UNITED for Intercultural Action

European network against nationalism, racism, fascism

and in support of migrants and refugees

PB 413 NL- 1000 AK Amsterdam phone +31-20-6834778, fax +31-20-6834582 e-mail: united@united.non-profit.nl website: http://www.united.non-profit.nl

UNITED informs about Harald's arrest in Berlin on Sunday, the 19th of December

[Thankfully UNITED translated a letter of concern of Harald´s colleagues of the FFM]

Dear participants of the UNITED conferences in Potsdam (D) / Glencree (IRL), Recently we have been shocked to find out that Harald, who you all have met at a the UNITED conference in either Potsdam or Glencree has been arrested on charges of terrorism in Germany. Maybe you can find the time to send him and/or his organisation the FFM a message of support or solidarity.

Harald works for the Forschungsgesellschaft Flucht und Migration in Berlin, who have sent us the following letter:

Dear friends of FFM, dear interested person,

Sunday the 19th of December our colleague Harald has been arrested in his flat. Simultaneously, the police began to search the Mehringhof (A 20 years old self-administrated alternative initiative house in Berlin) where the office of the Forschungsgesellschaft Flucht und Migration (FFM)is situated. FFM is the society for research of refuge and migration, which is Haralds workplace. Furthermore, another employee of the Mehringhof, Axel H. and Sabine B.E. in Frankfurt/Main have been arrested. Monday, the 20th of October Harald was brought before a judge in Karlsruhe (where the federal court is located),afterwards he was transfered to a prison in Düsseldorf. A partial insight into the files during the review of remand in custody revealed that accusations of one man in Berlin led to the arrest order.

The accusations of the public prosecutor are all about activities of the "Revolutionäre Zellen" (revolutionary cells) and the "Rote Zora" during the years 1986-87, against the racist official refugee politics - (all passed the statute of limitations) - and with the membership of these groups.

For your information, Harald (co-founder of FFM) has made a significant contribution building up FFM's public relations and research since its start five years ago. As you know the working field of FFM is critical research, documentation and publication about Fortress Europe and its consequences for the situation of refugees especially in the border regions.

Harald contributed to the documentation of violations of human rights along the border, and was engaged against the criminalisation of taxi-drivers. (Along the German Eastern border taxi drivers have been convicted to severe jail sentences because they have transported illegal refugees without the knowing that they were illegal. This had the effect that everyone who looked "foreign" could not get a taxi anymore in the border regions) Harald contributed substantially to make this known to the public. Recently he took part as observer in a court case against young neo-nazis who chased a young Algerian to death in the small town of Guben. Although this political work is of enormous relevance, hardly anybody is engaged in those themes.

The arrest of Harald not only creates a big gap in the difficult situation (lack of personnel and money) of FFM but also in refugee-supporting networks like Flüchtlingsrat Brandenburg in which Harald also is a member.

With this letter we call for your support of our demand, to release immediately the arrested persons. From now on FFM (besides Mehringhof) is the address to send questions for information, greetings and messages of solidarity!

FFM im Mehringhof, Gneisenaustrasse 2a, D-10961 Berlin phone: +49-30-6935670, fax: +49-30-69508643, e-mail: FFM@ipn.de, WWW: http: file://www.berlinet.de/mh/ffm

Donations for a solidarity campaign (in the process of being started) and for the costs of a potential court case are welcome on bank account: 61 00 24 26 at Berliner Sparkasse (Bankleitzahl 100 500 00). Please mark relevant field with "Freilassung!". We will use the contributions to the Mehringhof donation-bank account (which will be set up soon) for all three arrested persons equally.

Mail for Harald and/or Axel has to go through the 'Bundesanwaltschaft' or BAW: Harald G. (z. Zeit JVA Düsseldorf, Ulmenstrasse 95, D-40476 Düsseldorf, Buchnr: 3605/99-0), c/o BAW, Brauerstr. 30, D-7613 Karlsruhe, Germany send letters to FFM, we will forward them! Axel Haug (z. Zeit JVA Wuppertal, Simonshöfchen 26, D-42327 Wuppertal) c/o BAW, Brauerstr. 30, D-7613 Karlsruhe, Germany

With kind regards

Fritz Burschel, Helmut Dietrich, Dominique John, Huberta von Wangenheim, Anja Zickuhr and many other people engaged for and in the FFM