The Border Violence Monitoring Network calls for the EU to stop funding the incarceration and abuse of asylum seekers in Greece.

You can read the full report here.

Name: Leon Mkonu Wazome 
Born: 1986, Mombasa 

I wish to submit a complaint concerning illegal deportation against me. 

I had previously made an application for a temporary and a permanent residency permit at  Monchengladbach Immigration and invited for an interview on the 04.10.2022 at 09:00hrs. I was  then detained by ten police officers and put on hand and feet cuffs. I asked if they received my  previous applications, and they went to print it out (see attached documents: Vorlaufiger Aufenthalt  14.09.2022 and Application Ausländeramt 03.10.2022). 

Please note that previous applications to Stadt Augsburg addressed to Frau Farber in-charge of my file, were never answered. I also informed Frau Winterstein (Team Leader) and Frau Pilz was previous in-charge of my file. Importantly, they were fully informed of my health and student status in an application a Duldung following para. 60 AufenthG application dated 12.03.2022. I wrote the  application and later faxed it the reminder from Klinikum Hanau – where I was receiving treatment.  The application was sent also to Stadt Hanau – Ausländerbehörde (Frau Pullman), since I was living a registered at Hanau before going to Monchengladbach. She confirmed via E-mail, that all  applications AND all related documents were sent to Augsburg to in specific to Frau Farber (See attached document: Meldebescheinigung).  

The application was accompanied by a doctor’s attestation, detailing the medication I was taking,  sickness and the kind of treatment in the CD.10 standards (See attached document: Attest, Duldung  Application 23.05.2022). 

At the Ausländeramt Monchengladbach, I informed the immigration officers that my applications  were pending. Following para. 81 Abs.3 AufenthG I was entitled to a reply. 

I also informed them that I had pending criminal cases at Monchengladbach Police, where I was the  victim and witness following para. 60a Abs.2 AufenthG, the deportation process should be stopped. I  also told the immigration officers and the police that was a student and under medication. I insisted  that Stadt Augsburg had previously violated my Aufenthalt rights. They kept my passport since 2017  and never gave me any sort of identification. A violation of para. 55 AufenthV. 

I was later arraigned in court for a hearing in the detention case, where I immediately objected. I  told the court that I am against the decision to be held in detention as I always availed myself to the  Authorities whenever needed. The authorities had my email, telephone number and knew where I  was sleeping as I had already informed them. In fact, I am the one who made the Aufenthalt  applications and ask for an appointment through email. I also informed the court that I was under  regular medication. The doctor in the court hearing confirmed the medication I was using but I did  not have all the names in mind. The court then gave me 30 days (1 MONTH) to do a formal appeal against the decision. Afterwards taken to Darmstadt Deportation facility, where I was held for 21 

days. My lawyer – Mr. Fahlbusch also made a formal appeal against deportation, application for my  release from detention and a transfer and review of my residence file. 

At Darmstadt Deportation facility, I was attended by two doctors on several occasions.  

The first doctors made several tests and prescribed more medication – for the palpitation, pressure, and hypertension. I also increased the mirtazapine dosage to 7.5 – 15mg. Also, my blood pressure  was extremely high. The dosage helped me also with the irregular heartbeat. 

A few days before deportation I was examined by another doctor who increased the blood pressure  medication. She also recommended that I should be brought back on the following Friday for more  test and blood pressure check, which I was not. I was deported on Thursday! 

In the deportation facility, I had asked for the social worker who help me to apply for spedition and  formally submitted a Duldung application following para. 60a Abs.2 AufenthG and a copy of the  details of the four criminal cases (3 together, and 1 Separate) where I was the victim and witness.  The details included the case numbers registered at Monchengladbach Polizeipraesidium (see  attached document: Kriminal-falle). The cases are still pending! 

Since I was leaving in Monchengladbach for about 5-6 months OR the town where the deportation  facility is located, is responsible for me following para. 14 Abs.4 ZustAVO. 

