Hello,
because of the numerous raids against the migrants in the past days in Morocco, the transnational network Afrique-Europe-Interact has written – on the basis of different reports from Marocco (among them the Communiqué which was initiated by the Council of subsaharian migrants in Morocco) a protest letter which can be sent via mail, fax or e-mail to the Moroccan ambassy in Berlin (or any other embassy):
Poste: Botschaft des Königreichs Marokko, Niederwallstraße 39, 10117 Berlin; Fax: +49 (0) 30 20 61 24 20; E-Mail: kontakt@botschaft-marokko.de
It would be great if faxes would also be sent from others
European countries to the Moroccan embassies in the
respective countries. For this this letter can serve as a
model (the english and french version of this letter can be
found on our website: http://www.afrique-europe-interact.net)
In addition we want to recommend the following video
concerning the situation of migrants in the area of Melilla
(french with english subtitles):
http://politica.elpais.com/politica/2013/06/28/actualidad/1372440971_006327.html
Finally we all want to send the migrants concerned in Morocco our entire
solidarity !
Best wishes,
NoLager
Bremen (in the name of Afrique-Europe-Interact)
Arrests of Sub-Saharan migrants in Morocco
Dear Mr. Ambassador,
with great concern I learned from Moroccan and international media, that
Moroccan security forces executed various raids against Sub-Saharan
migrants in the North of Morocco and in other cities like Mekhnés
and Rabat. For example: on July 27th 140 migrants were detained close
to the city of Nador and some days before, on July 24th, nearly 300
migrants were detained in the neighbourhood Boukhalef in Tanger.
A group of unarmed migrants attempted to override the border
fortifications to Melilla in the night of 23th to 24th of March and
these desperate trys which are going on since years now were given as
a reason for the actual police raids. During the raids hundreds of
migrants – men, women and children – have been arrested, beaten
and deported to the desert at the moroccan-algerian border. In Tanger
a senegalese woman in presence of her two year old child was injured
and humiliated by police forces and was deported half naked in a
lorry to the border between Morocco and Algeria. Close to Nador a
woman was forced to leave her seven months old child behind in the
forest, another one had to leave one of her three year old twins
behind. Those who managed to escape and to hide in the close by
forests did not dare to go back into the cities for fear of new
raids. Others are in hospitals in Nador, numerous severely injured
and two dead persons are reported.
To my opinion it is alarming, that Moroccan media are justifying these
inhuman raids by claiming, that the migrants were responsible for
armed attacks against the fences of Melilla as they should have used
sticks. It is highly deceptive to call these sticks arms (if ever
they have been used) and to call the desperate try to overcome the
fences violence. The violence was clearly committed by the Moroccan
security forces as the above mentioned examples show. And
it has to be mentioned here too, that a big part of the
responsibility for the violence is the deeply inhuman policy of the
European Union, to externalise and militarise its border regime. Last
but not least this policy is responsible for the death of some ten
thousands of refugees and migrants from both Sub-Saharan Africa and
the Maghreb on their way to Europe since 1993.
Basically I would like to ask you, to advocate for an immediate stop of the
ongoing raids, arrests and deportations to the moroccan-algerian
border. It is also of great importance, that the responsible persons
for the recent cases of death are brought to justice. Moreover all
wounded migrants should have the possibility of medical treatment in
hospitals without being in fear of being arrested.
Finally I would like to point out, that I explicitly support all
corresponding demands of Moroccan human rights organisations.
No Borders Morocco 