changes!

NO ONE IS ILLEGAL

THE WORLD BELONGS TO EVERYBODY

FIGHTING TOGETHER FOR EQUAL RIGHTS


WVV
- e-mail: werkvluchtvrij@hetnet.nl
- Homepage: http://home.wanadoo.nl/werkvluchtvrij/