We, The VOICE Refugee Forum, are groups of human rights activists that have been actively engaged publicly in protesting the inhumane situation of refugees since 1994 in Thueringen and Germany as a whole. The members are actively engaged in supporting persecuted human rights activists here in Germany and in their home countries.
We are informed about the difficult living conditions of refugees in Germany and the human rights situation in their home countries.

read below in english, dt, frz.

We are also:

1. Protesting human rights abuses in the home countries of refugees/migrants and in Germany.
2. Against Deportation and deportation threats of refugees and migrants
3. Against the social exclusion of refugees and migrants.
4. Against the daily racism by the authorities and the public.
5. Against racist controls and police brutality on refugees and migrants.
6. For the abolition of deportation prisons and detention centres/camps.
7. For the universal rights for freedom of movement which is violated in Germany by deportation and deportation threats, and by the imposition of the so-called "Residenzpflicht", the restriction of the movement of refugees to their "landkreis" or local districts.
9.For the Promotion of the living conditions of refugees in Germany.

The daily lives of refugees are designed by isolation and social exclusion with the permanent threat of deportation.
Since the foundation of The VOICE Forum in October 1994 in Mühlhausen in East Germany, hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants have been deported from Germany without political or humanitarian consideration.

More than five years ago when the preparations for the refugee congress organised amongst others by the Caravan for the Rights of Refugees and Migrants in Jena in Spring of 2000 was obstructed by the so-called Residenzpflicht law, the residential restriction for asylum seekers, our organisation decided to start a campaign for the abolition of this humiliating Law in Germany that violates our human rights. This obligation is put down in paragraph 58 of the Asylum Procedure Law (Asylverfahrensgesetz). The interpretation is to the effect that during the asylum procedure for the recognition as a refugee, asylum seekers are allowed to leave the district they have been assigned to with the permission of the Foreigners’ Office ONLY.

Since 1982, which is more than 20 years, the residential obligation law has been restricting the freedom, personal and political rights of thousands of asylum seekers prejudicially. ”Residenzpflicht” criminalizes and discriminates. It makes refugees the object of humiliating racist controls and puts them under psychological and material pressure.

The Residenzpflicht law entails the persecution of refugees with fines or prison sentences for up to 18 months and the indiscriminate threats of deportation are enormous. The daily restriction of movements without choice of settlement violates our freedom and basic rights as minority groups and groups of refugees and migrants.

Due to the residence obligation, asylum seekers are subject to special repression. They are controlled by police and Border Protection Police (BGS) at stations, mostly due to the colour of their skin. These controls can be considered as racist. Furthermore, asylum seekers receive a permission to leave their district only under special circumstances which are defined by the Asylum Procedure Law. Permissions for visiting relatives, except for parents and children, are within the discretion of the case manager. Permissions for visiting friends or for taking part in political events are almost never given. Violation of the residence obligation leads to criminal prosecution and even to imprisonment. Therefore, refugees are criminalized to a large extend. Racists and fascists have further arguments against so called criminal foreigners at their disposal. ” The nationalist not only does not disapprove of atrocities committed by his own side, but he has a remarkable capacity for not even hearing about them.”(George Orwell)

A law like this is unique in Germany within Europe.
Our inevitable campaigns for the abolition of the residence obligation law did create the awareness of the ill sufferings and the abuses in our every day lives, due to the abolition campaign some of the cases against “das Residenzpflicht” in the courts have been dropped or won against the State Public Prosecution Officers and against the authorities in the recent years of the protest in Germany.

We demand freedom of movement for everybody everywhere. We demand the abolition of the ”Residenzpflicht” which isolates, excludes and criminalizes refugees in Germany.
Germany is the only country in Europe where refugees are criminalized by the law of the movement restriction (Residenzpflicht). This law shows that refugees in Germany are meant to be socially isolated, not only being kept in far away camps in the middle of forests, also the restriction of movement by the “Residenzpflicht” law excludes refugees from the mainstream societies not allowing them to mix with the general populace, fellow refugees and migrants who may be living in other cities.
The movement Restriction law keeps refugees from seeing their doctors, their lawyers, their friends and relatives and for some of them worst of all from continuing the political activities that made them flee their country in the first instance. The government law is gagging us in a way.
Thus the Movement Restriction pass-law (Residenzpflichtgesetz) for refugees violates article 13 of the Universal Human Rights Declaration (Freedom of Movement) as well as article 1 of the German constitution and article 2 paragraph 1 that guarantee the right to human dignity and the right to development of the human personality respectively. Also the right to assemble is highly restricted with this law.

