6th Antiracist No-Border Camp in Cologne/Germany
July 31st – August 10th 2003

Out of control
For global freedom of movement.
Let’s attack capitalist logic and racist exclusion!

pdf-version

This years joint 6th Antiracist No-Border Camp in Cologne is moving closer and closer. With this “Last Call” we once again would like to invite everyone who is determined, interested or still doubting, to camp against racist consensus. The most important information is on this flyer, more can be found online or at the info-points stated below.

For the first time, this years No-Border Camp will start with a 3-day plenary session titled “Antirassismus ausbuchstabiert” (antiracism spelled out). On the one hand, this is to make more time and room for discussions that have otherwise always been led parallel to actions at the Camp. On the other, this is to reflect our antiracist praxis from different points-of-view. It will take place at the University of Applied Sciences Cologne-Deutz, Betzdorfer Strasse 2 (a map will come soon).

This year, the main focus of content will be on control and surveillance (the International Organisation of Migration [IOM] in Bonn, the Auslaender-Zentral-Register [central register of foreigners – AZR] and racist police controls), labour and utilization (aspects of gender in labour, the repressive policies of the so-called “Hartz proposal” for the unemployed and people on welfare, labour and migration, forced labour and exploitation during the Third Reich which has still not yet been compensated) and deportation and deterrence (accommodation of refugees on ships, the deportation prison in Neuss near Cologne, the deportation airport in Duesseldorf).

An expression of these deterrence-policies in Cologne is the accommodation of refugees on container-ships. A very concrete demand from the Camp will therefore be to abandon this concept of deterrence, which means demanding e.g. de-central accommodation in proper housing, the abolition of the “Sachleistungsprinzip” (the principal of allocating goods and pocket-money), the abolition of the restriction of refugees to certain areas and the guarantee of good medical provision. This demand will be present throughout the whole Camp.

Right-wing populist demonstration against the Camp

The right-wing populist citizen-movement “Pro Koeln” is planning a demonstration against the No-Border Camp on Saturday, 2nd August at 10 a.m.. Prior to the Camp, Pro Koeln has been attempting to instigate the inhabitants of the district Cologne-Poll against us. This racist association agitates mainly by breeding hate against Roma.

One of our reactions will be an open Saturday-morning-stroll through the district accompanied by a loudspeaker-truck, handing out flyers and the camp-newspaper in order to make acquaintance with the inhabitants.

The character of this action should neither be overfriendliness nor a punishment-expedition, but a clear and friendly showing of whom we are.

Apart from this, there will be de-central actions addressing the activities of Pro Koeln for those who favour this to the plenary session.

Things to know about the structure of the Camp

Location
Poller Wiesen: fields on the Eastern bank of the river Rhine, opposite the city-centre.
How to get there
By train:
From Cologne main station: > take the Underground No. 16 in direction Bonn//Bad Godesberg > get off at the station “Schoenhauserstrasse” (after ca. 15 min) > walk in the direction the train came from to the Suedbruecke (Southern Bridge) > cross the Suedbruecke to the Poller Wiesen.
By car:
From the North, South or East: > take motorway A3 up to junction “Dreieck Heumar” > take motorway A4 towards Aachen > depart motorway at “Koeln-Poll” > turn left into “Siegburger Strasse” > after ca. 1,7 km turn left into “Am Schnellert” > straight on until you are near the river and look for a car-park > after finding a car-park, walk down to the bank of the river Rhine under the Suedbruecke (Southern Bridge) where you will find the Poller Wiesen.
From the West: take motorway A4 towards Olpe > depart motorway at “Koeln-Poll” > turn left into “Siegburger Strasse” > after ca. 1,7 km turn left into “Am Schnellert” > straight on until you are near the river and look for a car-park > after finding a car-park, walk down to the bank of the river Rhine under the Suedbruecke (Southern Bridge) where you will find the Poller Wiesen.

Try to come as soon as possible to help set up the Camp. We start on Thursday, 31st July at 12 midday. We hope you are there at the latest on Friday since we need lots of people in Cologne for when the activities against the Camp by “Pro Koeln” take place on Saturday. We also need people who don’t want to go to the plenary session but instead want to amuse themselves on the camping-grounds.

Communicational structure

Translations

Everything that takes place on the Camp will be conducted in two languages (German and English). If necessary, there will also be translations from and into other languages. Most probably, not everything will run smoothly and we will have to improvise a lot. We therefore ask everyone to think about who can translate which languages and think they are capable of doing this at the Camp, even if it isn’t perfect. Our plan is for everyone who thinks she/he is capable of translating, to pick up an accordingly coloured ribbon in the info-tent. This would even make communication in the dinner-queue possible!

