Protocol from the preparation meeting for the Caravan Congress: Refugee and migrant women 19th February 2000 in Nürnberg

1. Presentation of the Organisations

• Villa Courage, Freiburg - International culture and refugee house for women: organised and lead by migrant women, supports women who are humiliated and blackmailed by § 19 Ausländergesetz (which connects their own right to stay with a marriage of four years to somebody with a right to stay) Expectations for the congress: Selforganisation for refugee and migrant women
• Caravan group Konstanz
• Representatives of AGIS and the Caravan group Darmstadt: How can the topic/ the perspective of women be part of/ be considered throughout the whole congress?
• Caravan group Nürnberg
• International Human Rights Association Bremen (IMRV)
• Kampagne zur Verteidigung der Frauenrechte im Iran/Campaign for the defense of the Women's Rights in Iran ( a representative of Darmstadt): Women of islamic countries must get a right to stay resulting only out of their situation as a woman in an islamic country.
• 8th March Committee

groups that responded to the invitation but are not present:

• agisra Köln: Proposals of topics which should be discussed in Jena and to which they could make a working group or an introduction: racism ( in separated working groups for men and women), sexism, trafficking of women/ forced prostitution, empowerment for migrant women, the women deportation prison in Neuss
• cfmw ( committee of filipino migrant workers), Amsterdam: offer a working group to the topic "independent right to stay for women"
• Frau Kamara from Sierra Leone has interest to work on the topic of women's rights in (German) society
• agisra Köln had asked, if the congress pays honorary fees and the costs for travelling -> the reimbursement of the travelling costs should be possible but fees would contradict the aim and the principles of the caravan and the congress

2. Discussion on the contents of the topics, on the aims of the congress, on questions of organisation and mobilisation

Concerning the relation between lectures /presentations (Referate) and working groups in the congress: There is a general tendency that reports on the concrete work and the concrete fights of women's organisations for women's rights and the possiblitiy of exchanging experiences in working groups should be preferred to long theoretical presentations.

1. short introduction,
2. discussion,
3. work out a resolution

Mehrnousch ( campaign for the defense of women's rights in Iran ): All women who are threatened by deportation should be invited and also bring their deportation paper; the whole congress should support and encourage them, psychologically, financially through publicity work, campaign, to reach something: One month ago, refugees who should be deportated organised a sit-in in Münster, with that the deportation could be prevented.

Questions on organisation: We need travelling permissions, persons for taking care of the children, buses must be organised, women must be given precisely the opportunity to take part. For that, flyers which especially invite the women for the congress, could be written in different languages.

Villa Courage proposes that in the beginning of the congress especially in Jena we could try to get the attention of the public ( let's say a kind of mobilisation demonstration ) In preparation a Freiburg group has formed: it's important, that we don't stay only with us, but go to outer circles, to the civilisation and press: In every region should be calls, press conferences and demonstrations.

Viraj gives concerning that a short view and summary about the idea and history of the caravan ( about the relation starting from inside going to outside ): Aim of the caravan in 1998 was to bring out the problems to the public: the caravan was a show and as such it has been successfull. But afterwards there occurred some problems, especially: sexism, splittings of the caravan and deportation - "the reality strikes back." Problems came about with sexism inside the caravan (there were sexist attacks on women after the final party of the caravan in 1998). The caravan's political position against the ban and the criminalisation of certain organisations like the PKK lead to the fact that some groups left the caravan. For some activists there was a connection between their activity for the caravan and their deportation threat ( because of leaving the district -"Landkreis"). These problems nearly destroyed the caravan. There are people from all over the world in the caravan, there is the common position: "against deportation", but there is no space for discussing the problems. This is a reason for the congress: to bring everybody together on the basis "against deportation" but also to have time to discuss other problems, to know who we are. (?)

At about 15 p.m. more women of the 8th March Committee from Bremen, Köln, Canada are arriving as well as an other man of the IMRV.

- break-

Collection of results concerning the mobilisation

• address local alternative media
• local mobilisation through flyers, newspapers, local radiostations: In Freiburg for example there was a big mobilisation meeting with the VOICE organised by SAGA and Rasthaus with a final press conference
• a flyer especially for the mobilisation of women should be made
• women's preparation meetings in different cities and refugee homes could be arranged/supported
• buses must be organised
• don't forget to organise also the traveling permissions
• coordination group for further preparation?

Proposal for the flyer: It is better to start with practical concrete things than to talk about everything. For example: the campaign of the Iranian women, the campaign of the Tamil women, the campaign against the apartheid in German family politics, the work of Villa Courage. These are concrete fights which are successful and can thus encourage and mobilise other women. That is the reason why these things have to be in the beginning of such a flyer.

3. Collection of topics and responsibilities for working groups

3.1. Discussion

Comittee 8th of march: wants do lead a working group on the Zwangsverschleierung (?) and deportation threat of Iranian women in Germany Here, the German state continues the politics of the Iranian government

Remark of Claudia, Nürnberg:

• The working groups should not be separated in different nations
• The self-organisation is important, but: there should be a resolution in the end, a common campaign for all women on flight with a list of demands, so that a chage of laws follows (e.g. regarding of women specific reasons for flight, regarding §§ 51 and 52)

Woman of the 8th of March Committee: The central information/enlightenment/public work should be on the German state's deportation practice, not again on women's reasons for flight. Talking with refugee women, the first thing they talk about is what has happened to them here in Germany

Mehrnousch: International campaign for the defense of women's rights in Iran: wants to work on the Situation in Iran and in Germany, report on the work with refugee women in the Rhein-Main-Region. The resolution of the campaign is: All women of islamic countries should be granted a right to stay. In the end of the congress a political aim should come out.

