Press Statement

17 August 2008

Europe migrant organizations and advocates hail the announcement of the convening of the International Assembly of Migrants and Refugees, and vows to join other progressive migrants and refugees in Manila in October 2008

Progressive migrant organizations in Europe join the International Migrants' Alliance (IMA) and Migrante International in announcing today the convening of the International Assembly of Migrants and Refugees (IAMR), which is going to be held in Manila Oct. 28-30, as a parallel activity of migrants themselves to the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD).

The convening of the IAMR presents a big occasion for the militant and progressive migrant organizations all over the world led by the IMA to speak, let their voices heard and flex their political muscles, after their successful founding assembly in June 2008. The IAMR is an important political battle to draw the line between the real voices and representatives of migrants and their genuine friends, those of governments in the GFMD who promote a perverse notion of development through the greater commodification and exploitation of migrant labor, and the paid hacks of big businesses and reactionary states masquerading as migrant rights advocates.

Indeed, the convening of the IAMR spearheaded by the IMA and Migrante International , is the opening salvo for progressive migrants to expose and fight the notion that 'development' thru migration and reliance on remittances are development tools. They are in fact “neoliberal anti-poverty and financing concepts and strategy that thrives on people’s exploitation and miseries of migrants, enhances labor flexibilization and therefore, greater commodification of labor, and only brings Third World countries into the quagmire of poverty because these do not address the root causes of underdevelopment and the massive migration of peoples from poor countries”.

We join progressive forces in the Philippines and abroad in condemning the Arroyo regime for shamelessly colluding with big business, illegal recruiters, human traffickers, and racketeers to promote its labor export policy, milk Filipino migrants dry of their blood and sweat earnings, and use migrants' remittances to pay for the country's unjust foreign debts incurred largely from corrupt and anti-people policies and practices and as oil to its campaign to remain in power and political repression.

As we wave the banner of the progressive alliance of migrants worldwide, and prepare for this big political event in Manila in October, we urge and invite all other progressive migrant organizations and their genuine advocates in Europe and the rest of the world to join us in the International Assembly of Migrants and Refugees in Manila, Oct. 28-30.

We also ask our local and foreign media friends to listen to what we, as progressive migrants, have to say about our real conditions, our issues and our hopes for ourselves, our family and our future. We ask them to listen to what we would not be allowed to say in the pampered, airconditioned and carpeted halls of the GFMD official venue(s).

We shall shout for everyone to hear:

Migrants of the world, unite!
Fight poverty and globalization, ensure jobs at home, and stop forced migration!
Uphold and Protect the rights of migrants and refugees!
United, we shall break the oppressive chains of the anti-people neoliberal globalization!

Issued/endorsed by:
International Migrants Alliance (IMA) Europe :
ATIK-Confederation of Workers from Turkey in Europe (Germany)
MIGRANTE-Europe (The Netherlands)
MIGRANTE Netherlands (The Netherlands)
Ugnayang Radyo Pinoy (Denmark)
MIGRANTE-UK (United Kingdom)
UMANGAT (Rome, Italy)
AYIGF-Federation of Workers from Turkey in Austria.
ATIK-Yeni Kadin Woman Commission Germany,
ATIF-Federation of Workers from Turkey in Germany.
ITIF-Federation of Workers from Turkey in Switzerland.
HITIF-Federation of Workers from Turkey in Holland


MIGRANTE Europe Network :
PINAS FIRST (Austria)
UPB (Belgium)
Cordibel (Belgium)
MSP-Belgium (Belgium)
Ugnayan sa Denmark (Denmark)
Kadamay-UK
LAMPADA (Milan, Italy)
MSP-Rome (Italy)
Ugnayan sa Himpapawid (Rome, Italy)
Pinay sa Holland (Netherlands)
Kabalikat (Netherlands)
MSP-Netherlands
LINKAP (Netherlands)
Migrante-Geneva (Switzerland)
FREN (Netherlands)

For reference:
Grace Punongbayan
International Migrants Alliance- Europe
+ 31 . 6. 330 56 411