#Lesvoscalling: a solidarity campaign for freedom of movement

The women of the Le Mafalde association support this project .

If we want to give a gift for Christmas, let’s make a useful gift !

Since the beginning of the year, around 50,000 people have managed to reach  Lesvos, Samos and the Dodecanese islands , a migratory flow, that of the Aegean Sea, which has never completely stopped and which, also due to Erdogan’s war in Rojava, has reintensified in recent months. Almost all migrants find themselves crammed into so-called ” hotspots ” and initial reception centers in ignoble conditions, a true humanitarian emergency, ” comparable to what is seen in war zones or affected by natural disasters “, he declared. also Cristos Christiu, international president of Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

 The European Union has done its utmost to keep refugees away from the old continent by relying on Erdogan, with whom an infamous 6 billion euro agreement was signed in March 2016 which  involves the subcontracting of the management of all migrant people coming from from the East, the strengthening of the militarization of the borders with the Middle East and  Greece , the patrolling of the maritime section in the Aegean Sea.
On the  Balkan route,  the resources and funds committed were largely used to hinder people’s mobility in every possible way and criminalize active solidarity. Each country has adopted repressive policies with the declared aim of preventing transit, temporary settlement and entry into EU member states, as well as making independent solidarity action complicated and illegal.

Behind the erection of barriers hide two new business models :

the first, less known, is of lobbying companies that build the walls and provide the technology and security services that accompany them; the second, more visible, is largely made up of the large agencies that intervene following the humanitarian emergency, transforming themselves more or less consciously into control agents, functional to the current “border regime”.

The islands of the Aegean Sea, primarily Levsos and the hotspot of Moria, have become to all intents and purposes “confined islands” where migrants suffer a “geographical restriction” which prevents them from moving towards the peninsula . The new Greek right-wing government seems to be cynically awaiting the great catastrophe for the mass evacuation of the hotspots.
The borders of the Balkan route , in particular the crossing point between  Croatia and Bosnia , have been militarised, causing a  notable increase in rejections and violent intervention by the border police , which in fact act as a brutal deterrent to free movement; Furthermore, as in Hungary and Bulgaria, paramilitary groups are starting to patrol the border. The case of  Bosnia is emblematic: since the beginning of the year around 20,000 people have arrived between Bihać and Velika Kladuša and solidarity organizations are forced to operate semi-clandestinely only to distribute food and clothing.

In such a difficult context, in which all regulatory and coercive instruments are in fact focused on repressing the free mobility of migrants, and where even primary rights in terms of international protection are denied or applied with extreme arbitrariness, we think it is fundamentally necessary to put ourselves back on the move and resume following the route, from the Hellenic country to the Balkan area.

In the next few days we will leave for Bosnia and from 3 to 8 January we will be back on the island of Lesbos . These two collective trips will be another step in structuring our intervention in those areas. We will continue to monitor what is happening and report on it through our communication channels, aware that the situation could evolve suddenly and only being in the field allows us to fully grasp these transformations; we will do this by looking at Europe as a horizon and possible space in which to act to weave synergies and moments of recomposition, seeking as always radical alternatives, human and creative solidarity, common struggles for freedom of movement for all.

#lesvoscalling #overthefortress #opentheisland #stopeuturkeydeal

Who we are

We are a network of associations and informal groups engaged in mutualism projects and initiatives, direct support for people, information and awareness-raising on the issues of rights and anti-racism.
In the cities we organize Italian schools, legal support offices, artistic workshops to promote people’s creativity; However, we believe that to guarantee rights it is necessary to act on a European scale.
#Lesvoscalling is a solidarity campaign open to the participation of all those who want to be an active part of it.