Furthermore, there will be a forum for the daily Camp-Newspaper “Campesin@” and a web-journal.

There will also be meetings in relation to refugee self-organisation on the Camp.

Media-group

There will be a media-group on the Camp whose intention it is to support activists in medial publications. If you want to carry out actions, consult them.

Infrastructure

Of course there will be an info-point at the plenary session at the University of Applied Sciences and an info-tent on the Camp.
“Volkskuechen” (peoples kitchens) provide the food, but only with your active assistance and for a donation.
Tap-water, electricity and toilets are existent.
No trees = no shade! Be prepared. Bring pavilions, sun-hats and sun-lotion with you!
There will be a legal team (“Ermittlungsausschuss” - EA) that provides support when arrests or other annoyances with the repression-apparatus occur.
Furthermore, there will be ambulance persons. We still need more people who participate in the medical area. Ambulance-material is existent.
There will be a women’s and lesbian’s area (transgender?).
There will be a so-called “Ansprechgruppe”, a group which can be contacted in the case of sexist aggression. Its function is to support the person affected by sexist aggression. This group will introduce itself at the first large plenary meeting on Sunday.

Please remember…

The contribution to the Camp totals 20,00 Euro (depending on self-estimation).
Please leave your dogs at home!
There will be a wagon with toys for children. However, it is still not clear whether there will be someone to look after the children.
Please don’t bring trucks and trailers because they are not allowed on the camping-grounds! Car-parks are within 10 minutes walking distance.
As usual, bring a tent, camping-mattress and sleeping-bag.
Important: If possible, bring extra tents and sleeping-bags for people who don’t have their own.
Material for actions such as football-horns, paint, fabrics and whatever your inspiration tells you to.
Tents, sleeping-bags and material for actions can be handed in at the info-tent and will be placed in a material-tent.

All participants of the Camp are asked to feel responsible for and actively contribute towards the Camp: in the infrastructure (by protecting the camp, helping in the kitchens, writing for the camp-newspaper, web-journal etc….) as in the communicational structures (by translating in the dinner-queue and at plenary meetings, at the meetings of delegates etc….) and in general by making the Camp a place where we enjoy being together!

More information at the Camp-office tel.: 0221-9526367, the info-point and info-tent tel.: 0160-91101961 and on the websites: www.nadir.org/camp03 or www.food-not-bombs.de

Preliminary program
Plenary session “Antirassismus ausbuchstabiert”
(antiracism spelled out)

location: University of Applied Sciences – Cologne Deutz.
Betzdorfer Strasse 2, 50679 Cologne

Thursday 6 p.m.: Opening gala. Presentation of the program and the workshops

Friday 10 a.m.: Introductory meeting with short inputs from various groups and a follow-up discussion in the large plenary meeting (inquired: respect, kanak attak, Karawane, elexir-a)

Friday and Saturday:
Mark Terkessidis: Racism is NOT a prejudice. The lecture should put an end to the belief that racism is a pre-modern relict or mere prejudice. Mark Terkessidis will present his definition of racism and the correlation (not only proclaimed by him) between racism and modern-times.
Oliver Demny: Racism with system. The lecturer will present his system-theoretical analysis of racism: racism as a social system that constantly reproduces itself, in its kernel is resistant against external influences and furthermore has the function of reducing societal complexity.
“Leftist racism and the globalisation of rights”. A workshop by kanak attak and the Critical Immigrants of Duisburg. Does the conviction-antiracism of German leftists turn into privilege-preserving-racism as soon as migrants demand explicit rights? Why the demand for global rights is an adequate political demand and at the same time formulates a legitimate critique of the anti-globalisation movement.
Free movement now! Or No border, No nation. Contradiction and conflict burdened reality between refugees and German/European antiracists. Organised by: The Voice.
Stop deportations – for freedom of movement without racist persecution. Racist police-controls, deportation centres, the restriction of refugees to certain areas (“Residenzpflicht”), etc. will be presented as instruments that mainly serve to facilitate or enforce deportation. Organised by: The Voice
Labour and migration: Continuing the workshop at the forum by kmii (no one is illegal), concrete insight will be given into various branches in which especially refugees and migrants are working, precariously and partially irregularly. Additionally, practical intervention-possibilities will be subjected. Representatives of various significant groups are inquired.
Sex-labour: Workshop to Sexlabour (Mucolade/Hamburg and Madonna/Bochum)
Freedom Toast: Workshop of the temporary association “every person is an expert” about the correlation between the migration-regime and intellectual-property-regime, between migration-management and digital-rights-management and about the demand for freedom of movement and freedom of information.
International Organisation for Migration: A follow-up to the workshops at the forum by kmii (no one is illegal): a workshop in two-parts about the global migration-regime e.g. the IOM, practical methods of intervention and international networking.
Retention camps and prisons: Demount instead of intern! Meeting and workshop about the expansion of the retention camp- and internment policies, the uprisings and (free)movement of refugees, as well as the proposed anti-retention-camp action-days in Nurnberg-Fuerth/Bavaria. By: Campaign against Deportations, Deportation Prisons and Deportation Camps, Karawane and others.
Anti-discrimination-law: A workshop by the Anti-Discrimination-Bureau (ADB) Cologne by Oeffentlichkeit gegen Gewalt e.V.
Media-workshop: How does the movement handle the media? How does the media handle the movement? (by: Presselinx / Critical Media Berlin)
Direct Action: Why are direct action-forms used so seldom, in fear of repression or because of lacking public outrage? An attempt of revival.