On the 25.10.2022, I was forced to take only the corona-test then put on handcuffs from Darmstadt  deportation centre to Aschaffenburg then to Leipzig Airport. Previously I informed officers at the  deportation facility who took me to the doctor’s office, including Herr. Kraemer – Team leader, that I  have made an appeal against my release and the deportation case, and my lawyer was also following  it. (See attached document: Beschwerde) 

I also asked several times for a chance to speak to my lawyer so that he can confirm to them. I was  denied the opportunity. And was told that it did not matter. I also showed them the documentation  concerning the open criminal-cases where I am a victim and a witness, but he told me that it does  not matter, I was going to be transported. The drivers who who transported me to Aschaffenburg  also were surprised that I was not accorded the chance to make a phone call to my lawyer. All this  conversation happened at the car park, right in-front for the gate. I showed them the documentation  at the same point, where there were also security cameras at the gate. 

The transportation officers then told me I would take me to Aschaffenburg where, I would give a  chance to make the phone call. On arrival, I met police officers: Herr. Schuss and Hoenig. I went  briefly in the toilet, as they watched, and was informed the journey would take about 4-5 hours.  

Again, I pleaded with officers: Herr. Schuss and Hoenig that I desperately needed to call my lawyer.  They refused!

I was then hurriedly put on the van while still on handcuffs and transported to Leipzig Airport. After  a long drive we arrived at around 9-10 pm. I also requested to go to the toilet. I was told that when  we go in the clearing hall, I would get go to the toilet. I then asked for a phone call. They still  refused! While in the car, I informed the officers that that I had all documentation to prove that my  appeal was open, and the deportation process is illegal. They told me that they heard me, but I  would not change anything!  

We stayed at the car for about two extra hours. I then asked Mr. Schuss if he could open the van  windows because there was no sufficient air. We drove all the way for hours with closed windows.  Once again, I if I could go to the toilet, I was told I could take a piss at a nearby tree while I was in  cuffs. They watched me as a took the piss. I felt very humiliated. 

I was then taken back to the van and informed them again that my rights were being violated as I  have the deportation appeal open. I also informed them of the open criminal cases where I was the  victim and quoted para. 60a Abs.2 AufenthG. I informed them of the open residency permit applications which was a violation para. 81 Abs. 3 AufenthG. I also told Herr. Schuss and Hoenig that  as police officers they should know that is a violation of para. 60 AufenthG, para. 339 StGB and 344  StGB. Herr. Schuss replied that nothing will change and that I should keep quiet.  

I then struggled to open the windows myself and get some fresh air as we remained parked. 

About 12 am, we drove inside to Leipzig Halle where they checked in as I was left in the van. I called  aloud and asked if I could speak to someone who was going to address my case. There were a lot of officers outside who heard me while I was yelling the illegality of the process. I could see them  making fun of me! 

A few minutes later, I was let out of the van for processing. I was taking inside the hall where I met  the team leader of the deportation process, who informed me that they were also Federal police. I  told him all that that I had told officers: Schuss and Hoenig – that I had made an appeal against the  deportation process, the open criminal cases and the answered Duldung application and the pending  

residency case at Amtsgericht Monchengladbach. Moreover, I request for protection since my rights  were violated. I also told him that I wanted to make an official complaint as a statement against  what had happened. He refused to take my statement. 

I was later taken to a separate chamber to be searched while the doctor made some examinations.  He looked at my eyes, ears, nose and mouth and my rear-opening. He checked my feet, and the  medical examination was complete. I informed him that I was under medication and in regular use  of them. Shortly afterwards, I was put in handcuffs and taken to a separate chamber where I met  officer: Heine, Nick, and another medical assistant. The medic asked me what medication I take  regularly. I gave him the following names: 

• Mirtazapine 15mg for depression 
• Sertraline for depression and sleeping problems. It also helps with trauma “PTSD” ✓ Clandestine for hypertension  
• And two others for blood pressure and irregular palpitation for the heart. 

Some of these medicines were recommended by the doctors at Darmstadt deportation facility as my  health was getting worse within the 21 days that I was held.

I also told them that I had a pending application following para. 60 Abs.7 AufenthG because of my  previous suicide attempt. They immediately put me in a special kind of handcuffs that is belted and  restricted almost every move I could make with my hands. 

