The fifth episode of MigraTon – this time in English – deals with two unresolved European problems at the external borders: the EU’s handling of humanitarian and migration policy crises including the one at the border between Belarus and Poland as well as the EU’s approach towards dictators such as Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko. Our hosts Simon Rapp and Zina Weisner take a critical look at the militarised response and war-like rhetoric towards refugees and migrants. What can be done instead for the human beings who are stuck at the border? How can the EU maintain sovereignty while upholding human rights standards and the rule of law at its external borders as well as within its member states? To this end, our hosts interviewed representatives of two human rights organisations in Poland. In addition, two Polis180 experts on Belarus discuss the motives and the mindset of Belarusian ruler Lukashenko. They also describe their impressions of how civil society and the opposition in Belarus assess the situation.

We conducted the interviews at the end of November 2021. The moderation recordings are from December.

Interview partners

Marta Gorczynska, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarGorczynska, Website: https://www.hfhr.pl/en/

Sarian Jarosz, Amnesty International Poland: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/research/2021/09/poland-belarus-border-crisis/

Olga Dryndova, Editor „Belarus-Analysen“ / Research Centre for East European Studies at the University of Bremen, Country expert for Belarus, V-Dem Institute (Sweden), Team Arbeitskreis Belarus (Germany), Twitter: https://twitter.com/OlgaDryndova

Viktar Vasileuski, Board Member of Polis180

The interviews were conducted in November 2021.

Further Information

Grupa Granica, Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrupaGranica

Botschaft des Volkes von Belarus in Deutschland: https://www.facebook.com/BelarusInGermany/

Informationsstelle Belarus: https://www.facebook.com/mein.name.ist.belarus/

Voice of Belarus: https://www.voiceofbelarus.org/

Libereco – Partnership for Human Rights: https://www.lphr.org/

Donation Opportunities

medico international: https://www.medico.de/granica

Fundacja Ocalenie: https://en.ocalenie.org.pl/

Wir packen´s an – Nothilfe für Geflüchtete : https://wir-packens-an.info/

Credits

Moderation and Editorial Board: Simon Rapp, Zina Weisner

Production: Franz Classe

Music: Carsten Spandau

Cover image: Lena Barth, Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/collectionmarlena/

References

https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/lukaschenko-gegen-die-eu-wie-belarus-gefluechtete-als-100.html

https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/europa/belarus-polen-migranten-fluechtlinge-103.html

https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/folge-226-fluechtlingspolitik-migration-ueber-belarus-100.html

https://www.proasyl.de/news/an-der-polnischen-grenze-eine-politik-die-menschen-einfach-sterben-laesst/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Wir+m%C3%BCssen+Menschen+als+Menschen+behandeln%21&utm_campaign=Newsletter+November&vgo_ee=ZoI5%2BXPRe80e8JEqop8AHtKB%2B8tLtp2CHT%2BRqbvouAM%3D

https://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/refdaily?pass=52fc6fbd5&id=61920dd43

https://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/refdaily?pass=52fc6fbd5&id=61920bd73

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/nov/14/fortress-europe-violent-pushbacks-exploit-people-pursue-policy?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other&mj_campaign=nl_ref&mj_content=zeitde_text_link_x&mj_medium=nl&mj_source=int_zonaudev_Was%20jetzt%3F

https://socialeurope.eu/against-weaponised-migration

https://www.swp-berlin.org/publikation/kalkulierte-eskalation-an-der-belarussisch-polnischen-grenze-welche-handlungsmoeglichkeiten-haben-deutschland-und-die-europaeische-union

https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2021/11/18/Belarus-EU-how-politics-caused-a-humanitarian-crisis-eastern-border?utm_source=The+New+Humanitarian&utm_campaign=b127c14114-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_11_19_Weekly&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d842d98289-b127c14114-75477157

MigraTon Team

Carsten Spandau, Christiane Butler, Ezgi Akarsu, Franz Classe, Jonas Luppen, Julie Courbon, Sanziana Gabor, Simon Haux, Simon Rapp, Trina Kohestani, Zina Weisner

Mail: [email protected]

Disclaimer

This Polis180 podcast reflects the views only of the authors. The responsibility for the content lies with the authors.