On Friday night there have been clashes between refugees and the police in Moria. Initially it was due to 500 people being left without food, then refugees heard about rumors on 8 dead refugees in a container in the Mytilini port. When the police refused giving information about the deaths refugees got angry and clashed with the police again. On the following day, yesterday 10th September, refugees of different nationalities organized a demonstration at the harbor with the support of NBK Lesvos. About 250 people came and walked along the harbor loud and peacefully. Apart from some moments of tension when people feared that some of the refugees would climb the fence to the port and throw stones at policemen, it was a manifestation of anger about the conditions in Moria and on Lesvos. A manifestation of international solidarity and, literally, a shout out for freedom. Many tourists were watching and some joined and the Greek press was there. The police was taking pictures, too. At the end NoBorderKitchen distributed food and water for all the refugees.

We demand: Open the borders! Close Moria! Freedom of movement is everybody’s right!

Two days ago the Lesvos police paid us a visit while we were distributing food for the refugees living in the forest. They don’t want us to feed the refugees, they keep telling us that they should get food in Moria. But if refugees should rely on Moria they would rather stay hungry. In Moria the food is scarce and people wait for hours to get tiny portions.
However we are not going to let the police oppression keep us from cooking with and for refugees! We are now trying to find a new long term spot where we won’t be bothered by the police. Meanwhile the stoves keep running.
NBK Lesvos stands firm! Refugees welcome!

Many people from Moria camp protested yesterday and demanded a solution from EU for their horrible situation here on the island. First the people demonstrated in a central square with a sit-in and then walked through the city towards the port. While walking their shouts “we want freedom” could be heard way beyond the ports gates.

Everyday boats with refugees cross the sea from Turkey to Lesbos. The arriving people are imprisoned in Moria-camp, that was established as a so called hot-spot in March. The conditions there are unbearable and are getting worse every day. Lacking food, broken showers and totally overcrowed sleeping areas are the daily life in the camp. “We are humans, not animals” stated one person in the protest, and said that even anaimals have a more rights and a better life in Greece than the people in Moria.

But not only the humanitarian conditions need to be critizised. Moria camp is a prison, surrounded by barbed wire and protected by the military. The fences of the camp reflect europes fences: not only Moria is a prison, for most people all Lesbos is. Not able to leave to Athens or another European country to acces their right to asylum, and also not allowed to return to Turkey, people are trapped on the island. The duration of their imprisonment unknown.

We want freedom! Shouted the people in Mytilinis streets.

We also want freedom, we want to destroy all borders and end europes war in migrants.

Freedom of Movement for all!
Make fortress europe history!

After the eviction of our Social Center in the squatted and repaired factory and the expulsion of the beach across the road, the NBK found a new place. The NBSC at the new beach is a place where refugees, supporters and locals meet as friends. We work together, eat together and live together. There is shadow places, water, tea, urgently neede clothing and- what might be most important- a space for talks and solidarity outside of the overcrowded and for humans unworthy camps.

Every day we keep on working towards strengthening our structures.

Despite all the difficulties of the last weeks, we cook and distribute 650 meals every day. Of course vegan and tasty!

With this we especially support people that don‘t want to or can‘t accept the catastrophic conditions in the camps and their self-organizations.

To keep up our work and the autonomous structures on the island, we keep on needing your support and your solidarity. We welcome donations of money as well as people that feel like supporting us on the ground.

If you want to support us write to noborderkitchen@riseup.net

Our project is needed in the situation we are in, but cannot offer a solution.

Instead we demand:

OPEN ALL BORDERS!

FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT FOR ALL!

Yesterday on August 20th around 200 people, mainly from Moria camp, gathered in the center of Mytilini to demonstrate against the horrible conditions in Moria and for opening all borders.

Before the demo the organizing refugees called everybody

” to come together without caring about language, skin colour, nationality or religion. We want to come together to fight for human rights, freedom, equality and to fight also against the failing migration and refugee politics of Europe.
Our slogan is: „No rules, no oders, open the borders!”

Moria Camp: To lock everybody up on this island is not going to work anymore. Even now in Moria camp the situation is very bad, there is not even enough water for everybody.
Our slogan is: „Moria is a prison! We need human rights!”