Soon I was put back in the van on handcuffs and escorted to the plane. I asked them where they  were taking me and was told to Nairobi. I repeated that I had no address in Kenya since I was more  that 10 years not in Kenya there and I do not know why they were taking me to Nairobi as I also do  not have any contacts there. I was born and raised in Mombasa. 

Inside the airline, I shouted that my rights were being violated and I was being kidnapped! 

There were observers, a monitor, and other escorts who I called out too for help too. The officers:  Oliver, Nick and Heine told me to shut up, because it will be a long flight and it will change nothing! 

I also called out the team-leader of the deportation escorts, who seemed agitated, told me the same thing. To keep quiet! I felt so threatened. I told them I am talking out my heart, but everyone will  hear what I have to say because I am being violated. I did this in the hope that someone would act. 

I remember that at some point I felt terribly ill. I vomited several times. 

I felt my heart race so fast and blood pressure high. I was given a bag to vomit, and a doctor was  called – the same doctor who examined my body at the Leipzig Halle. I told him that I have my  medication that I regularly take. He told me that he did not have the medication but could only help  by giving something to calm me down. I feared taking anything that my doctor had not  recommended to me. So, I declined and asked for some orange juice and an apple.  

We then flew all the way to Nairobi, still restricted in cuffs. 

I also saw another lady who was sick. She threw up and fainted in the plane. The medical team  addressed her and gave her first aid. 

Shortly before arrival, I asked officer Nick, Oliver, and Heine that I wish to write a statement since  they took notes on the deportation protocol. He wrote a few items that I said: that I had an open  deportation appeal case, the answered Duldung application following para. 60 (deportation stop),  

the unheard criminal cases where I was the victim and that I had given a list of depression and other  illnesses medication that I was taking. Office Heine, who was in-charge of my file, then stopped  writing and told me that he was going shortly to the toilet. I asked officer Oliver and Nick to continue  taking my statement, but they refused! 

When officer Heine was back, I asked him to write that I asked for protection under humanitarian  rights. He refused to record my statement. I pleaded to no avail.  

We then arrived in Nairobi at around 10-11 o’clock in the morning.  

I was informed that they were going to remove the handcuffs and alight from the plane. I was  surprised at the hypocrisy. I asked them why I had to board with handcuffs on and when we arrive in  Kenya, they hurriedly want to remove them. The team leader told me that I must come out of the  plane. I told him that you have brought me to a city that I was not born. Secondly, I had no address  in Kenya. He informed me that the Kenya police would have to be informed. I obliged. 

Soon, two Kenya police officers from the Airport one called Leonard Kibet came in the plane. 

I explained to them that I was deported illegally as my appeal was still open and that I was not  feeling well. I also told them what they German police escorts did and wanted to remove the 

handcuffs when we arrived. The officers asked me to be released and told me I should not worry  they were going to oversee the matter afterwards.  

Officers Heine and Nick removed the handcuffs and then I was escorted out to a transportation bus  nearby and headed towards a check-in center. 

I still felt terribly ill. My blood pressure was high and felt my heart racing. I informed the authorities  that I am a sick and have my medication which I took regularly. The German doctor was asked if he  knew and said that he could do nothing since he did not have any of my medications. 

The immigration officers then shortly interrogated us. I told them that my deportation was illegal  and other irregularities what happened. In addition, I told them that I do not have an address in  Kenya since I was so long not there and do not have contacts in Nairobi as I was born and raised in  Mombasa. I also told them that I was sick. One of the officers later asked Mr. Heine if he had my  medication. Officer Heine the said that the medications are in my bag. I told the immigration office that he was lying as I was not given any of my medication from the Deportation facility. He was then allowed to check-in, and I was left wondering what to do.  

I talked to one of the immigration officers, who was also a police officer about the way forward. 

He advised to go to the German Embassy and show them the documentation as evidence including  the deportation appeal letter from my lawyer as proof of illegality in the deportation. 

I also managed to trace a long-time friend who assisted me to get somewhere to stay for a few days. 

Till today, I have no medical cover, struggling with my health condition and missing out on my studies after securing a three-year scholarship at a Bible College.