Our work to promote the living conditions of refugees and migrants in this country are not without its negative consequences.
We face State intimidations and repressions with deportations and many of us being under deportation threats.
The restriction of movement law ( das residenzplichtgesetz) or call it the residence obligation law is being used as a weapon to hinder or stop altogether our political engagements.

The new Immigration law has actually been serving the intentions of its originators as a law to hinder migration into Germany and to increase the expulsion of those already here, especially those seeking refuge from persecution and natural disasters and war.
Some of the achievements of the new law so far has been ;
a. The virtual removal of asylum rights.
b. Construction or commissioning of more deportation centres and prisons.
c. Total defiance and disregard for the rule of law by many State Interior Ministers and disregard for both International laws and human rights.
d. Spreading apathy and psycho-torture among asylum seekers and people without papers.
e. Perforating justice, increasing the integration and expanding the contributions of the law courts in the deportation machinery.
f. The word “Bundesamt for migration” is a wrong connotation. It is a government agency that initiates deportation rather than manage migration.
g. The percentage of accepted asylum seekers makes the Bundesamt and the district courts a laughing stock in the eyes of the world, and making nonsense of the asylum procedure.

There are numerous concrete evidences that prove that deported asylum seekers face persecution, torture, indefinite detention, imprisonment, death or even suicide.
In some cases some of them have been lucky to escape from prison and live in hiding in neighbouring countries, living in constant fear without future prospects, always on the run.
The recent “Gestapo styled” deportation to Togo of Alhassane Mousbau in January 2006 is a typical example.
The German government is yet to take full responsibility for the consequences of its action.

In the light of this and our conviction of the fact that deportation is a crime:

We demand a general stop to all deportations.
We demand the respect and recognition of the human rights and dignity of all asylum seekers.
We demand residence permit devoid of any restriction for all and the opportunity to integrate into the society.
We demand freedom of movement for everybody everywhere.
We demand the abolition of the ”Residenzpflicht” which isolates, excludes and criminalises refugees in Germany.
We demand an end to racist police controls, police abuse and brutality of refugees and migrants all in the name of the “Residenzpflicht” law.

The right to asylum has witnessed gradual erosion over the past decades and it is gradually being extinguished. “A right once extinguished may never be regained”. We demand full restoration of this right not only for our purpose today but for future generations and for posterity. " Those who fail to condemn evil, commit it to be done".

The burning to death of our comrade Oury Jalloh in a Police cell in Dessau and the cover up by the state to bring to book the blood tasty barbarians responsible for this ominous act. In the same way we would not forget the murder of Laye Konde in Bremen through the forced and criminal administration of chemical agents on him. The two actions in our view were carried out with impunity and total disregard for the lives of refugees. Mouktar Bar, one of the leading persons calling for justice in Oury Jalloh’s case is presently being persecuted by the state in one guise or the other. The perpetrators of these heinous crimes are undaunted and appear to be “untouchables”. Is this how democracy operates in 21st Century Germany? We will reiterate once more that “those who do not condemn evil commit it to be done”.
We demand justice in these cases and demand that the German government put an end to the atrocities committed against us all " in the name of the Law".
We want to be seen and heard as the human beings we are and not as some strange creatures from some strange continents.
The dignity of man is non negotiable and must be upheld in all cases.

Thank you
-----------
archives 08.11.2003

Kurze Information in Deutsch,English and French

The VOICE Refugee Forum – ein Netzwerk von politischen Flüchtlingen/ Aktivisten
Wir, The VOICE Refugee Forum, bestehen aus Gruppen von Menschenrechtsaktivisten, die seit 1994 aktiv engagiert sind, in der Öffentlichkeit die inhumane Situation von Flüchtlingen in Thüringen und ganz Deutschland anzuprangern. Die Mitglieder engagieren sich aktiv für verfolgte MenschenrechtsaktivistInnen und gegen die Verletzung von Menschenrechten hier und in ihren Heimatländern.

