Freedom News

Calais border and a few small boats

An increasing number of migrants are crossing the Channel by boat, with over 220 intercepted from November to the end of December, at sea or just after reaching the UK coasts. This is a result of increased controls at the Calais border, and the construction of huge border fence paid for by the UK. Most

Austria: thousands protest against government’s anti-migrant policy

Thousands of people took to the streets of Vienna last Saturday to protest the country’s ruling coalition of conservatives and far- right. The protest was held a year since Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz’s People’s Party (OeVP) and the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) formed government in December 2017. Amid snowfall and sub-zero temperatures, the organisers estimate

Refugee crisis: three rescue boats return to Mediterranean

Open Arms, Mediterranea, and Sea-Watch 3 will return to sea to continue their search-and-rescue operations, the three NGO rescue ships announced. In the absence of the European Union, these civilian organizations — from Spain, Italy, and Germany, respectively — will continue their vital lifesaving mission in the deadly waters of the Mediterranean. Crucially, they will also there to bear

Fortress Europe: illegal push-backs and border violence report

This harrowing report presents testimonies of refugee people attempting to reach the safety of Europe from Bosnia into Croatia and Slovenia. It details the brutal methods the police in the region is using in order to prevent people from moving towards the EU, or claiming asylum. All testimonies are gathered from oral interviews via a

Violent robberies and deportations of refugees in Greece’s Evros region

CW: graphic images and descriptions of violence and sexual assault. “When my 20-year-old son arrived in Greece, instead of being able to claim asylum, he was arrested by police, he had with him our family’s savings, 7,000 euros, and his Syrian passport — all were stolen from him. He was so badly beaten — he was hospitalised for a

Greek police arrest three activists for helping migrants enter the EU

Greek police have arrested Syrian swimmer Sara Mardini and two other activists on charges of smuggling migrants into Greece. All three are members of the Emergency Response Center International (ERCI) on Lesbos. ERCI is a Greek NGO providing emergency response and humanitarian aid. Mardini, together with German and Greek nationals, are accused of belonging to

One world, one humanity

Increasingly, we are trapped by militarised borders. Since the ’80s and ’90s, border controls have become more and more brutal, inhumane and all-pervasive. The answer of the capitalist-imperialist States to augmented migration has been to make it impossible for most to travel legally, build detention centres for immigrants and to carry out more deportations. In