In death, imperialism lives on

from the Guardian:

One of the most poignant sights of the past few days was that of westerners overcome with gratitude that they had been helped by the grace and mercy of those who had lost everything, but still regarded them as guests. When these same people appear in the west, they become the interloper, the unwanted migrant, the asylum seeker, who should go back to where they belong. A globalisation that permits the wealthy to pass effortlessly through borders confines the poor to eroded subsistence, overfished waters and an impoverishment that seems to have no end. People rarely say that poor countries are swamped by visitors, even though their money power pre-empts the best produce, the clean water and amenities unknown to the indigenous population.
...
Such events remind us of the sameness of our human destiny, the fragility of our existence. They place in perspective the meaning of security. Life is always at the mercy of nature - whether from such overwhelming events as this, or the natural processes that exempt no one from paying back to earth the life it gave us. Yet we inhabit systems of social and economic injustice that exacerbate the insecurity of the poor, while the west is prepared to lay waste distant towns and cities in the name of a security that, in the end, eludes us all.

Assertions of our common humanity occur only at times of great loss. To retrieve and hold on to it at all other times - that would be something of worth to salvage from these scenes of desolation.

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USA: Thank an illegal immigrant this season (repost)

from The Enquirer (Cincinnati):

As we gather around for family feasts and more this holiday season, may I remind you of some blessings that you might not have considered?

When chowing down on that turkey, have you ever considered who processed that turkey? Probably migrant labor.

When you prepare your traditional dressing, stuffed with celery and onions, who picked and packed the celery and onions, right in the field, and zipped it onto your grocer, fresh, and clean? Probably - likely - migrant labor.

When enjoying the apples, oranges, grapes, etc., in your fruit salad, who nurtured the orchards and picked that fruit? Probably - likely- illegal migrant labor.

When watching football on your wide-screen plasma TV, in a warm, easily heated, comfortable home, who made it possible for you to have a pleasant holiday, at an inexpensive price? Probably - likely - illegal foreign migrant labor.

These people - who pick the apples, cut the celery, make our American wines, build your ample houses, wash the restaurant dishes - have brown hands and an aching back. They are denied drivers' license, tax refunds, bank accounts, retirement, medical insurance and documents because of one reason: They are "illegal."

Yet we want cheap, abundant food in our grocery stores, clean, low-cost rooms at our hotels, quick, efficient service at our favorite restaurants, and low wages on the construction sites. And how do we achieve that? By using illegal immigrant labor.

Rail against the corporations that bring them here by the truckloads, be shocked when dozens die in the Arizona desert, be upset when our borders cannot contain the constant flow of people coming here to work. But remember this: They are here because of one reason - you.

Yes, you. You want cheap food, cheap service, cheap products. And the only way your businesses can provide that is by taking the lowest bidder in the employment line. A line that you are not standing in.

What can you do to change all this? Start demanding from our elected officials that they stop turning a blind eye to these 10 million-plus people that wearily labor for us, so that we are comfortable and well-fed. Demand that these "invisible" people be given the credit they deserve, with proper documentation, and rights to live here, as well as work here. Do that, and we will add many millions to our holiday celebrations. They will thank you for your concern.

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Europe: at least 13 die in icy sea crossing

from BBC News:

Thirteen African would-be migrants have been found dead aboard a makeshift boat after a desperate attempt to reach the Canary Islands, Spanish officials said.

They appear to have died from hypothermia after a three-day journey across icy seas in bad weather.

At least three of 30 survivors are said to be in a bad condition in hospital.

...
At least 133 people are thought to have died crossing from West and North Africa this year alone.

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Greece: Alleged torture of asylum-seekers must be investigated

from Amnesty International USA:

Amnesty International is appalled at reports that Greek police officers have subjected a group of Afghan asylum-seekers to interrogation techniques which included the torture of adults and minors alike. In a letter to the Greek Minister of Public Order Giorgos Voulgarakis, the organization calls for a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation of the allegations and for the perpetrators to be brought to justice.

It has been reported that on 13 December 2004, civilian policemen visited a house in the Agios Panteleimonas area of Athens, where between 40 and 60 Afghan asylum-seekers and refugees were lodging. The police wanted information about an Afghan national who had escaped from court where he had been taken on charges of staying illegally in the country. The police collected all those present in the house, including minors, in one room and allegedly beat them severely torturing some of them. The same sequence of events was repeated in the following days

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UK: Food parcels for asylum claimants

from BBC:

Dozens of failed asylum seekers are being left destitute by Home Office rules, the Welsh Refugee Council says.