WIDE+ Migration and Gender Working Group, in partnership with our member Creación Positiva, has sent a letter of recommendations to Members of European Parliament, Dr Sylwia Spurek and Ms Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi on addressing legal and policy gaps in tackling gender-based cyberviolence. The letter has been drafted and supported by many women’s rights organizations and experts including NGO Atina, Donestech, Glitch UK, Laia Serra Perelló, and others.

The letter is a timely initiative given that the two MEPs are currently driving a legislative process to combat gender-based violence, with specific reference to cyberviolence. Gender-based cyberviolence is part of the continuum of widespread violence against women and girls and is a serious violation of women’s human rights. All forms of systemic and social discrimination, including gender, racial and economic ones, are reproduced and magnified online. These discriminations intersect, resulting in more extreme consequences for migrant women, young women, women from ethnic minorities and indigenous and racialized women, LGBTIQ+ people, women with functional diversity and women from other vulnerable and marginalized groups.

Overall, the letter recommends the importance of having a working definition of gender-based cyberviolence that can capture the scope, extent, types, gendered and intersectional nature of this form of violence. At the same time, it outlines the importance and urgency for the EU to ratify the Istanbul Convention, and calls for Internet intermediaries to be held accountable for all forms of cyberviolence that occur on their platforms. The online space is a public space and fundamental human rights have to be protected above other priorities.

Letter of recommendations_GenderbasedCyberviolence_June2021

If you want to show support for the letter and write to your MEPs, disseminate key message on social media, etc. kindly reach out to us at: info@wide-network.org.

Source: https://wideplus.org/2021/06/08/wide-and-creacion-positivas-recommendations-for-the-legislative-report-on-combating-gender-based-cyberviolence/

این هم ترجمه ی آلمانی: Stellungnahme einer Gruppe von Kindern politischer Gefangener, die in den 1980er Jahren und im Massaker von 1988 hingerichtet wurden.

Wir wollen Ihnen eine Vorstellung von einem Massengrab geben:
Es ist Sommer 1988, an einem abgelegenen Ort im Südosten von Teheran. Zitternde Hände von Familienmitgliedern suchen und durchwühlen die nasse Erde. Es gibt keinen Grund, tief zu graben. Ein blau kariertes Hemd, eine Hand neben dem Kopf eines anderen Körpers, ein Fuß auf der Brust eines weiteren. Das ist Khavaran. Hier ist eins der größten Massengräber im Iran, in dem Tausende von hingerichteten politischen Gefangenen der 80er Jahre und die meisten Opfer des Massakers vom Sommer 1988 begraben worden sind.

Seither haben die Aktionen und Lieder der Familien der hingerichteten Gefangenen Khavaran trotz aller Einschüchterungs- und Unterdrückungsversuche durch ihren Glauben an Hoffnung und die gerechte Sache am Leben erhalten. Sie haben beharrlich eine einzige Frage gestellt: Wo sind die Leichen der Hingerichteten, unserer Väter, Mütter, Schwestern, Brüder und Kinder?

In den letzten Tagen wurden im Massengrab von Khavaran mehrere neuer Gräber ausgehoben. Es ist nicht das erste Mal, dass die Regierung der Islamischen Republik versucht, die Spuren ihrer Verbrechen aus den 80er Jahren und dem Sommer 1988 zu beseitigen und der Geschichte das Vergessen aufzuzwingen.

Wir, die Kinder der hingerichteten Gefangenen der 1980er Jahre und des Massakers von 1988, werden den Weg der Suche nach Gerechtigkeit weitergehen, den ihre Mütter und Frauen und Männer seit mehr als 30 Jahren gegangen sind. Viele von ihnen sind nicht mehr unter uns.

