a protest letter from british academic members regarding the recent attack on refugee camp in Patras Greece

We are concerned about the British media silence regarding the recent attack on a refugee camp in Patras Greece as a reflection of the idea of Fortress Europe.

As trade unionists and academics who research issues of human rights and social inequality we strongly condemn the recent use of violence against migrants in Patras, Greece.

Greece has been repeatedly condemned by international organisations over maltreatment of migrants and asylum seekers. In recent weeks we have witnessed further demonisation and victimisation of migrants and asylum seekers. Punitive police operations are presented as the answer and the authorities fuel the media with xenophobic rhetoric and images. As a result there is a dramatic increase in cases of brutality against migrants. The authorities not only seem to tolerate attacks of fascist groups on individuals and families, but also orchestrated a brutal and unlawful operation against the refugee camp in Patras.

Thousands of migrants have been living in this makeshift camp for over the last eight years without any support and protection from the Greek state. The Greek authorities made it impossible for most of them even to apply for asylum, by not providing access to the necessary services. During this period the migrants were systematically harassed by the police and coast guard and were labeled as “clandestines”. Nevertheless, nothing could prepare the local community of Parts and the groups of citizens who voluntarily support the migrants, for what was about to happen last week.

In the early hours of Sunday 12/7/2009 and without any previous warning, hundreds of fully armed riot police engaged in an inhuman and appalling operation. As the UNHCR, International Human Rights Organsations and local support groups highlight, major streets were blocked and access to the area was banned. The state authorities, arrested hundreds of migrants, demolished and burned down the makeshift accommodation, including personal belongings, travel documents and the camp mosque. The migrants who had travel documents were temporarily directed to a local hotel. The rest of them were arrested and there seems to be no further information concerning their whereabouts. It is highly likely that a number of unaccompanied minors were among the group, as the decision on who was minor solely lied upon the “judgment” of riot police during this inhuman operation. We also express our concern about the possibility of forcible repatriation of the migrants to Afghanistan.

For the lucky ones who escaped arrest things are not any better. Without any facilities to offer protection and support, hundreds of migrants live dispersed and terrorized in the city centre without being able to meet their very basic human needs.

We demand answers to the following questions:

• The operation lacked any legal, ethical and moral basis. Who decided it?
• Why did the operation take place without any previous warning and most importantly without ensuring that access to other reception facilities would be available?
• How many migrants were arrested and where exactly are they being detained?
• How did they ensure that unaccompanied minors were not maltreated and abused?
• Why migrants were not offered an opportunity to apply for asylum?
• Are there plans to forcibly repatriate them without any prior access to the asylum process?
• Will Greece keep tolerating the racist and xenophobic attacks against migrants and their families?

In the absence of an official answer we reserve our right to visit the area and make use of any means at our disposal to ensure that the authorities and individuals involved will be held accountable of their actions.

Prof. Alex Callinicos, Kings College London

Dr. Karen Evans, University of Liverpool

Dr. Iain Ferguson, University of Stirling

Prof. Emer. Chris Jones, University of Liverpool

Dr. Vasilios Ioakimidis, Liverpool Hope University

Dr. Michael Lavalette, Liverpool Hope University

Mr. Peter Marsden Blackpool Local Government Unison (personal capacity)

Mrs. Julia Orry, Blackpool Branch Secretary (personal capacity).

Mrs. Laura Penkenth, University of Manchester

Iran: Hundreds of detainees at risk of torture

Amnesty International Press release
13 July 2009

Following the mass arrests of demonstrators and opposition activists in Iran over recent weeks in connection with the disputed presidential election, Amnesty International has compiled a list of the names or identities of 368 people arrested since 12 June. Some of those detained have since been released, but may face prosecution in the future. The organization has also obtained photographs of lists of cases under judicial review which indicate the scale of arrests, in Tehran, in recent weeks.

While it is not possible to individually confirm each name received, Amnesty International is publishing them to draw attention to the suffering of thousands of families in Iran, whose family members may have been arrested arbitrarily or who ignore the whereabouts of arrested family members who have virtually been subjected to enforced disappearances. The Iranian authorities have a responsibility to immediately disclose the identity of anyone in their custody and to inform their families of their whereabouts. Amnesty International is concerned that many of those still detained are at risk of torture and other ill-treatment, possibly to extract ‘forced confessions’ which could be used against them in courts.