Nelida: The congress should create solidarity between people of different countries. Persecution and flight have different reasons. A basis for solidarity and common work must be created. The recognition of women specific reasons for flight must not only exist on the paper, but have an effect. Women of all nationalities should find what they have in common, how they can support each other, how they can be strong.

Viraj: It is very important to start with practical things: Concerning a change of the laws we can only say that we are against every single one of it: a reolution against single laws will impress nobody. These practical things are for example the fight of the women of the 8th of March committee, the fight of the Tamil women, the campaign against apartheid in the German familiy law; the work of Villa Courage.

Doro: These practical things do exist but apart from that there are overlapings like the situation in refugee camps, violence experiences by women

Laleh: What should come out in the end? ->a special view on the situation of women, sexism is in every connection something what needs to be observed, something what needs more attention.

The campaign against apartheid in family politics can do a working group

Villa Courage can do a working group on their struggle against § 19 Ausländergesetz

Traudi: congress should give space to discuss their situation and their problems also to women who are not yet in a concrete struggle, a perspective could be a women's committee inside the caravan.

Laleh: What will come out in the end? A result should be the prevention of the deportation of the women who are now threatened by deportation. It is important that activities speak about experiences. Apart from several longterm aims it is important that there is a position against deportation throughout the whole congress. Proposals are necessary what we can do now, immediately, concretely: actual proposals against deportations. At the end of the congress all ideas, concepts, results should be collected.

Simone wants a general discussion: Should we try to change laws or reject the entire law in general. => discussion: legalistic demands vs. open borders

Woman of the 8th of March committee: wants a discussion on more solidarity for women. There is a Demo 2000 against worldwide poverty. UN-Projects in Bangladesh or Indonesia for example have lead in fact to a reduction of poverty but women there have still no rights. On the level of "women and poverty" sex-trafficking must be mentioned, too. => The topic "Women in Iran" could be extended through a world wide perspective, as well as through the topic of the situation and the treatment of refugee women, for which Roya's case is a symbol. A possible result should be: the right to stay for women The whole situation af refugee women should be put into consideration. What can be done against the concrete depotation pratice ???

Nelida: the engine/motor/motivation that keeps as together, which unites us: As long as a woman in this world is humiliated, sexually persecuted, oppressed, we are not free, and also German women must consider themselves adressed/responsible, and we have to look for help from German women.

Woman of Sri Lanka: reports on the situation in her country. We didn't ask the men, we simply took our rights. We as women have the task to find our rights. To the men, who make the laws and who have a special picture of women we must make clear that we are human beings like them. A deportation stop for women could encourage women to come to Germany instead of staying in their country and fighting. Men are not only guilty: It is also the task of the women to teach men, to show them that we are human beings like them, that we have the same feelings, the same power, the same rights.

3.2. Topics for working groups - collection of results

• Mehrnousch (campaign for the defence of women's rights in Iran): Women in Iran and the work with refugee women in Germany
• 8th of March committee: Women in Iran, rights of women worldwide, rights of refugee women in Germany. Zwangsverschleierungen as a symbol
• Villa Courage and (perhaps) Committee for filipino migrant workers (Netherlands): the struggle for a independent right to stay for women
• Women from Bremen (IMRV): campaign against apartheid in German familiy politics

futher suggestion (of persons or group which are not presented or topics for which there is no responsible person yet)

• agisra Köln: forced prostitution/women trafficking sexism racism (in separated working groups for women and men) the deportation prison for women in Neuss
• The specific situation for refugee women: the situation in the refugee homes, experience of violence, sexism, isolation caused by their role in socielty
• Frau Kamara from Sierra Leone: Women's rights in German society
• discussion on the conflict/tension between the general demand for open borders and legalistic demands of abolishing single laws
• the establishing of a women's network/women's commitee in the caravan
• developing and collecting concrete actions and proposals against deportations

4. Organisation:

Doro:

• Somebody must be responsible for the mobilisation leaflet, in which the different proposals of today's discussion should not be put against each other but be collected
• It must be organised that there are persons who can look after the children
• On each day, there must be the possibility to build women's group (where only women participate), which must be respected by everybody and be considered when the rooms are being organised.
• There must be sleeping-places only for women
• These demands must not been seen as "against the men", but "for the women".

Laleh: When you remind the people of what had happened in 1998 in the Carawan, they will know why.

Traudi: will participate in the preparation of the flyer It is a problem that the 27th April, the day on the situation of women is a thursday. As there are not in every Bundesland easter holidays, many women might rather stay at home if they have children who must attend school. For this reason it is even more important to bring the topic and the specific situation in every other topic/block: Also on other days there can be working groups which are organised by us.

Nelida: Because of the translation problem every participant should write her contribution in German before and read it out. German is the language that we have in common. We live in this country, so we must learn this language.

Protest of the plenum: Why should everybody not learn any other language?

Also Steffi, Jamile, Mehrnousch, Nelida are going to work on the flyer.

For the further coordination a second meeting on the 25th March in Darmstadt has been arranged. Until that time: other groups and interested women should be invited and adresses be collected.

Proposal of Villa Courage for a picture and a motto for the leaflet:

• picture: women from five different continents with the earth
• motto: "As long as a woman..."