Khavaran ist nicht nur unsere Landschaft, sondern die geteilte Geschichte aller, die für Gerechtigkeit und Freiheit kämpfen, die aller, die auf dem Weg dieser Kämpfe getötet wurden. Wir rufen das iranische Volk auf, nicht zu schweigen angesichts der Schändung der in Khavaran begrabenen. Wir teilen das gleiche Schicksal; denn Emanzipation ist immer kollektiv, genauso wie die Suche nach Gerechtigkeit kollektiv ist. Die Bahaí-Community muss seit Jahren die Respektlosigkeit gegenüber den Toten schmerzhaft ertragen und wurde von Sicherheitskräften gezwungen, ihre Toten in den neuen Gräbern in Khavaran zu bestatten. Wir appellieren an die Bahaí-Community, sich nicht dem Willen der Sicherheitskräfte zu unterwerfen und sich zu weigern, die Leichen, die Erinnerungen und die Geschichte derer zu schänden, die in den 1980er Jahren hingerichtet wurden.

Wir verurteilen jede Veränderung auf dem Gelände von Khavaran, bevor die Frage nach den Leichnamen der 1988 hingerichteten politischen Gefangenen eindeutig beantwortet ist. Unsere Fahne der Suche nach Gerechtigkeit wird immer hoch gehalten.

انگلیسی فاینال: Statement by a group of the children of executed political prisoners in 1980s and in the 1988 massacre

Let us give you an image of a mass grave:
Summer 1988, in a remote place in the southeast of Tehran. Shaking hands of family members are searching and pushing away the wet soil. No need to dig deep. A blue checked shirt, a hand beside the head of another body, and a foot on the chest of another. Here is Khavaran. Here is one of the biggest mass graves in Iran where thousands of executed political prisoners in the 1980s and most of the victims of the Summer 88 massacre had been buried.

Since then, in spite of all the attempts at intimidation and suppression, the steps and songs of the executed prisoner’s families have kept Khavaran alive by a belief in hope and cause. They have insisted on one sole question: where are the bodies of the executed, of our fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, and children?In the past few days, a number of new graves have been dug out in Khavaran’s mass grave. This is not the first time that the Islamic Republic government has tried to eliminate the remnants of its crimes in the 1980s and the 88 Summer, to impose oblivion on history.

We, the children of the executed prisoners in the 1980s and 1988 massacre will stay on the path that justice-seeking mothers, fathers, wives and husbands of the executed political prisoners have continued for more than 30 years. Many of them are not with us anymore.

Khavaran is not only our geography but the shared history for all the militants of justice and freedom, for all those who were eliminated in the path of such struggle. We call on the Iranian people to not remain silent against the violation of the buried bodies in Khavaran. We share the same destiny; because emancipation is always collective, just as seeking justice is collective. We also call on the Bahaí community, who have experienced the pain of disrespect to the dead for years and have been forced by the security forces to bury their dead in the new graves at Khavaran, to refuse to submit to the will of the security forces and violate the dead bodies, memories, and history of those who were executed in the 1980s.

We condemn any change in the grounds of Khavaran before the question of the dead bodies of the executed political prisoners in 1988 is answered clearly. Our flag of seeking justice will be always raised.

Im Innenausschuss des Brandenburger Landtages wurde gestern bekannt, dass in der ehemaligen Haftanstalt in Eisenhüttenstadt ausschließlich „Menschen nicht-deutscher Herkunft“ wegen Verstoßes gegen Quarantänemaßnahmen inhaftiert worden sind (die MAZ berichtete am 10.2.2021).

Mara Hasenjürgen vom Flüchtlingsrat Brandenburg äußert sich dazu:

„Eine freiheitsentziehende Maßnahme, die in der Praxis ausschließlich für Menschen nicht-deutscher Herkunft Anwendung findet, ist strukturell rassistisch. Wir müssen davon ausgehen, dass viele der in Eisenhüttenstadt Inhaftierten in Sammelunterkünften der Landkreise oder der Erstaufnahme selbst leben. Die Bewohner*innen von Sammelunterkünften sind überdurchschnittlich gefährdet sich zu infizieren oder sich als Kontaktperson in Quarantäne begeben zu müssen. Dabei werden sie mit Securities am Eingang und teilweise einer Polizeistreife vor der Tür viel engmaschiger überwacht, als Menschen, die in Wohnungen leben.“

Haft statt Aufklärung?
Geflüchtete berichten dem Flüchtlingsrat immer wieder, nicht ausreichend und in aller Regel nicht mehrsprachig über eine Anordnung zur Quarantäne informiert worden zu sein. Mehrfach sind zudem eklatante Mängel bei der Versorgung geflüchteter Menschen, die sich in Sammelunterkünften in Quarantäne begeben mussten, bekannt geworden, so beispielsweise im April/Mai in Hennigsdorf, im Juli in Stahnsdorf und im November/Dezember in Eisenhüttenstadt.

