Dear friends, worth initiatives and organizations!

The declaration “Freedom, not Frontex” was signed by you, in many
feedbacks there were explicit words for our text. For this
confirmation and encouragement we would like to thank at first warmly.
On the web pages called over again below find themselves – listed
accordingly of the dates of receipt – all signatures come up to now.

When the text was written, the rulers were chased away in Tunisia and
Egypt and also the Libyan despot seemed to stand shortly before the
case. In this situation – with the concurrent road break of several
watchdogs of the EU-border regime in North Africa – we wanted to
formulate from migration-political perspective a more basic position
and spread which turns offensively against the dishonest freedom
rhetoric of those which brought once more Frontex against refugees and
migrants in position.

The varied signatures and feedbacks confirm us that this positioning
spoke obviously to many from the heart and in so far it has had an at
least encouraging effect.
In the new issue of the left month newspaper „ analyse and kritik “
the declaration was printed on the cover, in articles, e.g., of
“Freitag” the text was quoted, in the Labournet and on some other web
pages he can be found at prominent place.

However, a broader discourse intervention, thus after a
movement-political spectrum, can and does not want to be maintained
with it of course. Whether such a declaration in itself or in the
teamwork with real-political initiatives of NGOs – can win indirect
influence in the present situation, e.g., with the calls to the
refugee's admission or evacuation from per asylum and Medico
Internationally-, is absolutely a controversial question. In addition
it would maybe need (money) means for the broader publication of which
we do not dispose. However, we belive that a more important decision
is, that such a discourse initiative would have to stand in the living
interplay with practical interventions. This seemed quite difficult
when the text was published for the first time. And also if in some
towns solidarity actions with the uprisings took place in the Arabian
world (in Bremen together with a “ freedom instead of Frontex “
demonstration), protests and activities have not become easier in
addition under today's conditions.

Since as we know meanwhile, it came in Libya differently than in the
beginning of March still expected and wished. The beginning of
military attacks from the west followed the rolling forecastle of the
Gaddafi regime against the uprising movement meanwhile. The
foreseeable bloodbath in the opposition in Bengazi could be stopped
with it maybe, however, the new war serves certainly own imperial
power interests – with the usual “collateral damages”. The hopeless
situation is the result of a fatal power-political dynamism, in this
polarized discourse per and against military intervention we can´t and
we do not want to join in. We wish the Gaddafi regime further the
coup. Whether the equipment massively demanded by the Libyan
opposition of a so-called no-fly zone turns out really helpful,
however, the history must point. The political influencing control of
the west will allow to the Libyan population, in any case, barely
autonomous, free and socially fair creation of her society.
How further with the declaration?

We had – after the attempt of the discourse intervention – no
concrete, other “plan” with our declaration. Indeed, we have not
written the text also „ from the hollow belly “.
On the one hand, we are involved since several years in the campaign
against Frontex which has contributed at least in the German-speaking
space to the fact that – the so-called protection of the borders
agency – Frontex is perceived after narrow movement circles as a
symbol or, in any case, jointly known as responsible for a deadly
exclusion policy. In it we could and wanted to go back on the occasion
of the operation Hermes with the text and the striking heading.

To the other we are involved at different levels in the growing
euroafrican interlinking of migration-political initiatives. For many
years there are good connections to Morocco, and with the caravan
project from Bamako to Dakar few weeks ago the collaboration with
groups has intensified topically in West Africa. In this respect it
was obvious to position itself in view of the layouts in North Africa
publicly and offensively, not least to develop new contacts in the
lands where these seem up to now rare: in Tunisia, Algeria, Libya and
Egypt.

In this sense the declaration is meanwhile not only on in English, in
French, in Spanish and in Italian availably but also on in Arabic. We
ask with respect to that all signatories for forwarding to her
respective political and/or personal international contacts – in
particular in the Arabian world.
And at the same time seems to us at least for some other weeks
important that the text on possibly many web pages remains well placed
or becomes at least verlinkt.

Since even if it had disappeared – at first by the disaster events in
Japan, then by the military attacks on Libya – from the main headlines
of the last weeks which went migration movements from or over Tunisia
to Lampedusa and continuously go on. The whole question of the
migration control in North Africa is and remains for the EU-border
regime of determining meaning. How the revolutionary processes develop
in Tunisia and Egypt, is still open, the protests and uprisings in the
whole Arabian space continue without reduction. And in this respect
message and contents of “Freedom, not Frontex” still remain topical.

Possibly at the middle of April we will send once again an info letter
to all signatories and enthusiasts to report about other developments
and contacts in the context of the declaration. In preliminary
planning a visit trip is among other things to Tunisia. Who has more
immediate cocreation and participation interest, may likewise announce
itself briefly. (And vice versa: who has enough information and
likewise wants to be loaded by us not further.)

With the best greetings from the editorial staff team of:
Welcome to Europe
Afrique-Europe-Interact
Netzwerk Kritische Migrations- und Grenzregimeforschung