Sunday 10 a.m.: Closing meeting “antiracist praxis” – referring to the introductory meeting, various groups will discuss their political praxis (inquired: respect, kanak attak, Karawane, elexir-a).

Preliminary program
No-Border-Camp

location: Poller Wiesen, on the Eastern bank of the river Rhine,
opposite the city-centre

Thursday, 31st July
12 midday: Build the Camp-structure on the Poller Wiesen
6 p.m.: Opening gala for the plenary session Camp

Friday, 1st August
Plenary session at the University of Applied Sciences, Cologne-Deutz
10 p.m.: Concert with Muff Potter Camp

Saturday, 2nd August
8 a.m.: stroll through Cologne-Poll
10 a.m.: Demonstration by Pro Koeln against the Camp – de-central activities against Pro Koeln
from 1 p.m. onwards: Plenary session at the University of Applied Sciences, Cologne-Deutz

Sunday, 3rd August
10 a.m.: Closing meeting of the plenary session “Antiracist praxis” Camp, large tent
4 to 5 p.m.: Welcoming manifestation on Roncalliplatz, near Dom and main station
7 p.m.: Opening organisational-meeting Camp, large tent
8.30 p.m.: “My grandfather is an NS-war-criminal and I will visit him in Mittenwald” – attack traditions! – serious spoken theatre to get involved Camp
10 p.m.: Concert with Guts Pie Earshot and Karamelo Santo Camp

Monday, 4th August
9 a.m.: Meeting of delegates Camp
2 p.m.: Info-session on refugee-policies in Cologne and the accommodation on a container-ship (kmii Cologne) Camp
4 p.m.: Concert with Plave Zvezcke at the container-ship Camp
7 p.m.: Opening plenary meeting Camp, large tent
10 p.m.: MACLOVIO ROJAS versus LAMAFIA FRACCIONADORA Camp, large tent
10 p.m.: Waking up the nation (Video on the journey of the Australian Freedom Bus) Camp

Tuesday, 5th August
9 a.m.: Meeting of delegates Camp
3 p.m.: Venezuela – State and future of the “Bolivarian Revolution” Camp
7 p.m.: Plenary meeting for actions Camp, large tent
9 p.m.: AZR, Lufthansa, “gipsy-files” – militant antiracism Camp, large tent
10 p.m.: Video “The ship” Camp

Wednesday, 6th August
9 a.m.: Meeting of delegates Camp
10 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.: Student-representatives in the migration-regime University of Applied Sciences, Cologne-Deutz
11 a.m.: Actions against deportation Airport Duesseldorf
7 p.m.: Plenary meeting for actions Camp, large tent
9 p.m.: Seminar on “Arianisation” Camp, large tent
10 p.m.: “In the shadow of the tents” – Film with reports and observations at the No-Border-Camp in Hamburg 2002 Camp

Thursday, 7th August
9 a.m.: Meeting of delegates Camp
Action-day in Cologne city centre!
5 p.m.: Concert with Microphone Mafia at the prison JVA Cologne-Ossendorf
8 p.m.: Interim plenary meeting Camp, large tent
8 p.m.: Info-meeting about the IOM at the civic centre Alte Feuerwache, near Ebertplatz

Friday, 8th August
9 a.m.: Meeting of delegates Camp
1 p.m.: Manifestation of accusation against the IOM in Bonn-Bad Godesberg
from 4 p.m. until late at night: “reformclub”: disco and concert Camp

Saturday, 9th August
9 a.m.: Meeting of delegates Camp
12 midday: Final action
7 p.m.: Closing meeting Camp, large tent

Sunday, 10th August
Deconstruction of the Camp