The people walked from the city center to the port and entered the port area. In front of a Frontex ship and the border police in the port their voices became even more powerful.

This impressive and energetic protest against the EU-border politics was not the first in Mytilini and for sure will not be the last one!

Tuesday this week a few friendly policemen encouraged us insistently take down our Social Center at the Beach near Mytilini. But no problem for us, a new Noborder Resort is on the way already!

Chapter one: Chief P. gets serious.
Tuesday this week we woke up to the sound of four police cars arriving at our Social Center: it was Chief of Police P. and his gang. Since a few weeks we were squatting a beach near Mytilini, after being evicted from the building just across the road. Until tuesday the harassment of the local police (the neighbours apparently don’t like us) had just been menaces, but now it was an ultimatum: go away or we will tear down your camp and arrest you within the next hour. To make the point clear, they destroyed a few of our „welcome pallets“ with a giant mechanical arm. The joke’s on them, we had already decided to remove that pallets as the beach was too dusty anyways for our taste. Since we didn’t want our stuff to get stolen by Papasouglu’s gang, we decided to unbuild the camp. Right now only desolation, a forgotten backpack and a couple of dirty pallet-beds stand where once was our lively social center.

Chapter two: Welcome to Malaka Beach!
The Social Center was gone, and the crew was demotivated. We’d been looking for other possible places for weeks, and noone seemed suitable. Then a rumor started to spread: a nice place, hidden, calm, with no unfriendly neighbors, and nearer to Moria than our old Social Center.
Is it a dream?
No!
Welcome to Malaka Beach!
Near the road to Moria around 40 minutes walk from downtown Mytilini you’ll find our new Noborder Resort. Activists without and with papers are working day and night to make it beautiful and provided with all the comforts. Putting tents and shady places, trying to find a toilet-solution and smoking cigarettes on what may be the most beautiful beach in the surroundings of Mytilini: a new social center is being built!
We are there to stay and build something beautiful so stay tuned!

Today, on Wednesday August 10th the chief of police came to our Social Center once again. He announced that he has orders to evict and arrest us tomorrow, if we do not leave voluntarily.
We decided to stay where we are. The Social Center is a place for people to escape the harsh reality of Moria, where we can sit together, eat together and organize together. We will not give up this space easily. We will move if we have a better place to build our Social Centre. Until then we will resist together with the people using the Social Center to stay where we are.

Yesterday on Tuesday August 9th about 200 people from Moria organized and walked the way from Moria into Mytilinis centre to show their protest against the closed borders and against the bad conditions in the Moria camp. The demonstration was initiated and organized by Eritrean and Ethiopian people. While walking through the city all of the people togehter shouted their demands and made their voices heard.They were shouting that
„Moria is a jail, not a refuge“
„Moria is a prison.“
„Open the borders. „
„No one is illegal“
„Freedom for all“
„Equal Rights for everyone“
„Human Rights for everyone“
„Give us papers“
„We are human beings!“ and
„We need justice.“
When the demonstration was at the port they faced the Frontex ship, showed them their banners and shouted „Open the borders!“.
There were two banners at the front, one saying „Human rights for refugees“ and the other one „5 people in one tent? Where is the European Union?“. Also they were demanding „We need a solution“ and made clear that being inoprisoned in Moria is not a solution. In contrary, it is part of the problem. We need a real solution. We need the borders to be opened so everybody can freely move to a country of their choice.

When journaslists actually get informed before publishing articles, things suddenly are very different than they “seem” when journalists do not even show enough objectivity to at least have a talk with involved people and have a look at something…

Μυτιλήνη: Και είπε ο μπάτσος σε αλληλέγγυους “Δεν έχουμε ανάγκη τη βοήθεια σας”

http://www.emprosnet.gr/article/85965-oi-noborder-kataskinosan-sto-kalamari

Update on NoBorder Social Center

Mytilene, 5 August 2016 –
Yesterday, NoBorder Social Center was notified by the police to leave the place near Mytilene within several days. “We don’t need your help”, they said.
In Moria, the situation is disastrous: there is insufficient provision of food, the place is overcrowded, basic necessities cannot be met. Moria is a jail!
Yes, our activity indeed is needed! Under the current circumstances, there is no way we will stop our activities.
NoBorder Social Center remains in resistance!