News | RED Network

RED Annual Report 2012

Miltos Pavlou — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 00:04:21 GMT

In 2012 hate motivated crime has gained the attention of many EU, state and civil society actors and initiatives. The rapid rise of xenophobic, islamophobic and homophobic extremism in the public and political sphere has been acknowledged and the need to defend the European society from threats to its social cohesion and the need to promote equal participation are key themes of the current volatile and transitional era for the Union.

The RED Network contributed a considerable effort in the previous years to highlight how such phenomena threat to undermine modern European democracies and to disenfranchise European peoples from their citizen rights and alienate them from core values and fundamental democratic principles of the EU. The RED Network publishes today the second Annual Report of the RED Early Warning System and The Atlas of Racism, Equality and Discrimination, a unique monitoring on line tool that is powerful, empowering and independent.

The carefully selected information provided by the RED Early Warning System and the Atlas of Racism, Equality & Discrimination aims at providing a paradigm for improving monitoring and reporting on racism and discrimination in EU countries. Data collected and published in a highly interactive manner through a user-oriented web portal concern the current state of things regarding the legislation, the policies, the structures and mechanisms or their implementation, as well as the actual outcomes and impact achieved. Aims at throwing light and revealing the real picture of the situation regarding these worrying phenomena in the EU.

Two FRA Reports on Hate Crime in the EU

Konstantinos Prearis — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 12:26:03 GMT

From: http://fra.europa.eu/en:

Hate crime is a daily reality throughout the European Union (EU), two new reports by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) confirm. Violence and offences motivated by racism, xenophobia, religious intolerance, or by a person’s disability, sexual orientation or gender identity are all examples of hate crime, which harm not only those targeted but also strike at the heart of EU commitments to democracy and the fundamental rights of equality and non-discrimination.
To combat hate crime, the EU and its Member States need to make these crimes more visible and hold perpetrators to account. Greater political will is needed on the part of decision makers to counter pervasive prejudice against certain groups and compensate for the damage. Victims and witnesses should therefore be encouraged to report such crimes, and legislation should be adopted at the EU and national levels obliging Member States to collect and publish hate-crime data. This would serve to acknowledge victims of hate crime, in line with requirements stemming from the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. To hold perpetrators better to account, legislators should also consider enhanced penalties for hate crimes to stress the severity of these offences, while courts rendering judgments should address bias motivations publicly, making it clear that they lead to harsher sentences.

“Hate crimes create an ‘us and them’ mentality that does tremendous psychological damage”, says FRA Director Morten Kjaerum. “They undermine the basic democratic tenets of equality and non-discrimination. Hate crimes thus harm not only the victim, but also other people belonging to the same group – many of whom are terrified that they will become the next target – and society as a whole. To counter this, the EU and its Member States need to ensure both that such crimes are made visible, and that offenders are made to answer for the damage they have done”.

A new FRA report entitled Making hate crime visible in the European Union: acknowledging victims’ rights outlines a fundamental rights approach to hate crime and offers a comparative analysis of official data collection mechanisms on hate crime in the EU Member States. It highlights challenges inherent in recording hate crime and considers how the scope of official data collection can be broadened to enable Member States to meet obligations toward victims of hate crime.

The second report, EU-MIDIS Data in Focus 6: Minorities as Victims of Crime, presents data on respondents’ experiences of victimisation across five types of crime, from theft to serious harassment. One section of the report looks specifically at minorities as victims of racist crime. The report shows that every fourth person (24 %) of the 23,500 respondents to the EU-MIDIS survey – the first EU-wide survey to specifically sample ethnic minority and immigrant groups on their perception of racially or ethnically motivated crime – said they had been a victim of crime at least once in the 12 months preceding the survey. On average, 18% of all Roma and 18% of all sub-Saharan African respondents in the survey indicated that they had experienced at least one racially motivated crime in the last 12 months.

Source:

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), 27.11.2012, Press Release: Hate crime is a reality in the EU, two new FRA reports show, http://fra.europa.eu/en/press-release/2012/hate-crime-reality-eu-two-new-fra-reports-show, Accessed on 29.11.2012.

