World Migration

Migration and NoBorder news.

Worldwide Protests Against the G8 Summit 2008

11-07-2008 09:00 | Globalisation | Migration | Social Struggles | World

The G8 2008 took place in Hokkaido, Japan, from July 7th to July 9th. As in the past years, people from all over the world protested against this summit and the capitalist system it represents [Pics] both in Japan and in many places around the globe.

On Saturday the 5th of July, the International Day of Action Against the G8, there were protests worldwide against this year's G8 Summit. In Japan, around 5000 people took to the streets in Sapporo despite ongoing police repression [Photos | Videos 1 | 2 | 3 | 4] whilst hundreds of people had previously taken to the streets in Tokyo and Kyoto. International solidarity actions also took place in several cities, including Bilbao, Stuttgart [Video], Dordrecht, Nijmegen, Paris, Singapore, Berlin, Reykjavik and Lisbon.

Closer to home, a picket outside the Japanese embassy in London took place on Friday the 4th, and for Saturday the 5th, and despite previous harassment by the Metropolitan police, a London Fete Against the G8 was called by London No Borders and other groups to demonstrate in solidarity with the protests in Japan, for the Freedom of Movement, and against Fortress Europe. The Day of Action around the UK Borders Agency started with a Critical Mass bike ride from Brixton to Croydon, the nerve centre of the Home Office's UK Border Agency, where several protests unfolded [Report | Photos 1 | 2 | Video]

From Monday 7th to Wednesday 9th, further days of action and blockades continued around the Summit location next to the Lake Toya in Hokkaido [Videos 1 | 2 | 3] A final statement by international activists was issued on Wednesday 9th after hundreds of activists joined a march called by the Hokkaido's Ainu indigenous communities. This was the concluding event of ten days of anti-G8 protests in Japan. The Japanese 'No! G8 Legal Team' issued an international call for further solidarity actions during the week of blockades [Second Call]. In London, a daily NO!G8 cafe was organised at the Bowl Court Social Centre to coincide with the G8 mobilisations, showing daily footage from Japan, screening films, presentations and discussions.

Check the Ticker, the G8MediaNetworkTV and IMC-Japan [Timeline (Eng)] for updates of worldwide actions and protests.

G8 2007 | G8 2006 | G8 2005 | UK IMC G8 2005 Topic

Save Pegah Emambakhsh from British Prison and Iranian Lashes

An international campaign to prevent the UK government deporting Pegah Emambakhsh to Iran, where she fears persecution, for being a lesbian, has so far succeeded in getting her deportation delayed.

Pegah sought asylum in the UK in 2005, her claim failed despite appeals, and she was arrested in Sheffield on Monday 13th August and is being detained in Yarlswood detention centre.

Her case has been taken up by the Iranian Queer Organization, who have said: "If she is going to be returned to Iran, there is much of possibility that she, due to her sexual orientation and her past life in Iran, will be sentenced to death, or, in a most optimistic view, be prosecuted and tortured in some of the ways that are all common among Iran's religious officials when having made the decision to chastise the so called 'corrupted' citizens.".

The global anti-deportation campaign, which has included approaches to the British ambassador in Rome and the Deputy Consul General in San Francisco has resulted in her case getting coverage in the local media, the Iranian media and the gay press [ 1 | 2 ] around the world. However there has been no coverage of her case in the mainstream media in the UK but it has made the TV news been in and la Repubblica in Italy.

Pegah now has excellent legal representation and support from Outrage!. Suggestions of ways to protest against her deportation include contacting the Home Office and signing a petition.

Articles: Urgent help needed to save the life of Pegah Emambakhsh | Appeal for the life of Pegah Emambakhsh | Pegah Emambakhsh Must Stay | British Ambassador promises: "We will not deport Pegah Emambakhsh" | Who wants Pegah’s Blood? | Urgent! - Save Pegah From Death. Don't Alow That Pegah Goes Up On The Airplane | Lesbian facing Deportation to Iran needs your Support | URGENT: Don't Deport Pegah Emambakhsh

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

02-01-2007 18:06 | Migration | World

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 [see below for details]. 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]

Noborders Demo at Harmondsworth Detention Centre

08-04-2006 11:58 | April 2006 No Borders Days of Action | Anti-racism | Migration | World

Harmondsworth, 8 April 2006. Around 300 people from London, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Brighton, Reading and Cardiff demonstrated at the Harmondsworth and Colnbrook detention centres near Heathrow to ensure that "those inside will hear our voices and know that they are not alone." The call out for the demonstration was made by London No Borders, the Campaign to Close Heathrow Detention Centres, London Against Detention, and The Square Occupied Social Centre in solidarity with the Noborder actions in Australia [see the NCADC report].

There was a large police presence and they prevented detainees and demonstrators from establishing a line of sight: the demo was not allowed to take place in the field where detainees could see it from their windows. Security guards also prevented detainees from accessing the centre's exercise yard and didn't even allow them to approach the windows. Some detainees were reportedly beaten up when they protested against these restrictions. In response, some 150 detainees in Colnbrook have gone on hunger strike [Read press release on updated situation in Colnbrook].

Many phone calls from detainees were passed on to the demonstrators via a small sound system. Former detainees also gave live testimonies of their own experience in detention [Sekindi's speech]. Meanwhile, about 40 people managed to make their way around the side of Colnbrook where detainees could see and hear them from the windows, and they spent a long time communicating with people inside, before being moved on by the police.