Hintergrund
Die Absonderungshaft beruht auf dem Infektionsschutzgesetz. Als in Brandenburg am 5. Mai 2020 erstmals ein Geflüchteter aus Potsdam-Mittelmark in Haft genommen wurde – damals noch im Ausreisegewahrsam in Schönefeld – hatte der Flüchtlingsrat gefordert, auf mehrsprachige Aufklärung und persönliche Ansprache, statt Zwangsmaßnahmen zu setzen (Pressenotiz vom 8.5.2020). Seitdem stand die Befürchtung im Raum, dass Bewohner*innen von Sammelunterkünften für Geflüchtete aufgrund ihrer stark kontrollierten Wohnsituation überproportional von dieser Zwangsmaßnahme nach dem Infektionsschutzgesetz betroffen sein könnten. Diese Befürchtung hat sich nun bewahrheitet.

Drohende Willkür
Es ist zu befürchten, dass die Absonderungshaft, auch aufgrund fehlender Vollzugsregelungen, willkürlich eingesetzt wird. Diese Befürchtung wurde verstärkt durch die, letztendlich nicht wahrgemachte Drohung des Landkreises Potsdam-Mittelmark vom 29.7.2020, protestierende Geflüchtete als „Aufrührer“ in Gewahrsam zu nehmen. Die Potsdamer Neuesten Nachrichten zitierten damals Kreissprecherin Andrea Metzler: „‘Die Einsatzkräfte holen nun diejenigen raus, die andere Bewohner anstacheln‘ […] Die ‚Aufrührer‘ sollen in den Abschiebe-Gewahrsam nach Schönefeld gebracht werden, wo derzeit Personen zwangsweise untergebracht werden, die sich bei behördlich angeordneter Quarantäne uneinsichtig zeigen.“ Am 30.7. revidierte sie ihre Aussage gegenüber den PNN, dennoch zeigt der Vorfall anschaulich, wie leichtfertig Verantwortliche scheinbar die freiheitsentziehende Maßnahmen bei Geflüchteten in Betracht ziehen.

Geflüchtete selbst haben in den vergangenen Monaten die menschenunwürdigen Quarantänebedingungen immer wieder öffentlich gemacht und bei Sozialarbeitenden und Betreibern eine Verbesserung ihrer Situation gefordert. Es ist zu hoffen, dass die Absonderungshaft nicht als Mittel oder Drohgebärde genutzt wurde, um berechtigte Kritik zu unterbinden.

Vorwürfe ernst nehmen
Der Flüchtlingsrat fordert die Landesregierung sowie die beiden zuständigen Ministerien für Soziales und Inneres dazu auf, zu prüfen, unter welchen Umständen die Betroffenen in der Absonderungshaft inhaftiert wurden. Wie wurde die medizinische Versorgung sichergestellt? Hatten sie die Möglichkeit Rechtsmittel gegen ihre Inhaftierung einzulegen, mit der Außenwelt zu kommunizieren und Rechtsanwält*innen oder Beratungsstellen zu erreichen? Wurden die Haftbedingungen überwacht? Dem Vorwurf, dass es sich hier um rassistische Diskriminierung handeln könnte, muss nachgegangen werden, anstatt ihn abwehrend vom Tisch zu wischen.

Pressekontakt
Lotta Schwedler: 0176 21425057
Mara Hasenjürgen: 0176 31483547
info [at] fluechtlingsrat-brandenburg [dot] de

—

Source: https://www.fluechtlingsrat-brandenburg.de/pressenotiz-haft-statt-aufklaerung/?fbclid=IwAR06uGSMmy00xs-WbmLUwUni3tIlaBuZthSlhXRucKtVEBhOnVwETRb4gRo

This FAQ responds to questions revolving around the topic of protecting refugee women and girls against violence. It begins with a glossary that clarifies key terms and their consequences for female refugees. The glossary will be amended and updated as required on the websites of bff and FHK.