Greek Council of State declares unconstitutional the 2010 Citizenship Law

Konstantinos Prearis — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 10:00:00 GMT

The Council of State decladed unconstitutional the law on acquiring Greek citizenship voted in 2010. The Ragousis Law (Law n.3838/2010), named after former Interior Minister Yannis Ragousis

- permits voting rights to local elections to second-generation immigrants (Art.14);

- introduces jus soli by granting automaticallty Greek citizenship to children born in Greece if at least one parent is also born in Greece (Art. 1);

- grants Greek citizenship to persons being born to immigrant parents that have been living in Greece legally for five years if they have studied at a Greek school for at least six years (Art.1A). [1]

The last provision (Art.1A) was questioned by the Council of State, which questioned in a ruling "whether these criteria were suitable for deciting a person's citizenship and wheter stronger ties with Greece should be required". Furthermore, the Council of State "deemed unconstitutional the part of the law [Art.14] that allows non-Greek citizens to vote and stand as candidates in local and regional elections", adding that a consitutional review is necessarey for the application of this legislation. However, the ruling does not automaticaly lead to repeal of the law, since it could be appealed at the Supreme Court[2].

Representatives of second-generation immigrats denounced the decision of the Council of State. Nikodimos Maina Kiniua from African organization ASANTE said: "The relationship between immigrants and Greek society can be obtained only through the children of immigrants who are born here. The court's decision is based on the right of blood. They do it in order to limit the cases of granting citizenship to immigrants. But they should know that second-generation immigrants have no intention either to leave here, or to make concessions in terms of their rights" [3].

Sources:

Government Gazette of Greece, 24.03.2010, Law N.3838, Current provisions for Greek citizenship and political participation expatriated and regally residing immigrants and other settings, http://www.ypes.gr/UserFiles/24e0c302-6021-4a6b-b7e4-8259e281e5f3/N_3838_1.pdf, Accessed on 23.11.2012.
Kathimerini English Edition, 13.11.2012, Court casts doubt over migrant citizenship law, http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_13/11/2012_469868, Accessed on 23.11.2012.
GRReporter, 20.11.2012, Immigrants will sue Greece for attacks by Golden Dawn, http://www.grreporter.info/en/immigrants_will_sue_greece_attacks_golden_dawn/8175, Accessed on 23.11.2012.

Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party organizes Greek-only blood bank and food delivery

Konstantinos Prearis — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 11:52:49 GMT

Members of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party organized food delivery only to indigent Greeks at Aghios Panteleimonas (Athens centre) on September 14th, 2012. Greek citizens who received food from Golden Dawn were asked to provide full contact details. In addition, Golden Dawn members organized a Greek-only blood bank in several cities, in which only Greeks could offer their blood [1, 2 & 3].

During these events, Golden Dawn's MP, Elias Panagiotaros turned out an old foreign woman who asked for food (see video). The MP told the woman to ask food from Syriza, the left-wing party in opposition [4].

Doctors throughout Greece expressed their opposition to the Greek-only blood donation in Athens and Thessaloniki. The Federation of Greek Hospital Doctors (Ομοσπονδία Ενώσεων Νοσοκομειακών Γιατρών Ελλάδας/ΟΕΝΓΕ) and the Association of Hospital Doctors of Thessaloniki (Ένωση Νοσοκομειακών Ιατρών Θεσσαλονίκης/ΕΝΙΘ) asked the cancellation of the blood donations and invited doctors to deny their participation to them. Both associations describe repulsive these blood donations that run on the basis of racial discrimination and segregation [5].