The charity said around 100 people in Cardiff who have exhausted the appeals process face being left on the street or returned to their own country

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Japan: Detainees seeking asylum claim abuse by guards

from The Japan Times Online:

Lawyers working on behalf of people seeking asylum in Japan filed a criminal accusation Monday against the head of the Higashi-Nihon Immigration Center and its guards, alleging they assaulted and injured detainees.

More than 50 detainees, mostly Myanmarese and Kurdish, at the center in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture, went on a one-day hunger strike calling for better treatment earlier this month and some were injured when guards violently suppressed them, the lawyers said.

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USA: Six Cuban rafters reported missing

from Herald Tribune:

Rescuers searched Monday for six Cuban rafters reported missing off the South Florida coast.

The search began after a Cuban swam ashore here Sunday night and told authorities that six others were still at sea. He said two of his missing companions tried to swim ashore with him while four had remained with the raft.
...
Coast Guard Lt. Tony Russell said the search comes a year after 10 Cubans aboard a raft died while attempting to reach Florida - the last known deaths of Cuban rafters off the Florida coast. He said the cold weather could make it difficult for the missing six to survive.

"Even in South Florida, prolonged exposure to the elements that migrants subject themselves to can be deadly this time of year, particularly on a day like this with wind chill factor temperatures in the 40s," Russell said.

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World: More Women Migrants, More at Risk

from IPS News:

More women than ever, about 90 million, are living outside their countries of origin, where most of them are at risk of gender-based violence and sexual exploitation, says the United Nations in a report marking International Migrants Day.

''Whether they are labour migrants, family migrants, trafficked persons or refugees, they face the triple burden of being female, foreign and, often, working in dangerous occupations,'' says the 89-page 'World Survey on the Role of Women in Development'.
...
Noeleen Heyzer, executive director of the U.N. Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) says women and girls dominate in many of these migrant labour flows, going into domestic service, low-paid sweatshop industries, street begging and commercial sex work.
...
The study says migrant women boost economic development in both their country of destination and at home, through financial contributions from remittances, improving their own skills or helping to improve the education skills of the next generation.

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Australia: Senator plans hunger strike in support of detainees

from ABC news:

Queensland Democrats Senator Andrew Bartlett will begin a hunger strike this weekend to protest the conditions of detainees in the Baxter detention centre.

Mr Bartlett says he wants to show support for the asylum seekers and raise awareness of their condition.

He says the detainees' situation is becoming more desperate.

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USA: Immigrant sweeps prompt legal action

from San Bernardino County Sun:

The government has failed to disclose the reasons for immigration sweeps across Southern California this summer, a leading civil rights group said in a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday.

The American Civil Liberties Union said the agency that oversees border security has refused to provide records about the arresting and deportation of more than 400 undocumented immigrants in San Bernardino, Riverside and Los Angeles counties in June.
...
"We don't have enough information at this point to determine whether these raids were legally authorized and whether they actually resulted in some net benefit,' said Ranjana Natarajan, an ACLU attorney. "We know they caused a lot of fear in the community. People felt there was harassment. People were very scared to send their children to school and to the doctor. The impact on the community was severe.'

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American Civil Liberties Union

Malta: Migrant found dead at sea

from Di-Ve news:

An illegal migrant was found dead floating on the Maltese seas after another boatload of 19 asylum seekers entered Maltese waters on Thursday morning.

The police said that the immigrants who came from Palestine, Egypt and Pakistan were rounded up by the police in the vicinity of Ghar Lapsi and Hagar Qim.

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Taiwan: Foreign migrant workers protest

from The Taipei Times:

Foreign workers gathered at the Executive Yuan yesterday to protest a six-year limit on how long they can be employed in Taiwan
...
"This restriction is rather puzzling to us, as it is unheard of in other places. Hong Kong and Singapore have set quotas for incoming migrant workers, but never an employment time-limit restriction," said Ku Yu-Ling (ÅU¥É¬Â), secretary-general of the Taiwan International Migrants' Association.

As Dec. 18 is International Migrants Day, a group called Promoting Alien for Household Services Act yesterday gathered over 30 foreign workers, including blue and white-collar professions, to fight for three rights: working rights, immigration rights and the right of political participation.

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Australia: Two asylum hunger strikers in hospital

from Stuff:

CANBERRA: Two asylum seekers who stitched their lips shut as part of a hunger strike at an Australian immigration detention centre have been taken to hospital, refugee groups said on Tuesday as negotiators tried to end the protest.

