In the name of stopping the spread of the virus, Europe has in fact created the unsanitary and unsafe conditions in which the virus thrives. We call an end to the violence against migrants, to be replaced by the solidarity necessary to deal with this global crisis. We demand a resumption of rescue at sea, adequate health provisions upon arrival, housing instead of detention, and support for struggling health programs across the world.
On World Refugee Day (June 20th), at 14 hrs, we call for protests in as many cities as possible. In that way, we express our solidarity with refugees. We will express that solidarity thorugh banners, placards and slogans.
Remember that staying safe is also an act of solidarity, so keep your safe distance from each other and from passers-bye Take a picture or make a video and share it with us, so we can link up into a virtual long-distance demonstration.
See you safely and strongly in solidarity, 20 June, 14.00 hours, on the square next to the Concertzaal, naast de Concertzaal, corner Schouwburgring/Bisschop Zwijssenstraat, Tilburg.
see https://www.facebook.com/events/543954866512506/
Background
Migrants have been made especially vulnerable
The pandemic has made it clear that our health is a collective responsibility. But the conditions in Europe’s overcrowded refugee detention centers show that Europe has abandoned this responsibility. In Rotterdam, migrants have been squeezed into cells, brought into close contact with infected guards, while in Leiden, the emergency shelter for migrants is being closed. In Greece, the pandemic is ravaging through refugee camps.
Migrants have been made especially vulnerable to the health crisis. Instead of providing adequate healthcare and housing for all, authorities across Europe have used the emergency as an opportunity to increase xenophobia and escalate their attacks on migrants, often violating the international laws they supposedly uphold. Many EU countries have suspended asylum procedures; Hungary has abolished procedures outright. In Bosnia and Herzegovina hundreds of migrants living in improvised accommodations were violently arrested and transported to the new EU-funded Lipa Camp.
It has become the norm for Italian, Maltese, Greek, and EU coast guards to refuse to carry out sea rescues. On April 10th, they ignored the distress calls of a boat slowly filling up with water, left adrift on the sea for five days, leading to the deaths of thirteen people fleeing torture and slavery in Libyan camps. Coast guards have taken to directly pushing migrant boats back into unsafe conditions. The Maltese government has pushed migrant boats to Libya; the Greek government has kidnapped refugees from camps and forcibly sent them to Turkey; Libyan militias supported by EU governments have deported migrants to Niger or abandoned them in the desert.
For these reasons, Stop the War on Migrants has called for local solidarity actions. This action in Tilburg takes place in connection to that call-out. See https://www.facebook.com/stopthewaronmigrants/