Excerpts from interviews conducted by Suleyman Kuş (SK) of Göç.com with several people residing in this camp, 13 November 2022.

About 70 people live in Presinge Camp in the canton of Geneva, in difficult conditions. Refugees are organizing to demand improvements, and are using art – artivism ("Nammou Initiative") – to express their concerns. The fundamental concerns about the building's dilapidation have not been met, and there has been pressure to break their will to act collectively. Recently there have been improvements in cleaning, and the installation of separate showers for men and women, but other problems remain. A petition signed by 90% of the camp's residents was sent to the Hospice général on August 14. A documentary about this camp will be screened on December 10, 2022, Human Rights Day. [This text has been edited by Greycells for ease of reading].

SK–: Hello. You live at the Geneva Presinge Foyer camp under the name Initiative Nammou. You started sharing your problems with the public. Could you explain the situation and the main problems for the readers of Göç.com?

—– Some fundamental problems encountered in the camp about a year ago in Geneva were discussed with the camp management, which stated that it had forwarded them to the relevant authorities. We patiently reminded them for 6 months and waited for an answer or a solution. In the aftermath, the toilets in the bathroom were insufficient, repaired too late, the cold and heating insufficient because of the windows, the sick people, the electric fences too close to the children's playground, the bus stop etc., but the people in charge were insensitive to our purely humanitarian requests. Then they said, "Since it's an old building, we can't do anything." So we wanted to talk to the chef. But the chief said that our requests were not necessary, can you imagine the situation! In a democratic spirit, we have launched a signature campaign among the refugees in the camp. Most of them signed the petition, which was sent to the relevant institutions. Meanwhile, the pressure they exert to intimidate people has worsened. A security guard went beyond his limits, cursing at a friend of ours, making threats, and we recorded this over the phone. We have distributed the videos and photos illustrating our situation with several associations. Officials came back, visited the camp and said they wanted to initiate joint projects with the refugees. Faced with this evolution towards a collective line of conduct, we met with the manager responsible for housing. The chief in charge of equipment held a meeting with the residents of the camp. Most of the people in the camp attended the meeting. A Swiss volunteer sent by a local association, "Trois Chênes Accueil", was not allowed by the camp managers to participate in this meeting to find solutions to the problems. (…)

—- As a woman, I lived in this camp with my daughter for ten months, it's far from the city and the camp is very old. I had a lot of problems. The window in my room was closed for 40 days because of the building's heating problems. There are hygiene problems, very few activities for children, lack of playground and gym, no washing machine, little cleaning in the kitchen, bathroom and toilet are used by a large number of people. The rooms and kitchen are full of flies and mosquitoes, and there are even rats in the kitchen. The situation I was in was depressing me. It was so hard for me and for my daughter. My child's arms and legs have always been sore from fly bites. I had to buy expensive fly creams for my child myself. We collected signatures, almost the whole camp signed. Some officials only came to talk about the problems after three months. It was an unsuccessful meeting, there were no changes. Our Nammou Initiative was created to expose and solve the problems of the people living in the camp, and to communicate with the immigrants on a daily basis. It is a spontaneous initiative open to all forms of cooperation. The raven is the symbol of our unity, it is the symbol of intelligence, it is a social and supportive creature.

SK–: It seems from your publications that the camp management (Hospice) is generally distracted, and ignores problems. The promises are not kept and there has sometimes been recourse to psychological harassment... What was your reaction to this situation?

—-: Of course, from the beginning, we collectively demanded our rights, within the framework of human rights. It was not the attitude they were used to. That's why they took it badly. In order not to see that there is a discriminatory, condescending, humiliating view of refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants, one must be blind or biased. Soon after, I fell victim to security-related attacks. There have been provocations. So I've been making music for a year. Security had never come to my room until I spoke to the chief and I said we were going to claim our rights. He told me not to make music at noon. One of our Afghan friends was unable to get an appointment with his assistant for almost a year. But with the security guard they made an appointment 2 times in 1 week and threatened him because he was filming. We will send you to Afghanistan, they said, and they wanted to intimidate us by saying our residence permit would be in danger. There were Afghan families who supported us. With their children, they sent them all to the lodge or to the house, in order to isolate the resistance. Of course we have responded by being more united, by using the power of art more, and by intensifying our demands. What have we done? The Nammou Initiative organized protest actions at local festivals and concerts. We started to move forward. We made plans. Our living conditions are transmitted to the public through all the artistic activities in which we participate. (…) We use the mechanisms of democracy. That's why we're going to continue. We can solve these problems with our own action. We will continue to work to find a solution.

S.K.: There are many cultural and political institutions of Turkish origin in Switzerland that are interested in human and immigrant rights. There are different groups. In your case, have you received the support you expected from them? What kind of support do you expect?