The detainees are part of a group of 27 Iranian men - six of whom have stitched their mouths up - held at the remote Baxter detention centre in South Australia state, who are rejecting food to protest against Canberra's refusal to grant them sanctuary.

One lobby group, The Alliance of Health Professionals for Asylum Seekers, described Baxter on Tuesday as "a de facto psychiatric hospital without adequate treatment or monitoring" and called for an independent medical review of the centre.

"The fact that some individuals have exhausted avenues of legal appeal is no justification for inhumane treatment and sub-standard medical care," Alliance convenor Louise Newman said in a statement.

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Professional Alliance for the Health of Asylum Seekers and their Children

Australia: refugee hunger strike protest continues, government refuses to negotiate

from ABC:

... The hunger strike is now in its second week and includes three men conducting a roof top protest, as well as a group of detainees who have sewn stitches through their lips.

Immigration Department spokeswoman Sarah Crichton says the Government will not negotiate the men's cases and the protest is not helping their cause.

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Poland: asylum seekers' hunger strike at 'reception' centre

from Reuters AlertNet:

A hunger strike in a reception centre for asylum seekers near Warsaw, which has just ended, highlighted the asylum problems facing Poland and other new European Union countries, and emphasised the need for a better system for burden-sharing among EU countries.

For almost two weeks, a group of 200 asylum seekers at Debak reception centre near the Polish capital refused to collect meals from the centre's canteen. "We demand that Poland opens safe passage to Western Europe," wrote the protesters in a petition against their living conditions. "There is no hot water, food is not good, we have no warm clothes, there is no education for our children. Why does Poland accept us if it cannot help us?"
...
Confused about their legal status and uncertain about their future, the asylum seekers feel frustrated that there seems to be no one who can help them with their problems. Polish non-governmental organisations visit the centres occasionally to offer free legal advice and counselling, but do not come regularly because of time and financial constraints. Likewise, the two psychologists available cannot possibly listen to every asylum seeker and refugee in need.
...
"The most important demand is not written, it is about how people feel," said Khamzat Aslanbekov, one of the leaders of Chechen community in Poland. "Chechens are a proud people, sensitive about our dignity. We are adults, but are treated like the worse kind of men. People can't stand it. We only want to be treated with respect."

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UK: exploitation of Ulster's migrant workers

from the Belfast Telegraph:

Many of Northern Ireland's growing army of migrant workers are being exploited by unscrupulous bosses and employment agencies, it was claimed today.
...
• some 10% of overseas workers said they had problems getting paid;

• around 22% said they had experienced harassment or discrimination in the workplace;

• some complained of unfair dismissal;

• others said their qualifications and skills were not taken into account by employers leaving them in low-paid, low-skilled work.
...
The research also revealed that while many recruitment agencies are fair and supportive, "some appear to have adopted practices that exploit the vulnerability of migrant workers".

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UK: Forced labour for Asylum Seekers

from the Guardian:

More than 600 rejected asylum seekers who cannot go home immediately will have to do compulsory unpaid community work in return for accommodation and benefits, the Home Office has admitted.
...
The requirement will apply to more than 600 asylum seekers whose claims have been rejected and who are willing to return home but cannot do so immediately, and are receiving so-called "hard case support". They may not be able to leave the country because there is no viable route, it is too dangerous to send them back or they are too ill or pregnant to travel.

The official guidance says that the elderly and infirm will be exempt, but only on a case-by-case basis.

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apology

apologies that this blog has not been updated for a few days. This is due to illness. Regular posting will start again shortly.

Malaysia - Refugees in jungle camps face harsh life, fear crackdown

from Reuters AlertNet:

PUTRA JAYA, Malaysia, Nov 30 (UNHCR) – Living in harsh conditions in the jungle on the outskirts of Malaysia's gleaming new administrative capital of Putra Jaya, are hundreds of asylum seekers from Myanmar and the strife-wracked Indonesian province of Aceh. They live in fear of police raids and an imminent crackdown on illegal migrants.

Desperate to survive, many of the asylum seekers who had fled persecution in their own countries found illegal work on the construction sites of Putra Jaya – just like thousands of illegal migrants. Both groups live in the jungle, often sharing camps. There's a certain safety in numbers. But for the authorities, both groups are categorised as illegal migrants.

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USA: First Trial in Texas Immigrant Deaths Begins

from Reuters:

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Three people on trial over the deadliest U.S. human smuggling disaster, which left 19 dead in a stifling truck trailer, were part of a wide network that abused illegal immigrants, prosecutors said on Tuesday.