See the full timeline of events
Reports and Pics: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Audio reports
Videos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

In Glasgow, around 300 asylum seekers, refugees, sans-papiers, Unity activists, and their supporters marched from the Home Office Reporting Centre in Ibrox to a rally in the Carnival Arts Centre in town calling for the right to work and an end to deportations. On Monday, 10th April, the All African Women's Group and other organisations protested outside Communications House in London in solidarity with international actions for immigration and asylum rights, and against detention.

In Manchester, a demo and rally [more] were held on 15 April under the slogan "Manchester: city of detention, destitution and deportation". On the same day, the offices of Ethiopian Airlines in London were targetted by anti-deportation activists. Their locks were glued and anti-deportation slogans were painted over their office and in the surrounding area.

Immigrant Struggles Climax in 11.000 Strong Demonstration in Belgium

05-03-2006 18:51 | Migration | World

A 11.000 strong demonstration took place in Brussels on Feb 25, 2006, to demand the legalisation of the 150.000 illegal migrants living in Belgium, and an end to mass arrests, detentions, and deportations [More: 1|Photos: 1|2|3|4].

The demonstration is the climax of years of struggle (since 1970) and migrant self-organisation to reclaim their rights: in early 2005 the Church of Minimes was occupied, and in October 2005 started the occupation of the Church of St Boniface in Brussels, that continues today [More: 1, 2| Video: 1]. After months of failed negotiations with the Belgian state, and under the threat of imminent deportations, about 10 members of the occupation started a hunger strike to support their demands. In early February 3000 people demonstrated in Antwerpen for legalisation and 2500 in January demanded the end of children being in detention outside the Vottem detention center. In September 2005, about 2500 people gathered to commemorate the death of Semira Adamou, killed by police during her deportation.

World Social Forum Bamako

The first Social Forum on African soil took place in January in Bamako, Mali [Photos | Video]. Around 10,000 activists from Africa and Europe mainly discussed issues of global trade justice, migration and neo-colonialism during the four-day get-together. A large-scale demonstration marked the opening the WSF. The Youth Camp and some media activists participated with a soundsystem bus. Slight troubles were caused by clashes between Moroccan and Western Saharian nationalists at the end of the ceremony [Video].

Before this the stadium witnessed the opening talks of Malian associations, remembering the quest of WSF to tackle the poverty in the world and create solidarity among the people.

"We have to talk about why our young people dreams are all about leaving Africa, why do they want to go to Europe and prefer the risk to die?"

Migration related workshops played a major role in the WSF and several statements were published about the pressing issue.

World Social Forum 2006 opens in Bamako, Mali | World Social Forum 2006: Bamako (Mali) | Caracas (Venezuela) | Karachi (Pakistan)

EU co-ordinated deportation of Afghani refugees

On Monday July 25th or Tuesday 26th, young failed asylum seekers from Afghanistan will be put on a charter plane at one of the London airports. The charter will then travel to Paris, pick up more young failed asylum seekers from Afghanistan in France for onward transit to Kabul. At least 60 Afghans are expected to be on board.

Reports by Lille Indymedia tell of widespread repression in the form of mass arrests and detention of Afghani refugees since July 14th ahead of the chartered flight. According to Lille Indymedia, a significant number of Afghani refugees have attempted to flee France to seek sanctuary in England. There are also reports of a hunger strike by 51 detained Afghanis that has since been broken up by the French authorities.

Expulsions to Kabul, be ashamed! | NCADC response and model letter | Deportation Alliance

AUDIO: "Voices from Africa" Conference - G8 - Migrants - Aid, Trade, Debt - HIV

In the wake of the Governments much hyped "Commission for Africa" came a reply - a conference not so much "for" Africa, as from Africans.

There were excellent presentations and speeches by the usual suspects - Patrick Harvie, Tommy Sheridan, Aamer Anwar, representatives from Oxfam and G8 alternatives - but the most succesful aspect to the conference, what made it really striking, was the African speakers.

The conference was held at Caledonian University - Glasgow - 23rd April 2005.

European Sans-Papiers March from Brussels to Paris

13-06-2004 17:13 | Migration | World

More than 80 "sans-papiers" from France are walking from Brussels, Belgium (headquarters of the European Union) to Matignon (residence of the French Prime Minister in Paris) to protest against the policies of Fortress Europe and to inform the people they meet on their way about the situation of sans-papiers in Europe.
More Info in French: Imc Lille [1 | 2] and Imc Paris [1

Time to Fight for Papers! Sin Papeles Actions in Barcelona

13-06-2004 15:19 | Migration | World

On Saturday 5th June, more than 2000 'sin papeles' (immigrants without papers) occupied Barcelona Cathedral and the church Santa Maria del Pie [pics]. They are calling for unconditional recognition and that the authorities take responsibility for their unstable situation [Manifesto es | en].
Although police violently evicted the Cathedral [reports] and 25 immigrants are facing certain deportation, the Assembly for Regulation Without Conditions is calling for further actions [1 | 2], supported by many civil society organisations and demonstrations all over Spain.
While Barcelona’s ‘Cultural Forum 2004’ (sponsored by multinationals) appears to celebrate culture, peace, and sustainability, it remains obvious that some are not welcome. Many immigrants living ‘illegally’ in squatted abandoned buildings have been evicted and the buildings demolished to make room for housing developments connected to the Cultural Forum [article].

Imc Barcelona [es | en] | Imc Estrecho [es]
Sin Papeles Updates | Plan Gotta [es] | Papeles Para Tod@s 2003
Barcelona Forum Parody Page

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