Wir informieren über die schwierigen Lebensbedingungen von Flüchtlingen in Deutschland und die Menschenrechtslage in ihren Heimatländern.

Das Forum wurde ursprünglich als "The VOICE Africa Forum" von Afrikanern in Thüringen gegründet.
Inzwischen bietet unsere Gruppe ein Forum für alle Flüchtlinge, die in unserem gemeinsamen Kampf in verschiedenen Städten in Deutschland engagiert sind:

1. Im Protest gegen Menschenrechtsverletzungen in den Heimatländern der Flüchtlinge und MigrantInnen und in Deutschland.
2. Gegen Abschiebung und die Bedrohung von Flüchtlingen und MigrantInnen durch Abschiebung.
3. Gegen die soziale Ausgrenzung von Flüchtlingen und MigrantInnen.
4. Gegen den täglichen Rassismus durch Autoritäten und die Öffentlichkeit.
5. Gegen rassistische Kontrollen und Polizeibrutalität gegen Flüchtlinge und MigrantInnen.
6. Für die Abschaffung von Abschiebegefängnissen und Internierungszentren und -lagern.
7. Für das universale Recht auf Bewegungsfreiheit, das in Deutschland durch Abschiebungen und Abschiebeandrohungen und die Auferlegung der sogenannten "Residenzpflicht", die Beschränkung des Aufenthalts von Asylbewerbern auf den ihnen zugewiesenen Landkreis, verletzt wird.

Der Alltag von Flüchtlingen ist geprägt von Isolation und sozialer Ausgrenzung verbunden mit der steten Bedrohung durch Abschiebung.

Seit der Gründung von "The VOICE (Africa) Forum" im Oktober 1994 in Mühlhausen/Thüringen (seit 1998 im Netzwerk der "Karawane für die Rechte der Flüchtlinge und MigrantInnen") wurden Hunderttausende von Flüchtlingen und MigrantInnen ohne politischen oder humanitäre Abwägung von Deutschland abgeschoben.

Stoppt die Abschiebungen! Abschiebungen sind Menschenrechtsverletzungen. Folglich sind sie ein Verbrechen.

Die deutschen Behörden müssen verantwortlich gemacht werden für die Konsequenzen dieser Abschiebungen und Abschiebeandrohungen, die oftmals absolute Verzweiflung und Frustration, Repression und Tod bedeuten; das gilt für die Flüchtlinge und MigrantInnen sowohl hier in Deutschland als auch nach ihrer Abschiebung, die für die Abgeschobenen Gefängnis, Verfolgung, Folter oder Tod heißt.

Wenn wir abgeschoben werden, schickt man uns zurück in dieselben Länder, welche zerstört und jeder Zukunft beraubt wurden. Und wie zu Beginn des Kolonialismus werden wir behandelt wie Tiere - nicht wert der westlichen Ideale wie Freiheit, Gerechtigkeit und Demokratie. Wir werden in Käfige (Heime, Ausreisezentren und Abschiebegefängnisse) gesperrt, welche ihnen nicht gut genug für ihre Hunde sind. Sie erwarten von uns, dass wir diese Ungerechtigkeit ohne Beschwerden akzeptieren und dass wir dankbar sind für ihre vorgebliche "Großmut".
Sie erwarten von uns Lob für die USA, die EU-Regierungen, die WTO, IWF, Weltbank und NATO iom und usw. für den "Versuch uns von Armut und unserer schlimmen Situation zu retten" - die diese uns auferlegt haben.

Bewegungsfreiheit jetzt! Schließt alle Abschiebelager und Abschiebeknäste!
Schluss mit den Abschiebungen und Residenzpflicht-Beschränkungen für Flüchtlinge in Deutschland!

Eure kontinuierliche Unterstützung und euer Engagement in Solidarität mit den unterdrückten und verfolgten Flüchtlingen und MigrantInnen in Deutschland bleibt unerlässlich für unsere tägliche Arbeit und für eine bessere Situation von Flüchtlingen und MigrantInnen im Allgemeinen.

Wie für alle ehrenamtlichen Organisationen gilt auch für uns: Es sind eure Spenden, die unsere Arbeit am Laufen halten.
Bitte spendet heute um den Widerstand aufrechtzuerhalten und morgen eine bessere Welt aufzubauen.