The three defendants were part of "a criminal enterprise that treated people worse than cattle on the way to the slaughterhouse," Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Rodriguez said during opening statements in federal court.

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USA: Thank an illegal immigrant this season

from The Enquirer (Cincinnati):

As we gather around for family feasts and more this holiday season, may I remind you of some blessings that you might not have considered?

When chowing down on that turkey, have you ever considered who processed that turkey? Probably migrant labor.

When you prepare your traditional dressing, stuffed with celery and onions, who picked and packed the celery and onions, right in the field, and zipped it onto your grocer, fresh, and clean? Probably - likely - migrant labor.

When enjoying the apples, oranges, grapes, etc., in your fruit salad, who nurtured the orchards and picked that fruit? Probably - likely- illegal migrant labor.

When watching football on your wide-screen plasma TV, in a warm, easily heated, comfortable home, who made it possible for you to have a pleasant holiday, at an inexpensive price? Probably - likely - illegal foreign migrant labor.

These people - who pick the apples, cut the celery, make our American wines, build your ample houses, wash the restaurant dishes - have brown hands and an aching back. They are denied drivers' license, tax refunds, bank accounts, retirement, medical insurance and documents because of one reason: They are "illegal."

Yet we want cheap, abundant food in our grocery stores, clean, low-cost rooms at our hotels, quick, efficient service at our favorite restaurants, and low wages on the construction sites. And how do we achieve that? By using illegal immigrant labor.

Rail against the corporations that bring them here by the truckloads, be shocked when dozens die in the Arizona desert, be upset when our borders cannot contain the constant flow of people coming here to work. But remember this: They are here because of one reason - you.

Yes, you. You want cheap food, cheap service, cheap products. And the only way your businesses can provide that is by taking the lowest bidder in the employment line. A line that you are not standing in.

What can you do to change all this? Start demanding from our elected officials that they stop turning a blind eye to these 10 million-plus people that wearily labor for us, so that we are comfortable and well-fed. Demand that these "invisible" people be given the credit they deserve, with proper documentation, and rights to live here, as well as work here. Do that, and we will add many millions to our holiday celebrations. They will thank you for your concern.

read original story ...

Australia: Detainees on hunger strike say goodbye

from The Age:

A group of Sri Lankan men at the Baxter detention centre has written goodbye letters, believing they will die as a result of a hunger strike.

Refugee advocates said one man was hospitalised on Monday after refusing to eat for the past six days at the South Australian immigration facility.

One detainee, who started refusing food on Monday, said the group would continue their action for as long as necessary.

"There's no plan, no time limit," the man told ABC radio.

"We have been locked up like animals for a long time and we are not criminal people.

"We want to live in Australia as free people. That is our reason for hunger strike."

read full story ...

Africa: Migrant boats sink, many feared dead

from the Herald Sun:

AT LEAST 16 people died and many more were feared drowned after a boat crossing to Yemen from the Horn of Africa sank with more than 115 passengers on board, Somalia media said today.

The boat, carrying mostly Ethiopians and Somalis, left the coast of Somalia's breakaway northern Puntland region last Thursday. Local reports said it may have been overloaded.
"We are seeing more than 16 dead bodies out at sea," Yusuf Shiek, a resident of Dhagcaan village, told Modnimo Radio in nearby Bosaso town. "Some of the crew reached the shore alive."

Somalis fleeing their war-torn homeland and Ethiopians in search of better economic prospects often attempt the hazardous 300km crossing to the oil-rich Gulf region.

In April, more than 100 Ethiopian refugees drowned when their boat collided with a Somali vessel also carrying refugees.

Meanwhile, an unconfirmed report today said another boat carrying more than 95 people was feared lost when it failed to arrive in Yemen after leaving the Somali coast last Wednesday.

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World: Labour Migration a Mixed Blessing, Says U.N.

from allAfrica.com:

International migration is a mixed blessing because it has both positive economic benefits and negative social consequences, says a new U.N. report, suggesting that temporary relocation of workers might offset some of the problems.

Rising migrant earnings and the transfer of technology and investments -- mostly from rich to poorer nations -- have been offset by social disruptions, broken families and exploitation and abuse of migrant workers, according to social activists.
...
The good news is that migrant remittances have grown parallel with the number of international migrants and are estimated to have reached 130 billion dollars in 2000, compared with about 55 billion dollars in official development assistance (ODA).
...
The bad news is that the country of origin of a skilled migrant loses both its earlier investment in the education and training of the person who emigrates and the future contributions that person would have made to the economic development of his or her home country.

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