Poverty

Networking of asylum and refugee policy initiatives in Hamburg

The refugee council tries to tangibly improve the life situation of refugees in Lower Saxony with specific projects. We do not only want to criticize  discriminating treatment of refugees, but also to intervene and change the situation.

The main focal areas of our project work includes:

• asylum and health,
• child refugees,
• access to the job market,
• (anti-) discrimination,
• temporary right for tolerated refugees, and
• networking of refugee relief.

The refugee council of Lower Saxony was founded in 1984 and is registered as a charitable organization. It consists of a network of about 500 refugee initiatives, congregations, labour unions and individuals who do not consent to the prevalent discrimination of refugees in Lower Saxony. This network provides the basis for fighting racism in Lower Saxony. The refugee council is a member of PRO ASYL (German Human Rights organization) and cooperates closely with the refugee councils of other German federal states.

Considering the decrease of funded refugee work it is important to maintain the remaining support structures for refugees and to further strengthen the initiatives. In cooperation with other associations our goal is to network and improve refugee work in Lower Saxony.

Our activities include:

• professional counselling,
• seminars and symposia,
• public relations work,
• legal assistance in individual cases,
• publishing of  the Flüchtlingsrat (refugee council) magazine,
• representation of the interests of refugees in Lower Saxony, and
• critical monitoring of refugee policy in Lower Saxony.

Networking of asylum and refugee policy initiatives

The north church promotes, the church overseas development service, projects in Asia, Africa and Latin America. In this way making a contribution to more global justice is shown. At the same time the church wants to promote a critical understanding for the global, economic, social, political and ecological influences that shape our lives. The educational offer of the church overseas development service has the aim to understand the interconnection among our own life and of people all over the world. Together with others the church wants to create a worldwide social change through the communication of abilities, settings and values. We want to connect people and promote their engagement supporting a fairer and more sustainable world. Our aid programs are available for church and non-church groups and initiatives in Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Schleswig-Holstein. Every two years the north church announces the "one world price". This price honors initiatives, groups, church municipalities or individuals for their engagement. The theological bases, definitions, structures and quality criterions of the educational work are summarized in the concept for the development educational work of the north church.

Refugees are a special group among immigrants from foreign countries who seek protection  from torture, persecution and hunger caused by political, religious or cultural tensions, war and poverty in their homelands. Worldwide there are 12 million refugees. The number of regions of crisis in the world has not diminished. The acceptance rates of refugees in Europe and Germany have been decreasing for years. A large number of refugees are tolerated only for a short time. They are subject to special legislation and special residency requirements and they receive fewer benefits. This legislation systematically prevents them from  becoming integrated into society. 

Mecklenburg Vorpommern e. V. Refugee Council supports fair asylum application procedures, access to employment and educational opportunities for refugees, humane housing and unlimited medical care. The Council also fights any kind of xenophobia and racism. It participates in PRO ASYL and has connections to other refugee groups and organizations.

Responsibilities:

• We provide advice to asylum seekers, tolerated and accepted refugees, people fleeing from civil wars, paid and voluntary workers, as well as associations and groups which are involved in refugee work. 
• We organize continuing education programmes and campaign activities about refugees and asylum. We also find companions who accompany refugees who need to see doctors, visit advisory centres, consult lawyers and the like. 
• We coordinate and promote refugee work in Mecklenburg Vorpommern.

WEED is an independent NGO and was founded in 1990. Our goal is to create more awareness in Germany for the causes of worldwide poverty and environmental problems. WEED is committed to national and international networks and unites organisations and initiatives in the North and South.

Our focus is on:

• international indebtedness, debt clearance initiatives and Germany's role in this context;
• politics, projects and programmes of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank;
• reforming and democratizing the international financial markets;
• international trade policy and WTO (World Trade Organisation);
• the North-South policy of the European Union, and international environmental and development policy

WEED performs research, collects background material, and writes working papers, including for example, the WEED-Schuldenreport (the Weed debt report) that is published on a regular basis and provides information on indebtedness. WEED runs campaigns, talks to political decision-makers and intervenes in political decision-making processes. WEED wants to draw attention to these problems by organizing seminars, workshops and conferences, by collaborating with the media and through public relations. WEED works together with national and international NGOs, and supports and completes the work of other environmental and developmental organisations.