In response to the ongoing arrests and clampdown, and in order to try and gather further information regarding arrests in recent weeks, Amnesty International has called on all those with concerns or information about arrests and excessive use of force, including killings, to email the organization at iran.alerts@gmail.com, or iranalert@amnesty.org. In particular, any information about the individuals included in the list, or about others whose names are not mentioned would be helpful. Amnesty International hopes to update the list as more information becomes available and will deal with information confidentially.

The pictures of the lists posted on the wall of offices of the judiciary at the crossroads of Shariati and Moalem Streets in Tehran show the names of those whose cases are under judicial review. They also reveal how the authorities facilitate abuse after arrests by concealing, in black pen, the identity of the detaining authorities of the scores of people arrested. A hand-written note on the side of each sheet, each labeled ‘new’ informs family members that they should return in 15 days’ time to inquire about the fate of their family members, thereby consigning detainees to a limbo for prolonged period of time.

International law and standards – and Iranian law – require the Iranian authorities to bring detainees promptly before a judge, in order to review the basis of their arrest, but this right is routinely flouted by the authorities which rely on a note to an article in the Code of Criminal Procedures which allows a judge to extend pre-charge detention indefinitely in cases relating to ‘national security’. Amnesty International considers 15 days to be far too long a period for families to wait for news about their families, particularly in light of the long history of torture in detention in Iran. Many of those arrested have been detained for their political views, or for their peaceful participation in demonstrations. Anyone detained solely for the peaceful exercise of their rights to freedom of expression, assembly or association should be released immediately and unconditionally. Others suspected of recognizably criminal offences should be released, on bail if necessary, unless they are charged and brought to trial promptly and fairly.

France: UNHCR draws road map to help asylum seekers in Calais

CALAIS, France, July 17 (UNHCR) – Locals call it, "The Jungle" – a squalid warren of shanties made out of cardboard, plywood and bits of plastic that has mushroomed among the sand dunes and brambles outside Calais. Hundreds of migrants and asylum seekers, including children, live there or in derelict buildings closer to the center of this port city in northern France.

They come from far away: Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Somalia and even Vietnam. Some have been on the move for months, crossing mountain ranges and deserts. They are reluctant to talk to outsiders.

The last hurdle in their dream of a new life in the United Kingdom is the 34-kilometer stretch of sea that separates Calais from the white cliffs of Dover, clearly visible from here on a clear day.

Their motives for making such an arduous journey and for roughing it in Calais vary. Some have relatives in the UK. Others have heard that it is easy to get a good job there. Some want to study. Yet others have been forced to flee their countries because of political, religious or ethnic persecution, and may be entitled to refugee status if they are given the opportunity to apply for asylum.

"There is no general situation, each individual case is different," explained UNHCR's Marie-Ange Lescure. Since early June, the UN refugee agency and its local partner, France Terre d'Asile, have been present in Calais, informing and counseling hundreds of people about asylum systems and procedures to apply for asylum in France and the UK.

Last week, the two organizations presented the French authorities with a road map aimed at helping to resolve some of the problems posed by the complex situation in Calais and other towns in northern France, and to assist those who may have a legitimate fear of persecution in their countries of origin.

The road map gives details of UNHCR's mission and activities in Calais and makes a series of proposals on how to deal with cases falling under the Dublin II regulation, under which asylum claims are normally handled by the country where the applicant first entered the EU. It also makes concrete suggestions on how to install mechanisms to protect children and minors.

Meanwhile, finding accurate information and impartial advice for each individual case is not easy. Migrants and potential asylum-seekers can easily lose their way in a tangle of rumours, wilful misinformation and bureaucratic regulations which can be as bewildering and intimidating as a real jungle.

For those who may have a need for international protection, the local authorities have taken important steps to facilitate the procedure to apply for asylum. Since last April, the municipal authorities have made it possible for asylum claims to be lodged in Calais. Before, prospective asylum seekers had to go to Lille, 100 kilometers away.

Since then, more than 120 people have come forward to the special counter set up at the sub-prefecture in Calais. But, despite the cooperation from the local authorities, potential asylum-seekers still face considerable administrative and bureaucratic obstacles.

For example, the Dublin II rules about where asylum claims should be processed affects many of the people living rough in Calais. Most entered Europe through Greece, a country where asylum-seekers continue to face serious difficulties in accessing an effective asylum procedure.

