The Caravan to be Ambassadors for the Romas

Today the Caravan for the Rights of Refugees and Migrants left Düsseldorf from the protest camp of the Romas for Stuttgart. The Caravan had taken on the struggle of the Romas from the very onset, by including the Roma campaign in the Caravan newspaper as well as engaging in the fax and information Campaign for the Romas while AGIF ( Federation of Workers from Turkey) involved in the Caravan project has been one of the main supporting groups to the Romas. These efforts took a whole life of it’s own when the Caravan not only as a delegation but the whole core-group caught-up with the Romas midday 30th August 2002. After the Applauds, singing and chanting ; there was a joined demonstration at the Ministry of Interior of NRW in Düsseldorf and the handing of a protest letter to two representatives of the ministry : Mrs.Helga Block (Abteilungsleiterin zuständig für Ausländerrecht) and Mr.Christoph Sander ( stellvertretender Abteilungsleiter ). The Caravan and the Roma protesters moved by bus and train to the central train station in Neuss from where they demonstrated to the female-deportation-prison in Neuss. Later, part of the demonstrators caught-up with the campaign of the Green party.
The Romas and the Caravan passed a night of support for one another at the protest camp of the Romas on the shores of the Rhein opposite the ministry of Interior of NRW. The next morning(31.08.02) the Caravan went to Köln for the planned actions at Köln after which the group returned to the Romas protest camp. Here they continued their support and discussed how to handle the precarious situation of the Romas; now threatened by mass deportation from Germany. The Caravan passed another night(31.08.02) of solidarity with the Romas.

Today (September 1,2002) a delegation of the Caravan has been on intensive discussions with the spokesperson of the Romas on how to support them in their struggle, especially as soon it’ll be winter and too cold for them to maintain their protest camp on the shore of the Rhein.
The discussion focused on trying to come up with real practical ways to bring both an immediate and a long term solution to the Roma problem. At 15:00 there was a trumpet and megaphone call on the camp and the people united for the Caravan to say a temporal good bye as the Caravan tour goes south. This was a very moving moment. The Romas and the caravan clapped together, sang and chanted slogans. A representative of the Caravan pointed to the Romas, the fact that their well calculated and executed protest has in one sweep wiped away many of the clichés that prevail in this society about the Romas and refugees as a whole.
He further pointed out to the 750 women, men and children that when the day of victory shall come, this resistance of the Romas shall occupy the first pages of it’s history .He equally promised the Romas that the Caravan will be their ambassador. After this, with chanting, beating of drums and singing, the Caravan members where escorted to their bus which was waved good bye.
So long so far.
Valentine Eben