Spenden für Kampagne, Transport, Mobilisierung and Besuch in Flüchtlingsheim/lager, Druckkosten, Organisation und die Durchführung von Treffen und Veranstaltungen werden uns höchst willkommen sein.

Förderverein The VOICE e.V., Kontonr. 127829, BLZ 26050001 (Sparkasse Göttingen)

The VOICE Refugee Forum Jena. Schillergäßchen 5, 07745 Jena
Tel.: 0049 (0) 3641 665214. Fax. 0049 (0) 3641 420270 E-mail.: voice_mail@emdash.org.
Karawane für die Rechte der Flüchtlinge und MigrantInnen, www.basicrights.de

Happy new year! -10 Years of The VOICE Forum in 2004-

Wir wuenschen euch ein gutes neues Jahr!

Mit herzlichen Gruessen und Solidaritaet von The VOICE Forum, Jena

Webmaster
Osaren Igbinoba

The VOICE + Africa + Refugee + Forum

10 Jahre The VOICE Forum 1994-2004
Ein unabh�ngiges Netzwerk politischer Fluechtlinge und Aktivisten
innerhalb der Karawane fuer die Rechte der Fl�chtlinge und MigrantInnen

Chaos in Deutschland und Fl�chtlingsprotest
Abschiebung . Residenzpflicht . Isolation . Internierung . Lager . Gefaengnisse . olitische Gefangene Verfolgung . Polizeigewalt . Rassistische Kontrollen . Kriminalisierung . Auslaendergesetz . Gerichte . Diskriminierung . Rassismus . Ausbeutung . Soziale Ausgrenzung . Beschraenkung der Bewegungs- und Niederlassungsfreiheit

Information : Demo : Mahnwache : Kundgebung : Streik : Mobilisierung : Netzwerk : Fax-Kampagne : Seminar : Diskussion : Kongress : Ausstellung : Film : Musik : Theater

Zivilcourage und Ziviler Ungehorsam
Protestiert gegen Repression hier und �berall sonst!

Internationale Solidaritaet gegen diktatorische Regime, Ausbeutung durch multinationale Konzerne, Umweltzerst�rung, Besatzung. Kolonialism . Kriegs und Militarisierung . Faschimus. Rassismus und Sexissmus

The VOICE Refugee Forum Jena, Schillerg��chen 5, 07745 Jena
Tel.: 0049 (0) 3641 665214. E-mail: voice_mail@emdash.org
Goettingen: The_VOICE_Goettingen@gmx.de , Tel.: 0551 58892
Bochum: The_VOICE_NRW@gmx.de Tel.: 0175 6759322
Berlin: The_VOICE_Berlin@gmx.de, Tel.: 0173 1889722,
Bremen: suneke@hotmail.com, Tel.:0179 4850098
www.thevoiceforum.org, www.basicrights.de

Wenn ihr interessiert seid an Informationen zu The VOICE Refugee Forum,
k�nnt ihr die neue Mailing-Liste
http://lola.d-a-s-h.org/mailman/listinfo/thevoice_forum
oder
thevoice_forum-request@lola.d-a-s-h.org
unterzeichnen.
www.thevoiceforum.org
+++++

english
Brief info
The VOICE Refugee Forum - a network of refugee political activists

We, The VOICE Refugee Forum, are groups of human rights activists that have been actively engaged publicly in protesting the inhumane situation of refugees since 1994 in Thueringen and Germany as a whole. The members are actively engaged for persecuted human rights activists in their home countries.

We are informed about the difficult living conditions of refugees in Germany and the human rights situation in their home countries.

The forum was initiated by Africans in Thueringen as "The VOICE Africa Forum". Our group in Jena provides in the meantime a forum for all refugees involved in our common struggle in different towns and cities of Germany in:

1. Protesting human rights abuses in the home countries of refugees/migrants and in Germany.
2. Against Deportation and deportation threats of refugees and migrants
3. Against the social exclusion of refugees and migrants.
4. Against the daily racism by the authorities and the public.
5. Against racist controls and police brutality against refugees and migrants.
6. For the abolition of deportation prisons and detention centres/camps.
7. For the universal rights for freedom of movement which is violated in Germany by
deportation and deportation threats and by the imposition of the so-called "Residenzpflicht", the restriction of the movement of refugees to their "landkreis" or local districts.