To avoid being sent back to Greece or elsewhere, some migrants and asylum-seekers have gone to the extreme of burning their fingertips with red-hot nails or sulphuric acid so that they cannot be identified .

People smugglers, who make money by helping migrants and asylum-seekers reach their destination, often feed false information to their clients. Some asylum-seekers have said that they have been threatened by smugglers after making an application and have had to leave the "jungle."

"The jungles are controlled by smugglers," said a local humanitarian aid volunteer, who has been working in Calais for years. "They control access to the trucks and trains. A week ago a young man was stabbed in the hip for trying to climb onto a truck without paying the smuggler his fee."

Another issue of particular concern to UNHCR is the situation of children, some as young as three, who have arrived here with a parent or relative or, in some cases, on their own. They are extremely vulnerable and need special protection.

"Children are usually accompanied by a smuggler who claims to be an older brother or uncle. They use the children as bargaining chips to get more money from their families," said Jean-François Roger from France Terre d'Asile.

UNHCR hopes that by working closely with the British, French and EU authorities as well as other relevant organizations and civil society, a solution can be found for at least some of those currently living in unsanitary and dangerous conditions in Calais.

By William Spindler in Calais, France UNHCR News Stories

Children of Minorities Have Rights

Children of Minorities Have Rights from Seth Brau on Vimeo.

Christina: PLEASE ACT NOW!

Christina Kyrimopoulou entered prison when she was 14. her sins were huge: she was dependent from substances, had an active mental disorder and is of Roma origins.
her career in prison was marked by a number of desperate cries for help: continuous attempts of committing suicide marked her body - her soul was already marked!
thus grew Christina in prison…
European Network of Women and the Initiative for the Rights of Detainees supported Christina as soon as her lawyer Chrisa Petsimeri called for help in the media (http://www.tvxs.gr/v8664) working along with the commissary of minors in which Christina 's case has been assigned.
in June 2009 Christina Kyrimopoulou aged 20 was ready to be released.
the last court hearing of her case, was very positive: the judge for minors decided to give her a chance.
and while a team of organizations and persons were struggling to prepared the ground for her smooth rehabilitation (no peace of cake), we had to deal with a big surprise: a phantom(!) sentence in 4 months imprisonment for theft in 2004 - when she was a minor - from an adults court. she was judged and sentenced while absent as an adult, while she was already imprisoned, but no one let her know of the trial, so that she would attend it!
so, someone remembered the sentence when she was ready to be released!
that Saturday Christina made yet an other attempt to commit suicide: she cut her veins for the hundredth time!
also she resisted when the warders tried to help.
on Friday 3/7/2009 unfortunately we were informed that the Prison Council denied her the right for parole and additionally imposed on her a disciplinary sentence (possibly for 6 months) for the suicide attempt.

on Tuesday 7/7/2009 unfortunately the Prison Council decided also to transfer her in another prison far away from the only support system she ever knew.

those who have the minimum legal knowledge, they know that there is no greek law that imposes any sentence on prisoners with suicidal tendencies.
the Prison Council, thought, claimed that Christina threatened the warders. what she actually did was to warn them to keep away, since she was bleeding. she is an hepatitis carrier you see!

THEY CONSIDERED THAT A THREAT!

and for this reason they punish her!

she eventually apologized, crying, she begged them to allow her to remain there.
unfortunately her pleas were in vain.

we unite our voice with those that protest for this decision and we call you to countersign the protest of the Initiative for the Rights of detainees found here: http://www.keli.gr (in greek)
please copy and paste the text (there will be an english text available soon) and send it to christina_kyrimopoulou@yahoo.gr including your name, occupation and your country

at the same time academic member Aphrodite Koukoutsaki is collecting signatures from academic members and researchers here: christinakyrimopoulou@gmail.com


dear friend please ACT NOW for this young woman:

• speak to your friends and your family about her


• post this information on your blog, facebook, or twitter profile or any other social networking service


• sign the protest of the Initiative on the Rights of Detainees at http://www.keli.gr including your name, occupation and your country


• sign the protest of academic members and researchers on Aphrodite Koukoutsaki blog if you are an academic member or researcher including your name, university and your country


• if you represent a human rights NGO contact us at giraffeforhumanrights@gmail.com


you can also be informed from the followings (in greek):
http://crimevssocialcontrol.blogspot.com/2009/07/blog-post_1914.html
http://crimevssocialcontrol.blogspot.com/2009/07/blog-post_03.html
http://crimevssocialcontrol.blogspot.com/2009/06/blog-post_3475.html
http://giraffeforhumanrigts.blogspot.com/
http://soupbonesoup.blogspot.com/
http://www.keli.gr
http://www.enet.gr/?i=news.el.ellada&id=60826

End incommunicado detention in Spain

Honour Killings

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His name is Ezra Nawi...

