Calais Migrant Solidarity
Anti-Raids
Barnardo's
Stop G4S
Stop Deportations
Press Action
Past campaigns
Feed aggregator
Target Brimar
Manchester has got a new anti-militarist campaign. It is being launched on Saturday with a national demonstration in Chadderton, at the head office and main production facility of Brimar Ltd.
Brimar manufactures specialist screens and viewing equipment, mostly for military purposes. They are used by the British army in Afghanistan, the US army in Iraq and the Israeli army in Palestine.
No Borders activists will support the demonstration on Saturday at 12noon. You can find out how to get there and more information on the campaign website .
See you there!.
Brimar manufactures specialist screens and viewing equipment, mostly for military purposes. They are used by the British army in Afghanistan, the US army in Iraq and the Israeli army in Palestine.
No Borders activists will support the demonstration on Saturday at 12noon. You can find out how to get there and more information on the campaign website .
See you there!.
Do you remember this banner?
We made it our group’s banner 2 years ago, and took it to pretty much all the demonstrations and actions we attended.
We also took it to the Calais No Borders camp last June. This is where it got confiscated by the French CRS riot police during a leaflet distribution in the town centre. All people who took part in the (apparently illegal) flyering session got arrested, some quite brutally.
Manc No Borders people got away with it that time (though 3 of us were detained for no obvious reason a couple of weeks ago in Calais). But our banner couldn’t be rescued. There was a dramatic-looking photograph in the local paper the next morning, with two anarchists from Lille running away with the banner from a group of riot cops.
That landed them with the charge of ‘rebellion’ (as far as we understand it that’s similar to ‘resisting arrest’ over here). They were in court in Boulogne today, and we’re still waiting to hear if they got sentenced. What we did hear however was that our banner was used in court as evidence against them! And it’s never to be returned.
We’ve already made a replacement for it, which we took to London last week for a picket of Becket House reporting centre:
There’s a report and more pictures of the picket on indymedia. So look out for it on future demos and come join us.
.
Stop the EDL marching in Manchester
Manchester No Borders joins the call out to prevent the English Defence League (EDL) from taking over central Manchester next Saturday.
The EDL are a newly formed group who claim to be protesting against ‘Islamic extremism’. Their recent demonstrations in Luton, Harrow and Birmingham all involved racial violence, racist chants and fascist salutes, and included many known members of the BNP and National Front.
Supporters have called for the protest in Manchester to be ‘the day of reckoning’ when ‘English lions will rise up’, with some going so far as to call for ‘all out war against Islam’. They will arrive from 10am and be kept at bay by police, in theory, until their ‘static rally’ at 5pm in Picadilly Gardens. However, online forums show members discussing possible routes for ‘the march’ and vowing to ignore rules that keep them in one place.
There will be an anti-fascist presence in Manchester City Centre all day. No Borders activists will join the non-aligned/anarchist action which is being organised this week.
See you there!
The EDL are a newly formed group who claim to be protesting against ‘Islamic extremism’. Their recent demonstrations in Luton, Harrow and Birmingham all involved racial violence, racist chants and fascist salutes, and included many known members of the BNP and National Front.
Supporters have called for the protest in Manchester to be ‘the day of reckoning’ when ‘English lions will rise up’, with some going so far as to call for ‘all out war against Islam’. They will arrive from 10am and be kept at bay by police, in theory, until their ‘static rally’ at 5pm in Picadilly Gardens. However, online forums show members discussing possible routes for ‘the march’ and vowing to ignore rules that keep them in one place.
There will be an anti-fascist presence in Manchester City Centre all day. No Borders activists will join the non-aligned/anarchist action which is being organised this week.
See you there!
"Still Not Loving Tories - Still Not Loving Police"
30 people picketed the entrance to Manchester Town Hall and leafletted top cops from around the country as ACPO members and senior Tories met to discuss policing strategies.
With banners, placards and speech bubbles, the group from Manchester No Borders said: Still Not Loving Police, Still Not Loving Tories - as we returned to the place where we had previously embarrassed council leader Richard Leese with a mountain of jumpers: see here.
A large police presence was nearby with some ten vans and 8 horses in Albert Square. Evidence gatherers also showed up for a while. For more pictures see the report on indymedia.
On Sunday evening, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) held a conference fringe meeting with shadow home secretary Chris Grayling MP in Manchester Town Hall. (Grayling was also the guy who compared Moss Side to The Wire, see here.
Outside, anti-authoritarian protesters held their own rally, and warned that a Conservative government could bring clashes with police not seen since the miner’s strike and the poll tax riots.
