IndyMedia - Vrij Media Centrum Nederland

Wanneer: 20/01/2016 - 20:38

To whom it may concern.

As people of solidarity who have been operating for three months at the
Platanos self-organized structure for refugee reception at Skala
Sykamnias, and prompted by the arrival in the last few days of an
accreditation hunt on the NE Aegean islands, we want to avoid any
misunderstandings by making our position towards this game of
impressions clear.

The structure of Platanos is an endeavour based on the principles of
self-organization, solidarity and dignity.
We describe ourselves as self-organized because no political party,
business or organization is standing behind us; all decisions and
actions arise from open public assemblies and the responsibility of
their implementation is shared equally. Mistakes are corrected
collectively and every success is shared collectively. There are no
leaders, only coordinators that are appointed by the assembly and
alternated periodically. Above all the responsibility of the presence of
everyone here is a clear, conscious, individual choice, not dictated by
a governmental organisation or any other plan.
We act in Solidarity because we are here to give active support to
refugees and migrants arriving from the opposite shore; recognising the
injustice that pushed them to this choice and not to draw surplus
humanitarian value from the pain of ”these poor people” or exert
politics on their backs, or worse, on their dead bodies.
We make the conscious choice of grassroots solidarity and networking in
contrast with both the current dictates of a society that demands
philanthropic consumers and inhumane workers, and with the ruling class
and the suffering it causes.
We act in dignity because we choose to stand beside them in a human, not
humanitarian way. We recognise the other's existence when our eyes meet
and the need to treat them with the dignity they deserve, acknowledging
the causes that led them to this point and promising not to stop
fighting against those causes.
We are against the easy humanitarian approach that averts its gaze from
the real cause of the problem and in complacency hides behind phoney
charities and "good deeds" that numb your conscience.
These are the principles through which it is made clear that our action
so far, and as long as our forces allow us to continue, will remain
without guardians and be uncompromising against the dictates of the
killer states and their executive bodies – in or out of uniform.
It is therefore natural that any scheme for our legitimisation through
associations, organizations and any other legal entities leaves us
completely indifferent, since this condition is already achieved in
everyone’s conscience.
It has been achieved through the selfless support that we receive from
thousands of people around the world, demonstrated through their
participation and endorsement, and through the recognition of the
struggle that has been withstood all these months and its dissemination.
At the same time the state remains completely indifferent to providing
assistance to these people while wasting thousands of resources to shift
the responsibilities of its absence to those who rushed to replace it.
Self-organization is an act that fits neither in the system's
registries, nor of course in the narrow framework of politicians that
access everything through statutes. It is a continuous experiment which
through its development and dissemination searches for the realisation
of a free, consciously defined society; to each according to his needs,
from everyone according to their capabilities.
Solidarity is not an accreditable product nor a theoretical discussion,
but an act that is recognisable through its support and continuation.
Dignity is not negotiated in the halls of the courts and ruling
institutions, but is determined through the daily struggle against
injustice that these same institutions impose.
These are the principles of Platanos, and with these we will continue to
move on, as long as the structure remains alive.
Self-organized Structure Platanos, Skala Sykamnias, 2016

https://www.facebook.com/solidarityplatanos/posts/1108435912530141