The daily life of refugees is designed by isolation and social exclusion with the permanent threat of deportation.

Since the foundation of "The VOICE Forum in October 1994 in Mühlhausen in East Germany, and (since 1998 that we joined the network of The Caravan for the rights of refugee and migrants) hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants have been deported from Germany without political or humanitarian consideration.

Stop the deportations! Deportation is a human rights abuse. So it is a crime.

The German authorities must be held accountable for the consequences of these deportations and the deportation threats which often led to absolute desperations and frustrations with repressions and death of the refugees or migrants here in Germany and after their deportations, including the imprisonments, persecutions, tortures or death of those deported.

When we are deported, we are sent back to the very lands that have been destroyed and raped of any future. And like when colonialism began, we are treated like animals not worthy of the so-called Europeans ideals of liberty, freedom and democracy. We are placed in Cages (Heims, Ausreisezentrum or deportation prisons) which they do not consider good enough for their dogs. They "wisely" expect us to accept this injustice without complaints and be grateful to them for their purported "magnanimity". They expect us to praise the U.S.A and European governments, WTO, IMF, World Bank, NATO, IOM and etc. for "trying to rescue us" from the poverty and ugly situation they imposed on us.

Free Movement Now! Close all detention and deportation centers!
Stop the deportations! Abolish the"Residenzpflicht" restriction of refugees to local districts in Germany!

Your continuous support and committment in solidarity with the oppressed and the persecuted refugees and migrants in Germany remain indespensable for our daily work and for the better situation of refugees and migrants in general.

As with all volunteer organizations, your donations is what keeps us going. Please donate today as to save the resistance and build a better tomorrow

Donations towards campaigns, transportation, mobilisation, visit to refugee camps and printing cost, organisation and realisation of the meetings and events with refugees and migrants will be highly welcomed.

Förderverein The VOICE e.V., Kontonr. 127829, BLZ 26050001 (Sparkasse Göttingen)

Caravan for the rights of refugee and migrants, http://www.thecaravan.org
The VOICE Refugee Forum Jena. Schillergäßchen 5, 07745 Jena
Tel.: 0049 (0) 3641 665214. Fax. 0049 (0) 3641 420270, E-mail.: voice_mail@emdash.org,

English

We wish you all Happy new year
with warm greetings and solidarity from The VOICE Forum - Germany

Webmaster
Osaren Igbinoba.

10 Years of The VOICE Forum in 2004
An independent network of political refugees and activists within the Caravan for the Rights of Refugees and Migrants

Chaos in Germany and Refugee Protest in Exile
Deportations . Residenzpflicht . Isolation . Detention . Lagers . Prisons . Political Prisoners . Persecution . Police Violence . Racist Controls ... Criminalization . Foreigners Law . Courts .Discrimination .Racism . Exploitation . Social Exclusion . Restriction of Movement and Settlement

Information : Demo : Rally : Vigil : Strike : Mobilisation : Network : Seminar : Fax Campaign : Discussion : Congress : Exhibition : Music : Film : Theatre

Civil Courage and Civil Disobedience
Protest repression here and anywhere else!

International Solidarity against dictatorial regimes . multinationals . Enviromental distruction and Exploitations, Occupations . War . and Militarization . Racism . Fascism
and Sexism.

The VOICE Refugee Forum Jena, Schillerg��chen 5, 07745 Jena
Tel.: 0049 (0) 3641 665214. E-mail.: voice_mail@emdash.org.
Goettingen: The_VOICE_Goettingen@gmx.de, Tel.: 0551 58892
Bochum: The_VOICE_NRW @gmx.de, Tel.: 0175 6759322
Berlin: The_VOICE_Berlin@gmx.de , Tel.: 0173 1889722,
Bremen: suneke@hotmail.com,Tel.:0179 4850098
www.thevoiceforum.org,

If you are interested in The VOICE Refugee Forum information,
you can subscribe to the new mailing list:
http://lola.d-a-s-h.org/mailman/listinfo/thevoice_forum
or
thevoice_forum-request@lola.d-a-s-h.org
www.thevoiceforum.org

francais
Bref info au sujet de
The VOICE Refugee Forum-un réseau de réfugiés politiquement engagés.

