• An English sub-titled version of the "Ballad of the Sans Papiers" is shortly be shown on Channel 4 TV. Made in Paris by l'Yeux Ouverts and IM'Media, this 90minute documentary chronicles the "sans papiers" movement from 300 Africans' occupation of St Ambroise church, Paris in March to the police eviction of the hunger striking "sans papiers" from St Bernard on August 23 • 1966. Derick Colbert seckers incarcerated in Roches. ter Prison is highlighting the appalling treatment of asylum seekers, refugees and other migrant workers by the British government.
This is a key part of last year's racist Immigration and Asylum Act which wel. comes the rich Britain but imprisons poor, black asylum seokers fleeing from he hunger strike at Rochester, which ended on March 10, was in protest at the courts' refusal to grant bail to detainees and the continued rejection of their request to reside in safety in Bricain. A peaceful demonstration inside the prison last year was violently smashed by rios police, and many of the detainees sufered injuries Two of the hunger strikers from Nige. ria face certain torture or death if returned into the hands of what the Nige. rian High Commission in London has referred to publicly as the "strong arms of Nigerian justice". Despite the over. whelming justice of their case, the two men were isolated in the notorious "bas ement' wing of Rochester prison in almost solitary confinement, seeing only prison and Home Office staff.
A Tunisian asylum seeker, sent air tickets and papers in order to join his brother in Italy, was denied permission to fly by the Home Office and told he should return to Tunisia - from where he had Red persecution!
Initially bail was refused to all these men. They remained locked up alongside convicted criminals in degrading and dehumanising conditions. Pressure on the government and the courts by the hunger strikers and by protests outside meant ball was granted to five hunger strikers, but many other detainees remain locked up.
At the end of the protest, the hunger strikers issued the following statement:
"When we started our hunger strike we thought we were alone. We were nor. We would like to thank all those who supported us throughout the hunger strike, for the faxes and letters of protest sent to the Home Office. There were so many faxes of protest sent to the Governor of Kochester Prison that they disconnected and dicontinued that "We would especially like to thank the International support we received from Netherlands, Portugal and Argentina who faxed and wrote on our behalf. We send greetings to the refugees on hunger strike at Lille (Palais de Cal) and to the sans papiers in rrance.
"As our demands have not been met. the struggle continues.
Yours in solidarity, the Interned Rochester Asylum Seekers."