Heute (22. April) hat Frontex-Einsatzleiter Klaus Rösler auf einer öffentlichen Veranstaltung in Berlin die Arbeit von Frontex werbend vorgestellt – gerade mal 4 Tage nach der fürchterlichen, nicht zuletzt von Frontex (mit-)verantworteten Bootskatastrophe im Zentralen Mittelmeer mit über 800 Toten.

Zu Beginn der Veranstaltung ist Rösler von Demonstrant_innen in Empfang genommen worden, in diesem Zusammenhang ist es auch zu Farbbeutelwürfen gekommen. Bilder von der Aktion finden sich unter anderem auf der Webseite von Afrique-Europe-Interact und beim Umbruch Bildarchiv.

„Yesterday was a day of various mobilizations in Berlin. Many people felt the need to go to the street and express their anger and sadness about the many deaths that occured last week in the Mediterranean, and about the cynical reaction of the EU politicians.

One group mobilized to a ommemoration of the dead at the representation of the EU-Commission at 5:00pm.

The alarm phone group of Berlin/Push back Frontex campaign mobilized for 6:00pm to the building of a foundation which had invited Klaus Rösler, Operative Director of Frontex, to „explain the European border protection“.

Rösler is known to be demanding that the Italian Coast Guard „should not take every phone call from outside the 30 mile zone as a rescue call“. Other initiatives had mobilized to the same event.

„13.04. – 400+; 19.04. – 750 + dead – Stop War on Migrants“ was spraypainted on a banner in the street, while people were still gathering to a manifestation in the center of Berlin, until about 200 – 300 were there. The atmosphere was spontaneous, energetic and concentrated.

We distributed leaflets, and people with very different own migration backgrounds let people know why we were there by a mobile sound system. When Rösler indeed finally came, he was greeted by „Mittelmeer – Massengrab – das ist Mord im Staatsauftrag“ (Mediterranean, Mass Grave – this is state-ordered murder) and „EU Frontex and Police: Stop the War on Refugees“, and of course „Say it loud. say it clear, Refugees are welconme here“-Slogans, and of a loud „we are angry!“ The police had some difficulties to get him into the building, and to keep back the manifestation from entering it. On one of the pictures you might notice that he was hit a little by a paint-bomb … the spontaneous outburst of indignation that someone like him dared to give a speech like this in a situation like this was impressive.

People did not only refer to and Frontex, however, but took the open mic to accuse the whole deadly border regime, and the racism that´s behind it. We had a powerful manifestation, and it felt good to be angry collectively!“