Nous, the Voice Refugee Forum , sommes un groupe d´activistes pour les droits de l´homme engagés publiquement dans la contestation des conditions des réfugiés dans le Thueringen depuis 1994 et en Allemagne en général.Les membres sont politiquement engagés pour lutter contre la persécution des activistes des droits de l´homme dans leurs pays d´origine.

nous nous enquérons des conditions de vie difficile des réfugiés ici en Allemagne et dans la situation des droits de l´homme de leurs pays respectifs.

Le forum fut initié par les africains dans le thueringen comme "The VOICE Africa Forum" notre groupe à Jéna fournit en même temps un forum pour tous les réfugiés impliqués dans la même lutte dans les différentes villes et cités allemandes :

1.Protester les abus de droits de l´homme des pays d´origine des réfugiés et en Allemagne.
2.contre les déportations et menaces de déportation des réfugiés et émigrants.
3.contre l´exclusion sociale des réfugiés et émigrants.
4.Contre le racisme quotidien des autorités et le public.
5.Contre les brutalités policières et les contrôles racistes en l´encontre des réfugiés et émigrants
6.Pour l´abolition des prisons de déportation et centres de déportation
7.Pour le droit universel de la libre circulation qui est violé en Allemagne par le biais des déportations et menaces de déportation et de l´imposition de la "Residenzpflicht", la loi sur la restriction des mouvements des réfugiés dans un district bien défini connu sous le nom de "Landkreis".

Le quotidien des réfugiés se contourne autour de l´isolation et l´exclusion sociale avec pour menace permanente une déportation en vue.
Depuis la création du "The VOICE Forum" en Octobre 1994 à Mühlhausen en Allemagne de l´Est, et depuis 1998 que nous avons joint le réseau de la Caravane pour les droits des réfugiés et des émigrants des centaines de milliers de réfugiés ont été déportés de l´Allemagne sans considération politique et humaine.

Arrêtez les déportations! La déportation est une violation des droits de l´homme, donc un crime.

Les autorités allemandes doivent être tenus coupables pour toutes conséquences de ces déportations et menaces de déportation qui se sont souvent terminés en forme de désespération profonde et frustration avec répression et morts des réfugiés ici en Allemagne et après leurs déportations y compris les emprisonnements, persécutions, tortures ou morts de
ceux déportés.

Lorsque nous sommes déportés, nous sommes envoyés dans les pays qui ont été détruits et ruinés de tout futur. Et comme cela fut au temps du colonialisme, nous sommes traités comme les animaux n´ayant pas les plus petites valeurs des idéaux européens de liberté, liberté et démocratie. Nous sommes placés dans les cages (Heims ,Ausreisezentrum ou prisons de déportation) qu´ils ne considèrent pas assez bien pour leurs chiens. Ils espèrent de nous, d´accepter de manière sage ces conditions d´injustice sans plaintes et les remercier pour leur magnanimité
.Ils espèrent de nous, de rendre honneur aux Etats-Unis et les gouvernements européens, OMC, FMI, Banque Mondiale, OTAN, IOM etc... dans leur tentative de venir "à notre secours"afin de nous libérer de la pauvreté et des situations horribles qui nous imposent.

Maintenant la liberté de Mouvement! Fermez tous les centres de détention et de déportation!
Arrêtez les déportations!Abolissez la « limitation de Résidence » la restriction en Allemagne des districts locaux des réfugiés!

Votre support quotidien et engagement avec les oppressés et émigrants en Allemagne restent indispensables pour le travail au jour le jour et pour une meilleure situation des réfugiés en Allemagne en général.

Etant une organisation faite de volontaires, vos donations sont celles qui nous maintienent.
S´il vous plaît faites des dons afin de préserver la résistance et pour la mise en place d´un demain meilleur.

Les dons à travers les campagnes, transports, mobilisation, visites aux réfugiés dans les camps et imprimeries, l’organisation et la réalisation des réunions et évènements avec les réfugiés et émigrants sont la bienvenue.

Förderverein The VOICE e.V., Kontonr. 127829, BLZ 26050001 (Sparkasse Göttingen)

Caravane pour les droits des réfugiés et des émigrants, http://www.thecaravan.org
The VOICE Refugee Forum Jena. Schillergäßchen 5, 07745 Jena,
Tel.: 0049 (0) 176 245686988. Fax. 0049 (0) 3641 420270
E-mail.: thevoiceforum@emdash.org,