linksunten Archiv

On Monday, 15th July 2013, the refugeeswho have to live in the Lager in Heiligenhaus, where forced to move away from the place where they were living so far. The authorities justified that with deficiencies in the statics of the containers where people had to live so far. This caused resistance by the inhabitants – not that they wanted to stay in the containers, but because the alternative presented by the authorities would make the situation even worse. The plan of the City of Heiligenhaus was to force the inhabitants to move to an old school, where 82 inhabitants would have only one shower and four toilets. In the school six to ten persons should live in one single room! This decision was declared four days before it should become reality. The refugees also had invited people with papers to support them in the discussions with the social worker, the janitor and a member of the city council.

This morning the janitor and the social worker began to talk and to shout to the inhabitants of the Lager, the situation would just be as it is and they would „only“ have to live three months under the conditions in the school.

The janitor also wanted the supporters with papers to leave the Lager and claimed to have the right to decide who is allowed to stay on the ground. The inhabitants who where around the situation confirmed that they were there guests. But neither the janitor nor the social worker were interested in that and called the police.

When the police arrived several discussions between inhabitens and the representatives of the German state (social worker, represantative of the city council, police) erupted at different places of the Lager. During the discussion the representatives of the state tried to give promises about improvements of the situation compared to the original plan. On the other hand they also behavent impudent and cynical. For example they denied the refugees right of having an own flat and told them they should be happy about the situation given in Germany. A social worker used the racist term „Chinamann“ for people from China.

The representatives of the state were all obviously overwhelmed and tried to isolate the refugees from each other by beginning different single discussions with different people at the same time. The supporters were called to influence the refugees to accept the forced move to the old school. Of couse the supporters refused to speak for the refugees and called the authorities to speak with the refugees themselves.

Know the the strategy of giving dubious promises as well as the attempt of isolation were failed. The police tried a new strategy: they asked a refugee to come some meters away from the group with them to discuss somethin – and then began immediatly to arrest him!

After that police began to arrest one supporter after another. This was done by the use of strong violence and caused partly smaller injuries. The policemen_women showed their racism openly by calling the refugees „monkeys“.

After the police operation the move to the school was accomplished. On the one hand the protest of the refugees made it possible for them to use another etage inside of the school building, which originally should not be in use by them – on the other hand there was at least tonight no single shower in the hole building. Furthermore there is only cold water in the building.

So it could be that the protest was at least partly successful, on the other hand the City and the police did everything to defraud the refugees.

We can only call everyone to support all struggles of refugees for their rights!

Tear down the borders! no border- no nation!

Press:

Rheinische Post 1, 2