Kurds Still On Hunger Strike In Fin

[kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu]

From: Arm The Spirit <ats at locust.etext.org>
Subject: Kurds Still On Hunger Strike In Finland

Kurds Still On Hunger Strike In Finland

Please keep sending faxes! There's no information about the results yet, but
officials from the Foreign Bureau visited the strikers on Friday, maybe just
because they were afraid for their jammed fax.

Antti Rautiainen
ANTTI.RAUTIAINEN at PP.KOLUMBUS.FI

-----
ACTION ALERT FOR KURDISH HUNGER STRIKE IN FINLAND

(via fax, phone & e-mail)

Today began the 14th day of a hunger strike by Kurdish
refugees in Finland. One Kurd and one Finnish friend have been on
hunger strike since September 20th, two Kurds joined on Sunday,
September 21st, and 5 Kurds started striking on September 29th. 

The hunger strike is a protest against the inhumane
practices of the Finnish Foreigner Bureau, which has carried out
a lot of mass decisions to deport Kurds from Turkish-Kurdistan
during the summer of 1997. The decisions lack reason for single
individuals. Mistreated Kurds have been politically active and
they are at risk of being persecuted by the Turkish regime if
returned to Turkey. There are many Kurdish refugees in Finland
and the Finnish Foreigner Bureau should know very well the
situation in Turkey.

Deported Kurds have made appeals to the Asylum Board, which
usually follows the decisions of Foreigner Bureau. Finland is
known for its hostile refugee policy, one of the tightest in the
Western Europe. Even the European Union, which is closing it's
borders as a whole, has criticized Finnish refugee policy. There
are less than 20,000 refugees in Finland; the 1,000 annual asylum
seekers are not a risk to Finnish welfare.

The hunger strike is not only for these Kurds, it's also
against the Finnish foreigner policy as whole, it's for all the
asylum seekers from which some have been forced to wait for
decisions, sometimes negative, as much as 5 years. It's also
against the establishing of the "fortress Europe", in which "the
free movement of people" is just a joke for those in a need of
asylum.

You can increase the pressure against Finnish officials who
have chosen "keeping our nation clean" as their official policy,
thanks to decades of populist rhetoric by politicians. Please
forward this message and participate the protest! 

The pressure campaign is planned to begin at 11 am CET on
Friday, October 3rd (That means 4.00 am in NY). Please distribute
this message as much as possible before that.

You can send faxes or phone to following address:

Demand a fairer refugee policy from:

Finnish Foreigner Bureau
Director, Ms. Mielikki Tenhunen
fax: +358-9-4765-5857 or +358-9-4765-5700
phone: +358-9-476-5500
e-mail: mielikki.tenhunen at sm.vn.mailnet.fi

You can appeal for the Kurds on hunger strike to:

Asylum Board
fax: +358-9-1825-7774
phone: +358-9-18251

The Foreigner Bureau is in the control of:

Minister of Domestic Affairs
Mr. Jan-Erik Enestam
phone: +358-9-(1601 or 478 711)-2800
fax: +358-9-(1601 or 478 411)-2887
e-mail: Jan-Erik.Enestam at sm.vn.mailnet.fi

The Asylum Board is in the control of:

Minister of Justice
Mr. Kari Hakamies
phone: +358-9-(18251 or 478 713)-7500
fax: +358-9-(18251 or 478 713)-7730
e-mail: Kari.Hakamies at om.vn.fi