Sources:

Newsbomb, 14.09.2012, Χρυσή Αυγή: Αιμοδοσία και διανομή τροφίμων με «φακέλωμα» (Golden Dawn: Blood donation and delivery food with "data collection"), http://www.newsbomb.gr/koinwnia/story/234414/hrysi-aygi-aimodosia-kai-dianomi-trofimon-me-fakeloma, Accessed on 14.09.2012.
The Best news, 14.09.2012, Αγρίνιο: Υπό την προστασία των ΜΑΤ η αιμοδοσία της Χρυσής Αυγής (Agrinio: Golden Dawn's nlood donationa under police protection), http://www.thebest.gr/news/index/viewStory/147640, Accessed on 14.09.2012.
Golden Dawn Press Release, 14.09.2012, Πανελλήνια αιμοδοσία Χρυσής Αυγής και διανομή τροφίμων στον Άγιο Παντελεήμονα (Nationwide Golden Dawn's blood donation and food delivery in Aghios Panteleimonas), http://www.xryshaygh.com/index.php/deltiatypou/view/panellhnia-aimodosia-chrushs-aughs-kai-dianomh-trofimwn-ston-agio-pantelehm, Accessed on 14.09.2012.
Newsbomb, 14.09.2012, Χρυσή Αυγή: Έδιωξε ηλικιωμένη αλλοδαπή που ζήτησε φαγητό (Golden Dawn: He turned out an old foreign woman who asked for food), http://www.newsbomb.gr/koinwnia/story/234432/hrysi-aygi-edioxe-ilikiomeni-allodapi-poy-zitise-fagito, Accessed on 14.09.2012.
Lifo, 14.09.2012, Αντιδράσεις των γιατρών στην αιμοδοσία «μόνο για Έλληνες» της Χρυσής Αυγής (Doctors' opposition to Golden Dawn's blood donation "for Greeks only"), http://www.lifo.gr/now/society/15975, Accessed on 14.09.2012.

RED Alert GREECE - Assassin racist attacks and escalation of racist violence against migrants and refugees by Golden Dawn extremists

Miltos Pavlou — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 09:03:53 GMT

A young Iraqi immigrant was murdered in Athens on Sunday.

Racist violence has escalated in intensity and number in Greece through numerous attacks against migrants and refugees by far-right extremists.

This comes after the last June election in the Greek Parliament of the Neonazi far-right party 'Golden Dawn' (7% and 21 seats) and few days after the implementation of mass arrests of migrants in Athens by the Greek Police.

Widespread xenophobic and racist discourse in the public sphere goes hand-in-hand with the - equally unpunished - hate crimes by young men in black attacking immigrants and refugees.

Overview of the situation in Greece

Most recent related RED Early Warning System Alerts:

Iraqi immigrant dies after attack out of a muslim worship place in the Athens centre August 12, 2012
Extremist attacks on muslim worship places in Piraeus during the Ramadan August 11, 2012
Extremist attacks & interethnic clashes following the mass expulsion operation "Xenios Zeus" August 11, 2012
Mass expulsion operation "Xenios Zeus" raises international criticism for violation of human rights August 5, 2012
Pogroms in immigrants' shops by supporters of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party June 23, 2012 Pakistani immigrant stabbed by extremists in Athens Metro June 17, 2012

More info at www.red-network.eu

RED Network combating Racism & Xenophobia

RED Annual Report 2011

Konstantinos Prearis — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 10:00:00 GMT

In times of unprecedented social, political and economic crisis of the last 70 years, acute racist hate crimes and attitudes in Europe constitute major threats to social cohesion and equality. The developments regarding the diffusion of stereotypes, hate speech and political discourse of generalisations risk to inflame an already explosive landscape of intolerance, xenophobia and discrimination. The acute economic crisis and the collapse of the European social model threaten to render stereotypes, demonisation, hate and intolerance against minorities widespread and commonly accepted by a wide range of social subjects and in the public sphere. Such phenomena seriously endanger the social cohesion and democratic living together of imploding local and national societies under the weight of an unravelling and devastating economic crisis and fear. In this landscape, the RED Network has developed and publishes today the RED Early Warning System and The Atlas of Racism, Equality and Discrimination, a unique monitoring on line tool that is powerful,

empowering and independent. It is highly interactive, visual and customizable to the needs of the user. This effort started in 2010 and was co-funded by the EU in 2011. It is a design initiated by the Greek Institute for Rights Equality & Diversity (i-RED) and co-developed by 17 research partners in 17 member states of the RED Network. The work of 50+ experts in these EU countries stands behind the on line RED portal and its significant amount of information and content. Despite this being a collective effort, at this first implementation of the RED System, at the end of the day each one of the national partners – specialist research institutions in each country - is responsible for the information input regarding their own national context.