The FAQ then continues with a number of questions that are categorised according to ten broader topics. Some of the questions recur because they belong to different topics at the same time.

It is important to note that legal regulations frequently change in this field. This FAQ is concerned with the legal situation as of December 2020. This FAQ can’t replace a legal counselling, it can only help with general information and give a first orientation in legal questions.

Contents

• Regulations relating to asylum and residence matters

• Gender-specific violence as a reason for asylum and its role during the asylum procedure

• Marriage and family law

• Medical support and social benefits

• Funding of counselling and protection for refugee women

• Protective measures for refugee women living in shelters

• Admission of female refugees to women’s shelters

• Is it possible for female refugees to apply for name change as a protective measure?

• What is the impact of the new penal code for sexual offences on residential regulations?

• Church asylum

• Under what conditions does having a child in Germany impact the residence permit of refugee parents?

• (New) ways to a regular residence status

• The Istanbul Convention and its significance for the protection of refugee women

The “comfort women” working group of the Korea Verband erected a Statue of Peace in Berlin-Moabit at the corner of Birkenstraße and Bremer Straße to raise awareness of the issue of sexualized violence. On Monday, September 28, 2020 at 3pm, the statue was officially inaugurated with a ceremony and speeches by, among others, district councillor Sabine Weißler (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen), Dr. Insa Eschebach, the former director of the Ravensbrück Memorial, and Dr. Kien Nghi Ha.

The Statue of Peace commemorates the more than 200,000 girls and women from 14 countries who were sexually enslaved as “comfort women” by the Japanese military during the Asia-Pacific War (1931- 1945) in the entire Asia-Pacific region. The first bronze Statue of Peace created by the artists Kim Seo-Kyung and Kim Eun-Sung was erected in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul, South Korea on December 14, 2011 for the 1,000th Wednesday demonstration by “The Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan” in dedication to the “comfort women” . It is internationally regarded as a symbol against war crimes against girls and women.

The statue is intended to draw attention to the survivors’ demands for recognition, a formal apology, and reparations, which have not been met to this day. It also represents the continued sexualized violence perpetrated against women both in armed conflicts and in peacetime. “The statue of peace is there to admonish and remind, as well as an incentive to prosecute, punish, and ultimately eradicate crimes against girls and women,” said Nataly Jung-Hwa Han, Chairwoman of the Korea Verband.

There were already two Statue of Peace in Germany: The first statue was erected in 2017 in Wiesent near Regensburg in the Nepal Himalayan Park. The second is located in Frankfurt at Korean Protestant Church Parish Rhein-Main. This is the first time a Statue of Peace is being placed in a public square in Berlin.

It was brought to Berlin from South Korea as a gift from “The Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan”. The installation was planned in cooperation with the Arbeitsgemeinschaft reUnion, an association of organizations from Moabit around the installation site at Unionsplatz, with the aim of making it a lively place of encounter in the neighborhood.

For the erection of the statue, an alliance for the Statue of Peace in Germany was founded, which 30 organizations have already joined. The alliance will oversee the preservation and care of the Statue of Peace, and will be doing educational work to raise awareness about the importance of the Statue of Peace more broadly and its importance specifically in German history.

Support the installation of the Statue of Peace with a donation!

Civil society initiatives from Germany and South Korea have brought the Statue of Peace to Berlin through their own efforts to ensure a memorial against sexualized violence and colonialism exists. The installation and maintenance of the statue will involve a great deal of financial effort. Support the preservation of the statue with a donation! A membership would also be of great help. Further information on how you can support us can be found here: https://www.koreaverband.de/spenden/.

More infos on decolonizationinaction.com

Prozessauftakt gegen den Attentäter von Halle – Zeugin und Nebenklägerin blickt kritisch zurück

Der Prozess gegen den Attentäter von Halle beginnt am 21. Juli 2020. Eine Zeugin spricht von dem Tag selber, dem medialen Umgang danach und ihren Perspektiven auf den Anschlag, die Hintergründe und den anstehenden Prozess.