Fittingly, the country’s senior police officers were discussing strategies on “how to build public confidence in policing” after the criticisms they received over their use of stop and search powers, their handling of football matches and environmental protests, and the killings of Jean Charles de Menezes and Ian Tomlinson.
We maintain that this will be an impossible task to achieve under a new Conservative government. Have we really forgotten the policing of the miner’s strike and the poll tax riots?
As we see it, the police does not serve to protect communitites. It serves to protect the government of the time and to squash dissent against unpopular policies. And under the Tories there will be a lot more of these.
We are specifically thinking of home evictions, lay-offs and welfare cuts. All these will bring more protest, and if the police step in, resistance.
Tories and Chief Police Officers coming to Manchester
From the miners to the G20... Still not loving Tories! Still not loving police! - Anti police repression demoSunday 4th October, 17.00, Manchester Town Hall.
As a fringe event to the Conservative party conference, the Tories and the police are getting together to discuss the question 'How do we build public confidence in policing?' See below.
Manchester No Borders invites you to join us outside the event, as they arrive, to remind them why we will never have confidence in either the Tories or the police.
Bring banners, placards, etc.
. 17.30 Association of Police Authorities & Association of Chief Police Officers & Police Superintendents’ Association
As a fringe event to the Conservative party conference, the Tories and the police are getting together to discuss the question 'How do we build public confidence in policing?' See below.
Manchester No Borders invites you to join us outside the event, as they arrive, to remind them why we will never have confidence in either the Tories or the police.
Bring banners, placards, etc.
. 17.30 Association of Police Authorities & Association of Chief Police Officers & Police Superintendents’ Association
Manchester Town Hall : Conference Hall
The Thin Blue Line: How do we build Public Confidence in Policing?
Speakers : Chris Grayling MP, Shadow Home Secretary; Rob Garnham, Conservative Lead - Association of Police Authorities; Sir Hugh Orde, Incoming President - Association of Chief Police Officers; Ian Johnston, President - Police Superintendents’ Association; Conservative Local Government Association Representative
emergency protest at French Consulate
Manchester No Borders held an emergency protest at the French
consulate today, after French riot police have begun mass evictions
and arrests of refugees hoping to join the UK via the French port town of
Calais.
On Wednesday, French immigration minister, Eric Besson, announced that the
Calais area will be a ‘migrant-free zone’ by the end of next week. Large
areas of woodland, known locally as the ‘jungle’, where young men, many
still children, have set up temporary shelters are to be cleared and
bulldozed.
consulate today, after French riot police have begun mass evictions
and arrests of refugees hoping to join the UK via the French port town of
Calais.
On Wednesday, French immigration minister, Eric Besson, announced that the
Calais area will be a ‘migrant-free zone’ by the end of next week. Large
areas of woodland, known locally as the ‘jungle’, where young men, many
still children, have set up temporary shelters are to be cleared and
bulldozed.
Enough is Enough: ongoing repression in Calais
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! Let's act now to denounce and resist the repression of migrants in the Calais region.
Following Besson's declaration to make Calais a "zero-migrant zone" before the end of 2009, the destruction of jungles, mass evictions of squats and subsequent forced deportations look likely to take place over the coming weeks and months in the Calais region. Although no mass evictions or deportations have yet taken place, and the specific plans of the French government remain unclear, policies and actions aimed against migrants is undoubtdebly stepping up. The last month has already seen regular evictions and an increase in police activities and brutalities. The video recently produced by a No Borders activist is evidence of this:
www.dailymotion.com/megaphone01
A small group of us have been present in Calais since the No Border camp at the end of June, including people from Manchester. Having been witness to daily arrests, gassing and beatings of migrants, we believe now is time to act, denounce and resist the repression of migrants in Calais. Police activity has made Calais a sieged town where migrants are denied their basic rights of access to food, water, sanitation and freedom of movement. We cannot wait for the French government to carry out more devastating actions in Calais, we need to act now!
We have been trying to monitor the police, and when possible prevent them attacking migrants and the camps. We have alerted politicians and NGOs to what is happening in Calais. We have protested at the French Embassy in London, UK, and the French Consul in Barecelona, Spain, and at the CRS police and mayor in Calais. We are hoping to get a more permanent space in Calais soon.
Please join us in Calais.
calaisolidarity@gmail.com
www.calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com
00 33 6 34 81 07 10
LATEST PRESS RELEASE: A squat in Calais, occupied by dozens of Afghan migrants, was destroyed yesterday morning by the French authorities under the pretext of an anti-scabies operation.