Ezra Nawi has been active for years in the area known as South Mt. Hebron. The Palestinians in this small desolate area in the very south of the West Bank have been under Israeli occupation for almost 42 years; they still live without electricity, running water and other basic services, and are continuously harassed by the Jewish settlers who constantly violate both Israeli and International law, and are backed by a variety of Israeli military occupation forces, all of which operate in an effort to cleanse the area from its Palestinian inhabitants and create a new demographic reality in it.

Nawi's persistent NON VIOLENT activity in the area is aimed both at aiding the local population in its plight to stay on their lands, but also at exposing the situation in the area to both the Israeli and international public eye. The latter is very much not in the interest of the Israeli settlers who complain that Nawi is disturbing the "status quo" in the area. Nawi has received threats on his life from the settlers in the past. The chief of the investigations in the Hebron Israeli Police once admitted that what Nawi is doing in the area is "exposing the dirt laying under the rug..."

Ezra Nawi's efforts have been fruitful in the sense that the attempt to cleanse the South Mt. Hebron from its Palestinian inhabitants has become a visible, internationally acknowledged issue.
The settlers, military occupation forces and Israeli police have a strong interest to restrict his movement and ban him from the area. Therefore they constantly falsely accuse him of violating the law. Lately he has been pronounced guilty of assaulting a police officer who was demolishing a Palestinian house on July 22, 2007. He will be sentenced this coming July.

As chance would have it, the demolition and the resistance to it were captured on film and broadcasted on Israeli news. As depicted on the film (a must see), Nawi, the man dressed in a green jacket, not only courageously protests the demolition, but after the bulldozer destroys the buildings he also tells the border policemen what he thinks of their actions. Sitting handcuffed in a military vehicle following his arrest, he exclaims: "Yes, I was also a soldier, but I did not demolish houses... The only thing that will be left here is hatred..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysIaQUJWBdk

Nawi's case is not only about Nawi. It is also about Israel and Israeli society, if only because one can learn a great deal about a country from the way it treats its human rights and pro-democracy activists.

Please join this group: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=78657164089 to show your support for Ezra Nawi and your objection to his imminent imprisonment.

International Committee Supporting Ezra:
Noam Chomsky
Elle Flanders
Charles Glass
Naomi Klein
Sheldon Pollock
David Norris
Eliot Weinberger

Today, July 1, Ezra was supposed to be sentenced according to his conviction of assaulting a police officer and participating in a riot.

More than 70 people gathered outside the courthouse to support Ezra in his sentencing. Only a few managed to get in. At first, Ezra requested that everyone be permitted to enter and that the sentencing will take place in a larger hall, but his request was denied, and therefore the hearing did not start on time. As a result, the judge decided to postpone the sentencing to August 16, 8.30 AM.

When told about the amount of letters sent on behalf of Ezra (more than 15,000 signatories through the Jewish Voice for Peace campaign -- we brought a stack of 100 papers with a list of names), the judge said, "Wow, that much..."

Ezra's lawyer, Lea Tzemel, is convinced that the international campaign has a positive impact on the case. Please continue to spread the word, tell your friends and family to sign the letters in the campaign JVP is running (http://www.freeezra.org).

Ezra has written a letter that was placed on The Nation on 30/6/09 http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090713/nawi

As mentioned in his letter, the international pressure did not fall on deaf ears, as the Israeli Ministry of Justice and other governmental bodies have responded to his supporters letters with confused and irrelevant statements such as "Mr. Nawi provokes the local residents. [ie. Jewish Settlers]" or "...Mr. Nawi who has often uses insults..."; the official response can be found here: http://www.supportezra.net/JusticeMinistry.pdf

We still demand the complete exculpation of Ezra, and the investigation of his continual harassment by the Israeli police, Israeli army and the civil administration.

Please post and forward his letter to your friends; as Ezra says

"What strengthens me and gives me energy is the widespread and constant support I have always received."