An interview with Heiner Busch, a migrants’ rights activist, who works in the secretariat of Solidarité sans Frontières (SoSF) in Berne and is engaged in the ‘Double no’ (2xNo) campaign. Frances Webber: In the UK, the debate about the rights of foreign national prisoners is getting more heated. Why did Swiss campaigners launch the ‘Double
Geography: Other
Germany: Campaign to overturn headscarf bans launched
The Berlin organisation ReachOut has launched a campaign to rescind the 2003 Law on Neutrality that opened the way for the German states (Länder) to ban the headscarf. Over half of Germany’s sixteen states now ban students and civil servants (including teachers) from wearing the headscarf. The authority to do so comes from the 2003
Voices against Islamophobia
The Institute of Race Relations (IRR) publishes this week two timely reports on the nature, impact and campaigns against Islamophobia across Europe. ‘Islamophobia and progressive values’ This unique report draws attention to the specific role that a discourse on progressive values is playing in shaping Islamophobia. Dr Sabine Schiffer (Institute for Media Responsibility, Erlangen), Murat
LSE’s provocative German Symposium under attack
We reprint an open letter signed by over one hundred UK-based German students and academics critical of the format of the ‘LSE German Symposium 2011 – Integration Debate’ – in particular the invitation extended to Thilo Sarrazin and Henryk Broder. Integration instead of a Clash of Cultures? An Open Letter Regarding the ‘LSE German Symposium
Oury Jalloh International Independent Commission
We publish below the founding statement of the Oury Jalloh International Independent Commission, a body of human rights lawyers set up in December 2010 to monitor the re-trial of a police officer involved in the death in custody of Oury Jalloh, which is set to last several months. Berlin, 10 January 2011 1. We are
‘Short tales of the Hijab’
A forthcoming documentary that explores the lives of Muslim women who wear the hijab is a must-see film, full of surprises. One of the most pernicious side-effects of the current wave of Islamophobia sweeping through Europe is the way that it denies the individuality of Muslim women and girls who wear the veil. The idea
Swiss architects challenge Islamophobia
The IRR News Service met up with three members of Foreign Architects Switzerland (FAS) who are challenging the Swiss ban on minarets.[1] Liz Fekete: You are in London, at the invitation of the Architecture Foundation, to speak at a forum on architecture’s political and social role in the context of the Swiss ban on minarets
Domestic workers campaign for recognition and protection
IRR News reports on a recent meeting to organise migrant domestic workers. The RESPECT network, the European network supporting the rights of migrant domestic workers, recently held its annual conference in London and a forum to meet colleagues in the British trade union movement, migrant organisations and NGOs working to support migrants’ rights. RESPECT stands
Not integration but civil rights
The Institute of Race Relations publishes the alternative European integration report. What do minority organisations, refugees and migrants in Europe think about the debate on integration? Is it a debate that stigmatises and humiliates ethnic minorities, or one where institutionalised racism is adequately addressed? Over the last year, the IRR’s European Race Audit has been
Migreurop at the Istanbul crossroads
Author, Matt Carr, describes a recent conference to coordinate pan-European campaigning on migration and detention. On 27-29 May more than sixty researchers, human rights activists and NGO representatives attended an international meeting of the Migreurop network at Istanbul’s Mimar Sinan Fina Arts University to share experiences of local campaigns and initiatives and coordinate future strategies