We believe in the power and the potential of RED Early Warning System and the Atlas of Racism, Equality & Discrimination and we hope that it will help improve monitoring and reporting on racism and discrimination in EU countries, while providing the tools for raising awareness and knowledge on the real and effective situation on these phenomena in our continent.

RED System Launch in Brussels

Miltos Pavlou — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 20:32:34 GMT

The RED Network Combating Racism and Xenophobia announces the public launch of the RED Portal and of the Early Warning System and Atlas of Racism, Discrimination and Equality on 19th March 2012 in Brussels. RED System launch will take place at the Eurocities venue (Salle Meeûs, Square de Meeûs 1, 1000, Brussels) at 10:00 am.
www.red-network.eu

The RED Network

The RED Network, is an independent research network building the RED early warning system composed of 17 Research and Civil Society Organisations in EU Member States. It aims at reporting and documenting racist and hate crime and discrimination situations and incidents, as well as positive initiatives and policy responses. i-RED, Institute of Rights Equality & Diversity, based in Greece, is leading the RED Network. It perceives itself as a ‘watchdog’ and a reliable source of information. The general aim of the RED network - and as a consequence its major contribution - is to address the gaps in the current socio-political state of research regarding the support of timely and effective reporting on the situation of fundamental rights at national and EU level.

The RED portal is a map-based, user friendly independent tool providing a birds’ eye overview and a comparative insight of the situation regarding racism, xenophobia and discrimination against migrants and minorities, as well as positive and policy initiatives promoting equality in different EU Member States (17 countries are covered in the RED System 1st implementation - 2012). Its main components are the RED Early Warning System and the RED Atlas of Racism, Discrimination & Equality.

The RED Early Warning System (EWS) is a map based web portal reporting on a real-time basis:

Racist & hate crime alerts/situations/incidents in EU Member States
Policy responses/positive initiatives regarding racism xenophobia and discrimination
Case Studies (combination of more of the above items for a more spherical understanding of situations and context)

RED Atlas of Racism, Discrimination and Equality.

Strength of the RED portal is the unique set of RED indicators built for the RED System and Atlas. A thorough set of 125 policy, legislation and factual questions/indicators and of 38 key statistic and demographic figures expands beyond the main areas combating racism, hate crime and discrimination against migrants and minorities, to the themes of equality and good practice in the RED Network member states. The RED indicators range from qualitative to quantitative, and from legal to sociolegal and factual questions/indicators on anti-racism anti-discrimination and pro-equality legislation and its effective implementation in Member States.

The RED Atlas reports yearly and updates on a ‘real-time’ basis:

· Country information on racism & discrimination legislation & policy implementation in key areas of legislation and social life (once & updates)

· Country statistics of Racist-hate crime and discrimination (yearly)

· Country statistics – demographics and economics of migrants & minorities (yearly)

· Trends and developments in key anti-racist, anti-discrimination and pro-equality/diversity/integration legislation, implementation and social life areas:

Anti-discrimination Legislation & Implementation
Anti-racist Crime Legislation & Implementation
Political Parties-organisations - Racist & Xenophobic Discourse
Anti-racist Policies & Organisations
Policing - Law Enforcement - Justice
Employment
Housing & Segregation
Education
Health And Social Protection
Public Life, Culture, Sport & Media

Public Statement - citizenship bonds beyond blood & European acquis

Miltos Pavlou — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:35:19 GMT

i-RED, 10 members of the RED Network combating racism and Xenophobia, the Greek Forum of Migrants, Asante, 12 migrant communities and the Refugee Forum in Greece, the European Network Against Racism, the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM), the Migrants’ Rights Network and the AEDH (Association Europeenne des Droits de l’Homme),

express their support to the Greek citizenship reform and to those migrants who wish to participate to the Greek and European societies as citizens with rights and obligations, pursuing their constitutional aims, by respecting and sharing human rights and civic values.

In times of unprecedented economic as well as socio-political crisis in Greece and in Europe, the respect and consolidation of notions such as ‘common good’ and ‘public interest’ cannot occur but by valorizing and building on the people and their wish to serve the collectivity by participating productively in their society of belonging.

