<nettime> Shut Down the Camp - civil disobedience against the racist, dehumanisng asylum system

[Carsten Agger <agger@c.dk>]

Luk Lejren (Shut down the camp!) is a Danish initiative of civil
disobedience against the government's inhumane asylum policy.

In Denmark, asylum seekers waiting for asylum are obliged to live for
years in camps behind barbed wire. They can leave the camps, but must be
back by nightfall. They are not allowed to receive schooling, they are
not allowed to work - actually, they are not allowed to do anything.

People who arrive traumatized by war are shattered by the Danish asylum
system's negligence. The camps are run by the Danish Red Cross, and the
government usually brushes off criticism of life in the camps by
claiming they have nothing to do with it, the Red Cross is running the
camps, and nobody wants to criticize the Red Cross.

Thus, the Danish Red Cross are actually legitimizing Denmark's inhuman
and dehumanizing asylum policy.

On October 25, a non-violent demonstration with thousands of people will
symbolically CLOSE THE CAMP by bringing down the barbed wire fences.
This is done to demand that Danish authorities let these people
participate in our society instead of going insane after years of
oblivion and inactivity in the camps.

Here's what the activists write in English on their home page:

-----------------------------------------

Shut Down the Camp
The Shut Down the Camp Initiative calls for a day of action against the
Sandholm refugee camp in North Zealand, Denmark (25km north of
Copenhagen).

On October the 25th we are planning a massive civil disobedience action.
We do not use physical violence, we cut fences and shut down control
posts. Our aim is to dismantle the Sandholm camp, and thereby physically
challenge the racism of the Danish refugee policy.

The way Denmark treats refugees is horrible. On several occasions the
UNHCR has criticised Denmark for not complying with international
regulations. Refugees that have risked their life to escape persecution
are turned away at the border. Recently we have seen a number of Iraqis
being escorted back to Iraq. Many of them have disappeared shortly after
their return.

The process of being granted an asylum in Denmark is long and hard. For
years the refugees are waiting for their destiny to be decided, hidden
away in remote locations. The purpose of isolation is pretty straight
forward: It is to exclude the refugees from society and anything that
resemble peaceful conditions and a normal life. The Sandholm refugee
camp and the fences around it are brutal and concrete manifestations of
racism.

The Danish policy towards refugees are based on humiliation and
dehumanisation of the the world’s most vulnerable. The Shut Down the
Camp action is aiming to put an end to this.

On October the 25th we march to the camp. This call goes out to anybody
who wants to get involved. We need all the help we can get.

In solidarity,

Shut Down the Camp ("Luk Lejren")

-----------------------------------------

Denmark as a country has had a good reputation regarding human rights,
but for many years the treatment of asylum seekers has been a serious
blemish. Close the Camp is a unique point in Danish history, a point
where people will turn to civil disobedience to stop the government's
racist policies. Requesting the Red Cross to withdraw from the role as
upkeepers of the brutal camp regime is an important first step.

Read more in English about the conditions in Sandholm here:

http://www.humanrightsblog.org/archives/cat_roma.html

The projects' home page:

http://www.luklejren.dk/

in English:

http://www.luklejren.dk/spip.php?article14

best regards,

Carsten Agger, 
Denmark

--
Blog: http://www.modspil.dk
      http://www.faklen.dk


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