The French government is exploiting a scabies epidemic to clear the migrants from the ad-hoc encampments known as the ‘Jungles’ in the Calais area.
At approximately 10am, scores of unknown individuals wearing gasmasks and dressed in white uniforms, entered the Tajik/Hazara squat in scrubland near the ferry port, tore apart their shelters and sprayed an irritant chemical over their belongings. They claimed to be disinfecting the area as part of a programme to treat scabies, despite the fact that the operation was officially cancelled by the French government. Cooking utensils were contaminated, and the absence of running water in the camps made cleaning their equipment especially difficult. “ We are not animals.” One Afghan said. The unknown individuals also seized essential materials such as clothing, and arrested six people, all under the gaze of several vanloads of CRS police.
Humanitarian groups and activists from the No Border Network and Calais Migrant Solidarity had been monitoring the situation in the numerous camps – which in all, are inhabited by some 1,800 migrants from countries such as Afghanistan and Sudan – but the raid occurred shortly after they had left the camp for the morning.
This incident indicates change in tactics by the French authorities as they now seek to justify the continued repression of migrants in Calais, which has been drawing increased criticism by human rights groups. They intend to protest against the daily raids and police repression with a demonstration leaving from Coquelles detention centre at 2pm on Saturday 22nd August.
Following Besson's declaration to make Calais a "zero-migrant zone" before the end of 2009, the destruction of jungles, mass evictions of squats and subsequent forced deportations look likely to take place over the coming weeks and months in the Calais region. Although no mass evictions or deportations have yet taken place, and the specific plans of the French government remain unclear, policies and actions aimed against migrants is undoubtdebly stepping up. The last month has already seen regular evictions and an increase in police activities and brutalities. The video recently produced by a No Borders activist is evidence of this:
www.dailymotion.com/megaphone01
A small group of us have been present in Calais since the No Border camp at the end of June, including people from Manchester. Having been witness to daily arrests, gassing and beatings of migrants, we believe now is time to act, denounce and resist the repression of migrants in Calais. Police activity has made Calais a sieged town where migrants are denied their basic rights of access to food, water, sanitation and freedom of movement. We cannot wait for the French government to carry out more devastating actions in Calais, we need to act now!
We have been trying to monitor the police, and when possible prevent them attacking migrants and the camps. We have alerted politicians and NGOs to what is happening in Calais. We have protested at the French Embassy in London, UK, and the French Consul in Barecelona, Spain, and at the CRS police and mayor in Calais. We are hoping to get a more permanent space in Calais soon.
Please join us in Calais.
calaisolidarity@gmail.com
www.calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com
00 33 6 34 81 07 10
LATEST PRESS RELEASE: A squat in Calais, occupied by dozens of Afghan migrants, was destroyed yesterday morning by the French authorities under the pretext of an anti-scabies operation.
The French government is exploiting a scabies epidemic to clear the migrants from the ad-hoc encampments known as the ‘Jungles’ in the Calais area.
At approximately 10am, scores of unknown individuals wearing gasmasks and dressed in white uniforms, entered the Tajik/Hazara squat in scrubland near the ferry port, tore apart their shelters and sprayed an irritant chemical over their belongings. They claimed to be disinfecting the area as part of a programme to treat scabies, despite the fact that the operation was officially cancelled by the French government. Cooking utensils were contaminated, and the absence of running water in the camps made cleaning their equipment especially difficult. “ We are not animals.” One Afghan said. The unknown individuals also seized essential materials such as clothing, and arrested six people, all under the gaze of several vanloads of CRS police.
Humanitarian groups and activists from the No Border Network and Calais Migrant Solidarity had been monitoring the situation in the numerous camps – which in all, are inhabited by some 1,800 migrants from countries such as Afghanistan and Sudan – but the raid occurred shortly after they had left the camp for the morning.
This incident indicates change in tactics by the French authorities as they now seek to justify the continued repression of migrants in Calais, which has been drawing increased criticism by human rights groups. They intend to protest against the daily raids and police repression with a demonstration leaving from Coquelles detention centre at 2pm on Saturday 22nd August.
Urgent: threat to Calais migrants
People from within the No Borders network have issued a call out for activists, legal observers, journalists and video activists to support migrants in Calais against imminent police attack and deportation!