—-:In fact, although we have contacted many associations of Turkish origin, there has been no serious feedback. Unfortunately. Like some other European associations, they see us as young anarchists who are agitating and they don't understand. The Kurdish associations have a different view. According to the immigrants who have been here for several years, the conditions were worse when they arrived, and they accepted them. There are some who try to make sense and minimize the situation. Other refugee groups, IHDD, Pangea-collective and Rota Organisations are active and have been contacted. Although we don't feel it very concretely, we have done some work online and in social media, we hope that we will develop it further. Some Swiss associations in Geneva came and saw the situation. Three associations could not believe that it was happening in Geneva. We agreed on joint projects with them and made plans. We also understood that we should not expect much external support. We will solve the problem. We will solve it with our own power and on our own initiative. We do not have enough experience in the functioning of institutions and social bureaucratic processes. (…)

S.K–: You created the Nammou Initiative by meeting with sensitive people living in the camp. Can you explain the name Nammou and its symbol, the raven?

—-: The word "Nammou" means the house of the soul in Sanskrit, one of the oldest Indo-European languages. In Mesopotamian mythology, it means the goddess of the sea who gave birth to two great mountains and began life. People show their emotional and spiritual delicacy, natural intuition, and approach to urban life divided into interest groups. It is believed that she ascended to heaven because she lost her life and will one day come down to earth to awaken these abilities. While many mahdis come to save the world with an army of war and destruction, Nammou, on the contrary, yearns for a spiritual awakening. Nammou Initiative is composed mainly of children, youth, and women from the camp. We have organized several activities together. Some took photos and videos, some cooked, participated in the organization, some played instruments, another gave a speech... It is a "spontaneous" group where everyone participates voluntarily. We are sensitive people who are looking for solutions by contacting people in other camps in Geneva. The group is not only made up of people who live in the camp. We want to make projects with the students of the film department about the problems faced by refugees. We are also in contact with active employees of some local associations. In short, the refugees want to weave a progressive process by forming "spontaneous" groups of university students, artists and activists. We want to stimulate society's sense of empathy and affect its consciousness.

—-: As for our symbol, the raven: we have a young crow friend who has been visiting us frequently for the past five months, here. We then began to observe his life, the communication between the crows. The living conditions in the camp lend themselves very well to this comparison. We also watched documentaries, researched proverbs, and studied mythology. Crows are really interesting creatures. For example, when a baby crow falls, not only its mother, but all the crows around it rush to help it. They have a good visual memory, they are capable of collective defense and attacks against predators such as hawks. They are powerful creatures that can be as intelligent as a six-year-old. In addition to this, the crow is also marginalized; it is black! (In fact, if you look closely at a crow, there are purple, blue, and orange colors among its feathers: you can choose.) We saw the crow who came to our room as a refugee. We saw the social reflex of crows as an example for us: they all together protect the future of a baby who has fallen to the ground, taking into account its physical and spiritual needs. We said we could protect children from the trauma of refugee life. Did we do any harm by coming? From the children's point of view, they have not decided to come here themselves, but they are here and they will be able to make decisions in the future. What we can do is fight for them to acquire a culture of human life. Defending the rights of individuals, moral and cultural values, supporting the talents of children and inviting everyone to a freer, more united common future... The Nammou Initiative is part of this vision. It was created because there are mothers among us, and they have understood that. So our symbol is an activist crow. Crows and crows send cries to the sky in times of danger and gather together. We too will cry out, but it will be an aesthetic cry, fueled by the sensitive and healing voice of art. We want to evolve in a perspective of art therapy, ethno-therapy, trauma-therapy. Because we are the ones who are experiencing these traumas and we need them. The best solutions for this should also come from us.

S.K.: What roadmap do you intend to follow from now on?

—— : It will be a continuation of what we have tried to do so far: rhythm therapy with children and other cultural artistic activities, social activities related to women, associations on camp issues. We are going to disseminate them in order to develop solidarity. And on December 10, World Human Rights Day, we want to organize a festival. In addition to a short film that we have prepared, there will be videos of interviews, music, painting, poetry. We dream of an event where ethnic tastes and colours will also take place. Many arts will allow refugees to exhibit their works for a fairer and better life. We also have a roadmap and a dream to realize a modest organization. We want a multilingual broadcast in a European environment teeming with refugees who concern us. We look forward to meeting you on this occasion, thank you.

Artivism: This is a militant understanding of art, based on activism, aimed at bringing the public out of its inertia. The rebellious art of the Zapatistas, the community art of the muralists, the angry art of the feminists, the life as well as the festive art of collectives determined to re-enchant, etc. Against advertising and the privatization of public spaces, we are making an aesthetic resistance. Critical Art Ensemble, The Guerrilla Girls, Steven Cohen, Reclaim the Streets, Reverend Billy etc. and other currents are part of this framework. (Source: www.editionsalternatives.com) "The artivist (artist + activist) uses his artistic talents to fight injustice and oppression – by any means necessary, and uses it to fight. Artivist dedicates its commitment to freedom and justice with the pencil, the lens, the brush, the sound, the body and the imagination. The artivist knows that observation is a must. (Source: M.K. Asante's It's Bigger Excerpt from the book Than Hip Hop.) • Interview: Süleyman Kuş