4/5/6 June 2010 KARAWANE Festival Jena Germany

Welcome!
"Unite against colonial injustice
in commemoration of the victims of Fortress Europe"
Under this motto, a festival will take place June 4-6, 2010 in Jena. The word "festival" is in this context the expression of our political struggle to present the central elements of neo-colonial exploitation and the related consequences in a creative and very specific form to the public.
This is especially true: locally and outside. Over the course of three days, various activities and actions will take place at several locations in downtown Jena: e.g. lectures, discussions, plays, live music, film screenings and exhibitions. Two key program points create the opening of a memorial for those killed by the stronghold of Europe and a masquerade parade, where those who died on their way to Europe will be received entering the city in the form of Nigerian masquerades.
Preparations will be done by activists from the VOICE Refugee Forum, a network of political refugees and activists. VOICE Refugee Forum has been campaigning for the inhumane situation of refugees in Thuringia as well as in all of Germany since 1994.
The festival is organized solely on a volunteer basis; neither organizers nor the participating artists will earn anything. This is due less to the low budget supported by foundations and donations, than on the principle of our political struggle: The basis of the continuing colonial inequality are economic interests, the inhumane treatment of refugees, internment camps and the subsequent deportation is justified by their low economic value. We will not reproduce this pattern. Therefore, let us not presume to decide how much a contribution to the festival is worth. We want to live in a society based on solidarity, in which the people are not categorized by their supposed economic value.
On this page you will find useful information on participation (e.g. accommodations) and background information about The VOICE Refugee Forum and the Caravan for the Rights of Refugees and Migrants. The website will be updated regularly, so a detailed program of the festival will soon be available.
For further information: info(at)karawane-festival.org
See you in June!