Greece in 2010 has adopted a law which brought the country closer to the European family of nations and societies, which define their identity through sharing political, human and citizen rights’ values and principles. Through the law 3838/2010 Greece has combined even more efficiently and generously than the prior citizenship code, jus soli to jus sanguinis and by doing so, it reached the average of the European Union countries.

At the core of such reform lies what currently is of concern of policy making initiatives in Europe. The recognition of the bonds with the European nations of migrants who are most active and promising members of their citizenry: children and adults who were born in the country and/or lived for at least 3-5 years establishing the centre of their life projects in Europe.

A row of important interventions in Europe lately have encouraged ever improving citizenship reforms, such as the one that marked the positive step of Greece in this path.

In view of the legal challenging of the citizenship reform in Greece on the basis of arguments, such as the threat of altering the ethnic or racial composition of a nation and the undocumented status of migrant applicants in the past, the signatory organisations wish to note that:

- any controversy regarding the constitutionality of the law and the composition of a nation as based exclusively on blood/ancestor relations risks to inflame an already explosive landscape of intolerance, xenophobia and discrimination. The latter sadly emerges in times of heavy crisis as the European history narrates. The development and progress of European nations beyond race and ethnic origin is an important European acquis to be respected and valorized especially in difficult times like today.

- Persons may not be ‘illegal’ as such. What may oblige migrants to live under a status of illegality of residence are inefficient or problematic laws and their application. This is why all modern migrants’ receiving countries have at some point reasonably resorted to regularization programs. The very wide appeal of the latter to migrants reveals their deep wish to participate and contribute to the society they chose to belong to.

Signatory organisations

·         RED Network combating racism and Xenophobia

Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights(Austria)

Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) (Bulgaria)

Symfiliosi(Cyprus)

Centre d'Etudes des Discriminations, du Racisme et de l'Antisémitisme (CEDRA)(France)

Immigrant Council of Ireland (ICI)(Ireland)

Númena - Research center on human and social sciences(Portugal)

Movimiento por la Paz, el Desarme y la Libertad- MPDL(Spain)

Mirovni inštitut – Inštitut za sodobne družbene in politične študije (Peace Institute – Institute for Contemporary Social and Political Studies)(Slovenia)

Centre Against Racism (Centrum mot racism, CMR)(Sweden)

·         European Network Against Racism

·         Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM)

·         Migrants’ Rights Network

·         AEDH (Association Europeenne des Droits de l’Homme)

·         Greek Forum of Migrants

·         Asante

·         12 migrant communities in Greece:

Communities of Mali, Guinea, Uganda, Tanzania, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso , Kenya, Cameroun, Sudan, Nigeria, Union of African Women East Africa, United African Women Organization,

·         Greek Forum of Refugees

·         i-RED, Institute for |Rights Equality & Diversity

Contact:

info@i-red.eu
+302121026960

Open statement to Jan Björklund, Minister of Education and Erik Ullenhag, Minister of Integration

Miltos Pavlou — Mon, 16 May 2011 16:48:04 GMT

Open statement to Jan Björklund, Minister of Education and Erik Ullenhag, Minister of Integration

The members of the organizations below, partners of the RED Network (Rights Equality & Diversity European Network), a network consisting of NGOs and research institutes from17 EU member states, are deeply concerned about the racist incidents depicting Black people as ”slaves” at Lund University and Malmö University in Sweden.

At Lund University, Hallands Student Nation organised a party on April 18th, 2011. During the evening, a number of students were led into the party with their faces painted in racist depiction of Black people refered to as ”Black face”. They had lynching ropes around their necks and were led by another white fellow student representing a white “slave trader”.During the course of the evening, a ”slave auction” where the "slaves" were sold was enacted.

Upon finding out about it, Mr. Momodou Jallow (Board Member of Center Against Racism - Centrum mot rasism) which is one of the partners in the RED Network), who works at Malmö University, reported the incident to the police as incitement to hatred. As a consequence, posters depicting Mr. Momodou Jallow as a slave in chains with a text saying ”where is our run away nigger slave?” were spread all over the city of Lund and at Malmö University.