The French immigration minister, Mr.Besson has officially announced that plans for the destruction of the refugee camps in Calais and the subsequent deportation of refugees will take place this week between the 20th and 25th of July. There is an urgent need for people to go to Calais to protest against the clearances as well as to act as legal & human rights observers as police begin destroying the camps and attempting to remove people.
Please act now in any of the following ways:
To go to Calais for direct solidarity this week:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/call-out-for-cameras-video-activist-and-legal-observers-in-calais/
For phone and email blockades of the French Embassy in London; Phil Woolas, UK Immigration Minister; the French Interior Ministry. All contacts at the end of this message at http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/
To lobby your MEP:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/17/eu-council-directives-of-use-to-lobby-meps/
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/model-letter-for-mps/
To join in protests in London:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/protest-against-destruction-of-calais-jungles/
For an Open statement about Calais situation to all concerned, to be sent
to NGO's, human rights organizations, Trade Unions, anyone else you can
think of:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/category/calais-witnesses/
For helping with direct solidarity in August:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/13/solidarity-not-charity/
The French immigration minister, Mr.Besson has officially announced that plans for the destruction of the refugee camps in Calais and the subsequent deportation of refugees will take place this week between the 20th and 25th of July. There is an urgent need for people to go to Calais to protest against the clearances as well as to act as legal & human rights observers as police begin destroying the camps and attempting to remove people.
Please act now in any of the following ways:
To go to Calais for direct solidarity this week:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/call-out-for-cameras-video-activist-and-legal-observers-in-calais/
For phone and email blockades of the French Embassy in London; Phil Woolas, UK Immigration Minister; the French Interior Ministry. All contacts at the end of this message at http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/
To lobby your MEP:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/17/eu-council-directives-of-use-to-lobby-meps/
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/model-letter-for-mps/
To join in protests in London:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/protest-against-destruction-of-calais-jungles/
For an Open statement about Calais situation to all concerned, to be sent
to NGO's, human rights organizations, Trade Unions, anyone else you can
think of:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/category/calais-witnesses/
For helping with direct solidarity in August:
http://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2009/07/13/solidarity-not-charity/
Feedback and open discussion on Calais
On Wednesday 8th July, we will be hosting a public feedback and discussion event on the recent No Borders camp in Calais. People who went to the camp will tell their stories and share their experiences and we will reflect on the successes/limitations of the camp.
The situation in Calais continues to be pressing, with plans by the authorities to bulldoze more 'jungle' areas that are home to hundreds of people who are stuck at the British border, and a joint Franco-British project to build a Guantanamo-style detention centre in the port. We will thus also talk about how we can support the campaign in the future.
The meeting will be in the back room of the Jabez Clegg pub (Dover St. by the university), starting at 7.30pm on Wednesday 8th July. All welcome!
The situation in Calais continues to be pressing, with plans by the authorities to bulldoze more 'jungle' areas that are home to hundreds of people who are stuck at the British border, and a joint Franco-British project to build a Guantanamo-style detention centre in the port. We will thus also talk about how we can support the campaign in the future.
The meeting will be in the back room of the Jabez Clegg pub (Dover St. by the university), starting at 7.30pm on Wednesday 8th July. All welcome!
Calais: reports from the No Borders camp
The transnational No Borders camp at the British Border in Calais has ended. Everyone who travelled there from Manchester has come back safely.
We have had a lot of fascinating encounters and experiences at the camp in Calais, which was situated very close to some of the ‘Jungle’ areas that are temporary ‘home’ to hundreds of refugees, right next to the E15 motorway which is the main route connecting Calais port to mainland Europe, and on the edge of the housing estates of the Beau-Marais neighbourhood. Just to the east of the city, our camp was inhabited by hundreds of activists from France, the UK and across Europe, and we were joined everyday by many migrants and locals.
We are planning a public event in Manchester very soon, where we will give report-backs from the camp, tell our stories, show our photos and films and discuss with all those who are interested how we can build more long-term strategies towards ‘a world without borders’.
Some 1,500 people took part in a transnational demonstration for freedom of movement on the Saturday.
There are many good reports of the camp and the demonstration on the internet already, so for now we just refer you to the feature article on Indymedia and the blog post by the South Wales No Borders group.
News from Calais
After our info events in Manchester and Hebden Bridge, about 20 people from the Manchester area will travel to the No Borders Camp in Calais next week. A minibus will leave early on Monday 22 June (there are still seats available) and others will make their own way there.
The camp site has now been announced, situated in a public park to the east of Calais. We are intending to have some kind of ‘North West of England’ camping barrio to feed into the logistical and decision-making structures of the camp.
