Funded Projects

In Malta, three teenagers (15, 16, and 19 years old) are accused of terrorism. They belonged to a group of refugees who fled from Libya in a rubber boat on the 26th of March 2019, and were rescued by the crew of the cargo ship El Hiblu 1. In consultation with the European military operation EUNAVFORMED, the crew was on the verge of returning the rescued people to Libya. The refugees objected against their forced return and convinced the crew of El Hiblu 1 to hear towards Malta. No one was injured during the protest, nor was there any material damage. Nevertheless, the three teenagers were arrested after their arrival in Malta, where they are currently charged with severe crimes including terrorism. The teenagers face prison sentences ranging from 7 years to life. To draw international attention to the case, a solidarity campaign is organized by different groups, activists and other refugees rescued by the cargo ship El Hiblu 1.

Border Forensics (BF) is a new research institution in Geneva, founded by the researchers Charles Heller and Lorenzo Pezzani. In collaboration with migrant groups and civil society organizations, BF documents the violence associated with the existence and management of state borders. In 2021, Border Forensics is conducting joint investigations with civil society aerial surveillance missions in the central Mediterranean. These analyze the withdrawal of EU naval units from the Libyan coast and the increasing cooperation of EU air surveillance with the Libyan coast guard to detect boats of refugees as they depart, without becoming involved in rescue missions. In addition, BF is working on a publication that addresses rights violations against people fleeing over sea and the criminalization of solidarity.

Medical Volunteers International provides medical care for people on the move in Greece and recently also at another location along the Balkan route. With this new project, medical volunteers provide general medical care to those people who do not receive accommodation and care in the camps. Because even in the forests and dilapidated houses, where people on the move often live under inhumane conditions, the following applies: Healthcare is a Human Right. Through this initiative, about 600 patients can be treated by a mobile team of doctors every month.

Mare Liberum e.V. has been monitoring the human rights situation on the flight and migration routes in the Aegean since 2018. The Safe Passage Foundation supports the further development of Mare Liberum in terms of content, structure and finances with a six-month funding of 37,647.36 euros for one staff position each in project coordination (50%), fundraising (75%) and public relations (25%). This is intended to support the development of sustainable structures, the realization of future missions and the financial self-sufficiency of the association.

KlikAktiv provides free legal and psychosocial support to people on the move stuck on Serbian territory as a final non-EU country on the Balkan migration route. More than 95% of people on the move in Serbia do not have access to the asylum and protection system, but are sleeping in informal squats instead. This project will mostly reach people on the move who are not cared for and who do not have access to legal and psychosocial support. Moreover, KlikAktiv is involved in the legal representation of asylum seekers in national asylum procedures and other strategic cases with local courts and authorities. While working on the external EU borders, KlikAktiv’s team also collects and publish testimonies on push-backs and border violence. Finally, the the financial grant supports the organization in cases of criminalization against humanitarian workers and activists.

Skills for Utopia is a political education collective aiming to work with activists and political groups. The funded project aims to strengthen existing civil sea rescue structures through knowledge transfer and skill sharing. For this purpose, the collective provides qualified and movement-related speakers for free and practice-oriented workshops and webinars. These workshops are set up to support groups in working effectively, present themselves professionally, use modern tools and techniques, while at the same time focus on cyber security and power critical structures.

Since July 2020, the team of Alarme Phone Sahara (APS) in Agadez/Niger organizes with great commitment every Saturday a community kitchen. The network APS is a cooperation between associations, groups and individuals in the Sahel-Sahara region and Europe with headquarters and offices in Agadez. The community kitchen is a practical response to a situation in which many migrants and people on the move are stranded in Niger, struggling daily to survive in very precarious conditions. This has been extremely exacerbated by the global corona crisis. The kitchen is an important element for the APS team Agadez to come into exchange with migrants. It also strengthens solidarity within the different communities.

ELIL’s team of full-time Greek lawyers and volunteer European asylum lawyers has been providing legal support to people on the move on Lesvos (since 2016) and Samos (since 2020). They work to uphold the rule of law and defend human rights by providing access to free, independent legal assistance. Thousands of people on the move have been transferred from the Aegean islands to the Greek mainland in recent months and face an increasingly strict and complex asylum framework, often with little legal support. With the support of the Stiftungsfonds Zivile Seenotrettung, ELIL is beginning a new project to provide legal assistance on the mainland.

Lesvos and the Aegean islands are a laboratory for toxic European migration policies. Lesvos Solidarity counters this with the Advocacy Hub project: the goal is to expose the increasingly repressive and divisive migration system and increase coordinated pressure to force political change. The project aims to create a one-stop shop for networking, strategic action and community mobilization. Actors on the Greek islands are jointly mobilized for change against an aggressive and determined government.

The Pomegranate Project is an initiative designed and implemented by, for and with women. It provides a holistic protection and empowerment model for female refugees, with particular priority given to those at risk of and/or survivors of gender-based violence. The project includes safe housing, psychosocial support, case management, and income-generating opportunities to develop and strengthen the skills, resources, and resilience of affected individuals. The predominantly Greek team also helps build support networks and solidarity between displaced women and the Greek community.