We therefore welcome the letter from the European Network Against Racism (ENAR) to Sweden's EU Minister Birgitta Ohlsson, in which ENAR condemns these unacceptable violations of Human Rights taking place in Sweden.

The incidents also comes in the year 2011, which the United Nations General Assembly has declared as the Year for people of African Descent. Having that in mind, we call for greater understanding and public awareness of thebrutality of the Transatlantic slave trade, during which millions of African women, men and children were kidnapped, killed and raped.

We hope that the Minister of Education, Jan Björklund and the Minister of Integration, Erik Ullenhag sees it as an opportunity to address the specific needs of victims of racism and racial hatred. It is imperative that victim’s right’s are safeguarded and not trivialised or denied. It is also important to recognise that racial hate crime can spread well beyond the victimized individual. Hate crimes can terrorise communities. We therefore call for effective efforts to ensure that racism and racial hatred in Sweden is wholeheartedly and openly denounced as unacceptable. This is vital to prevent the generating of a culture of passive acceptance which allows racial hatred and racism to foster.

*Signatories RED Network partners*	*country*
i-RED, Institute for Rights, Equality & Diversity (Coordinator)	Greece
Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights	Austria
Symfiliosi	Cyprus
Centre d'Etudes des Discriminations, du Racisme et de l'Antisémitisme (CEDRA)	France
European Forum for Migration Studies (EFMS) - Institute at the University of Bamberg	Germany
Movement for Peace and Liberty (MPDL)	Spain
Centre for Legal Resources (CLR)	Romania
NÚMENA – Research Centre on Human and Social Sciences	Portugal
Finnish League for Human Rights	Finland
Immigrant Council of Ireland	Ireland
Center for the Study of Democracy	Bulgaria
Peace Institute	Slovenia
Documentation and Advisory Centre on Racial Discrimination (DACoRD)	Denmark
Center Against Racism	Sweden

Public intervention for migrant workers in hunger strike in Greece by i-RED, RED Network, PICUM, Greek Forum of Migrants, Migrants' Rights Network

Miltos Pavlou — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:39:24 GMT

Public intervention for migrant workers in hunger strike in Greece

By

i-RED l RED European Network combating racism & xenophobia l Greek Forum of Migrants l Migrants' Rights Network (UK) lPlatform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM)

i-RED, the RED Network, the Greek Forum of Migrants, the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM), and the Migrants’ Rights Network,

propose the following solution to the current impasse after more than a month of hunger strike by migrants and asylum seekers in Athens and Thessaloníki and urges,

1. the Greek government to:

- Examine expediently under an emergency procedure and on individual basis, the claims of protection by the migrant workers and asylum seekers, currently in hunger strike.

- Implement without any delay short term solutions – in addition to mid and long term solutions provided by the new asylum law – for the provision of emergency humanitarian assistance to and for the protection of the fundamental rights of vulnerable groups by setting up a mechanism to coordinate key social and institutional actors (government, local authorities, the National Commission for Human Rights, the Ombudsman and relevant civil society organisations).

- Evaluate, assess and review in the medium to long term the efficiency of the current migration regulations, especially regarding access and admission in the territory for work and security of status and workers’ protection.

2. the hunger strikers and their supporters to:

- End their hunger strike recognizing that their fight has been successful in making the public aware of critical issues and in mobilising wider support for their concerns.

- Cooperate with the state agencies in order to identify their individual needs and claims without any delay, in view of the availability of a wide range of solutions in the current legal framework.

- Not a single life must be lost.

Ultimately European societies must be the most sensitive to humanitarian and fundamental right issues and they will be judged by their response to the crises and their challenges.

Athens, 1 March 2011

The RED Network, is an independent research network lead by i-RED (Greece) building the RED early warning system composed of 17Research and Civil Society Organisations in EU Member States. It aims at critically recording and fighting stereotypes, which are the causes of racist and discriminatory attitudes, speech, actions and violent incidents. It perceives itself as a ‘watchdog’ and a reliable source of information.

http://www.i-red.eu/?i=institute.en.news.92