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
GERMANY
Tel.: 0451/4006-0
Fax: 0451/4006-199

Innenministerium Schleswig-Holstein
Innenminister Ralf Stegner
Düsternbrooker Weg 92
24105 Kiel
GERMANY
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
GERMANY