Frequently Asked Questions

31.Jan.08 - Frequently Asked Questions about the transnational action-chain taking place throughout Europe in 2008:

What is the background of this Idea?

During a frassanito-networking meeting last year in november the question came up, if and in which way another practical initiative should be started on a transnational level. Looking back to the migrationrelated networking process last 2 years we could see, that the communicative cooperations stabilized or even developed: by the increasing exchange through the action-2-mailinglist, through a lot of meetings and conferences or also through the transnational newsletter "crossing borders". But on the level of practical cooperation nothing happened again on a transnational scale after the successful actionday at 7th of october 2006.

So on one hand we wanted to revitalize a certain continuity on a more practical level, on the other hand we wanted to avoid another "artifical" singular actionday-repetition. Thus the idea of the chain was born as an attempt to frame and interconnect activities, which have been already under preparation or planned by various groups or networks and which are much more rooted in the respective contexts. But the aim was also to point out and stress the urgency to develop a real process of organization of migrants' struggles on a transnational scale. While European migration regime is growing and strengthening inside and outside Europe, Migrants are organizing themselves and fighting everyday in their local contexts. Of course those contexts differ from each other, yet it is crucial to find out what is common among the different conditions experienced by migrants inside and beyond Europe, knowing that their demands all address against "the monster of-migration regime”. The chain is conceived as a step forward in this "becoming common” and in the process of transnational organization.

What have been the criterias for the composition of the stations?

Our exspectation was firstly to built a common context of at least 5 stations in different regions, which should express different conflicts or struggles against the key-elements of the migration- regime. Finally we could frame 10 stations: against the borderregime and its externalisation to the south (stations in athens, ceuta and also bamako) and to the east (the station in warsaw); against deportations and detentions (the stations in bamako, hamburg and london); for legalisation (the stations in torino and sevilla) and about migrant labour conflicts (the stations in amsterdam and sevilla, but also in london and torino). Of course it remains difficult to anticipate the conditions and dynamics of conflicts on a more longterm view. But the stations of the chain offer a common frame and a certain practical continuity around the crucial aspects of migration-issues.

What are the interconnecting elements of the chain?

Beside the common call, which is available in various languages and which can be distributed during the respective events, we also asked the organizers of the various protests to include a speech about the chain, be it during their demonstration or manifestation or during their conferences. So we hope, that the common content and  context of the chain is somehow represented in all stations. Moreover we created the idea of "growing banner" as another connecting moment for the chain. It means that a banner with the main slogans and naming all the stations was presented the first time in the Amsterdam launching station and this banner will travel now and grow from station to station: another piece of a banner from the (succcesful) cleaners campaign in Netherlands will be attached and appear in the Sevilla-station, a next piece from Sevilla will be added afterwards, before it travels to Torino and then to Bamako... and if it works, we will have a longer and longer impressive banner with all the various contents or demands in the last stations in Malmoe and Ceuta.

Are there any stations with a particular importance in the chain?

As mentioned above the stations have been chosen in order to cover the most important aspects in the movements and struggles "against the monster of migration-regime". and insofar it is a common picture, where all elements are important. But despite this common frame we proposed to all participating stations to spend particular attention and to mobilize for the two dates, which include the most transnational moments in themselves: firstly about the 6th of June against Frontex, which will not only happen in Warsaw but probably also in other cities and which is combined with the idea of an online- protest "from everywhere"; and secondly about the European Social Forum in Malmoe in September, where a lot of migrationrelated seminars and workshops will happen again in a most transnational composition,  and where we also plan a common evaluation of the experiences with our chain of actions.