Local newspapers have already given a lot of coverage to the arrival of the No Borders camp, while here the Daily Mail has run one of its usual propaganda stories about violent anarchists invading Calais. It is possible that this could lead to some shops and supermarkets in the area to be shut during our presence there.
The Mayor of Calais and local authorities seem set on making the situation next week tense. Local civil society organisations have been pressured not to support the camp and migrants taking part in protests could be threatened with deportation. And there are indications that the nearby immigration detention centre ‘Coquelles’ could be evacuated for the duration of the camp.
Anti-riot police from all over Northern France are already being stationed in the Calais area. This comes after the recent arrival of organisations such as the IOM, the UNHCR and Medicins du Monde in the town. With all eyes on Calais, we now have a chance to make a real impact.
On Saturday 27 June, the camp participants will be holding a large demonstration for freedom of movement. The call for the demonstration has now also been signed by a wide range of anarchist, anti-fascist and anti-racist groups from the UK, France, Belgium and Germany.
We are hoping for this to be a truly transnational event, which could open spaces for significant political shifts in the public debate on migration to the UK.
More info here:
http://calaisnoborder.eu.org/
The UK No Borders tour: Manchester to Calais (via Hebden Bridge)
The UK No Borders Tour 2009 is visiting the North West of England from 23 May to 5 June and invites you to a series of events that aim to encourage discussion and build awareness of the injustices of the UK and EU Border Regime, as well as to call for action against them. The Tour will terminate in the French border town of Calais on 23-29th of June, an outpost of the UK border system, where it will meet activists and organizations from France and Europe to create a No Borders Camp that aims to highlight the brutal situation for migrants stuck at the UK-French Border. Confirmed events so far include a photo exhibition and workshops and films in Manchester and Hebden Bridge.
EVENTS IN MANCHESTER & HEBDEN
Longsight
NO LANDS MEN: THE STRUGGLE FOR CALAIS (Saturday 23rd to Thursday 28th May)
An exhibition of striking photographs from Calais by French photographer Julie Rebouillat, St. Lukes Art Project, Longsight
LAUNCH NIGHT (Tuesday 26th May, 6pm), with documentaries, tea and cake. To see Julie’s pictures from Calais online check out: contre-faits.org! , St. Lukes, Longsight
Northern Quarter
NO LANDS MEN: THE STRUGGLE FOR CALAIS (Monday 1st to Friday 5th June)
An exhibition of striking photographs from Calais by French photographer Julie Rebouillat, Nexus Art Cafe
WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO BORDERS?! (Monday 1st June, 7pm) workshop and open discussion, Nexus Art Cafe
Hebden Bridge
WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO BORDERS?! (Tuesday 2nd June, 6.30pm) digital exhibition, workshop and open discussion, The Trades Club, food served at 6.30
For opening times, and more info click on the flyer images. Look out for more events announced soon and do get in touch with us if you want to host the UK No Borders Tour in a place near you!
No Borders on Manchester May Day demo
Several hundred people were on the annual Mayday march in Manchester on Monday. The Evening News has an account and pictures of the demonstration under the banner of ‘The Right to Work for ALL’. Called by No Borders and the AF, a group of about 50 anti-authoritarians also joined the march.
The two lead banners of the autonomous bloc read ‘Fight Social Control’ and ‘We won’t pay for your crisis’, echoing our callout in solidarity with workers and communities who engage in direct action (successfully as the case of the Visteon workers shows).
Placards in the shape of speech bubbles also expressed anger at police brutality, not just at the G20, but with reference to the police killings of Carlos Giuliani at the 2001 G8, Charles de Menezes in London, the 15-year old anarchist Alexandros in Athens, and Ian Tomlinson.
For a Manchester demonstration that did not see much mobilisation this was a good turnout, both for the general demo and for the No Borders/AF bloc. [More pictures on indymedia] Thanks to everyone who came.
The two lead banners of the autonomous bloc read ‘Fight Social Control’ and ‘We won’t pay for your crisis’, echoing our callout in solidarity with workers and communities who engage in direct action (successfully as the case of the Visteon workers shows).
Placards in the shape of speech bubbles also expressed anger at police brutality, not just at the G20, but with reference to the police killings of Carlos Giuliani at the 2001 G8, Charles de Menezes in London, the 15-year old anarchist Alexandros in Athens, and Ian Tomlinson.
For a Manchester demonstration that did not see much mobilisation this was a good turnout, both for the general demo and for the No Borders/AF bloc. [More pictures on indymedia] Thanks to everyone who came.
Pages
