Presentation of the German team in Bursa

The topic of integration in the German media


Honour killings
by Vanessa Seifert

Our first topic are so-called “honour killings“. This is an important topic in the German media with regard to immigrant families.

First of all I would like to explain in a few words what the meaning of honor killing is and what you should know about this subject. The word “honor killing“ describes the intentional homicide or murder of a mostly female member of a family to prevent a social lowering by breaking a gender-related rules of etiquette.

According to estimates of the world population report of the UNO at least 5,000 girls and women are yearly murdered worldwide because of " moral honour “. The justification of these murders are traditional codes of honor which fix certain rules of etiquette. The honor of a person or the family, a group or even the land is classified as an especially high and protection-worth norm which they want to protect and to defend.

In other words: A woman has broken traditional rules of behaviour. Often, her life-style is regarded as too Western, too liberal or too independent by male members of her family. So maybe she has had her own mind, has visited dance clubs on her own, has had German friends or even boy-friends and so on.

In the German press nearly every family drama which has happened in a Muslim family is called an honor killing. Why the press only speaks of honor killing when the culprit is a Turk or Kurd is not clear while reading the articles. When there is a report about such an honor killing, they don’t make a difference between Kurdish and Turkish families, either.
In the press they only speak of Muslims or Turkish families.

I would like to introduce here a rather untypical example of an honor killing.

Some day during the 25 years of marriage Recai became drug addicted. Because he was already without occupation, he went back to Turkey. But he came back to Munich, began drinking and terrorising his wife.

In March 2008 his wife obtained the right that he was forbidden to enter the flat of the family.
Recai moved in a man's hostel and planned his revenge from there.

On the 15th of July, 2008 he waited for his wife in the middle of Munich. She picked her young daughter up from school. First he kissed their daughter. After that, he hit Ayse with a bottle on her head. She broke down. But Recai did not desist from her. Instead he continued to hit her with the broken bottle on head and neck while she lay on the ground in her blood.

Two passers-by could pull him away and hold him on the ground. Recai shouted: “ Hopefully she is dead, hopefully I have hit the nerves.“ He was drunk, but he still knew what he was doing. Maybe he had drunk because he hoped for a milder punishment. Later he could be arrested without resistance by the police.

On the 15th of May, 2009 Recai was found guilty of attempted murder and dangerous physical injury by the district court of Munich. He was convicted to 12 years of prison and hospitalization in a drug clinic.

Fortunately the young woman was not killed, often such attacks end deadly. Nevertheless, it becomes clear, that there are typical motives. The woman defends herself against her brutal man, goes to a court and does not allow him to come home any more. The man feels injured in his honor and wants to revenge himself.


Turkish neo-fascist movements in the Federal Republic of Germany
by Cem Halil Yada

In Germany there are living millions of Turks at the end of 2009, they were relatives of the first emigrants which came to Germany as part of the great labour migration in 50ies. Radical political groups, neo fascist as well as islamist groups, have a lot of influence under the Turkish community in Germany. In this text, I am going to write something about the neo fascist movement. The ultra nationalist Turkish movement was founded around 1968 and the time after it as a response to the ultra left groups which were based on communism.

This movement was founded by the former army sergeant Alparslan Türkes and it is very racistic, enemies of them are Armenians, Americans who are called crusaders, Jewish People who are called Zionists, also Communism and especially the Kurdish People and the terroristic organisation PKK. The political party of the Turkish fascists is the MHP (Milliyet Hareket Partisi), which were elected as the strongest party in some provinces (for example Adana) in the last election campaign in 2007.

The first Grey Wolves, as they call themselves, were militias, which were trained in military camps in the Middle- and Eastern parts of Anatolia. (It is possible that this idea of training young people and indoctrinating them was inspired by the Hitlerjugend in Nazi Germany, in general it is possible to say that the MHP works in the same way as the NSDAP did it in Nazi Germany, for example the MHP leader Türkes said one time that Hitler was “a good man” and that he is an example for him).

The members of the Grey wolves are very brutal and know no mercy to their enemies, it is said that the organisation is responsible for thousands of deaths between 1968 and 2008- often they were tortured before death. The Turkish Secret Service thinks that the Grey Wolves are also working together with the Turkish organized crime. In the years after 1968 and also in the 70s the organisation fought a kind of civil war in Turkey against left organisations and parties, this conflict was also a reason for the military activity in 1980 under General Evren. This shows one fact: The Turkish Nationalists are maybe one of the biggest threats of Turkish Democracy and Freedom.

The Party searched new members and tried to expand to Europe, also to have better relations to the mafia and to sell drugs, this is one of their biggest ways of making money, so the leader Türkes ordered some of his followers to go to Germany and also to France, especially as Germany had been target of massive labour migration since 1955. Their profession was to infiltrate the Turkish communities. Today the Grey Wolves are very popular under Turkish young people, reason for that could be the crisis of identity of the young people, because they are neither real Turkish nor real German, they belong to both cultures and nations and a lot of them have problems with that fact.

In the German media, the Grey Wolves and other extreme right- wing parties are seen very critically, because of German history. The activities of these Turkish Nationalists are very different, they are organizing for example demonstrations against the Armenian genocide in 1915 or against the PKK, but also they are building football places for the young people. But they are also made responsible for a lot of different honour killings and for attacks on Kurdish people in Germany as well as on Communists.

It is also rumoured that some of the Grey Wolves belong to the Turkish Mafia and have got a lot of influence in the market of drug trafficking. The biggest problems they bring to Germany is that they are also partly responsible for the failure of the integration of the Turkish community in the German Society. So to sum up one could say that the Turkish nationalist movement is a threat for both nations, Germany and also Turkey.



“Aktion zusammen wachsen”
by Jale Yasan

Germany has got a large list of integration programs. One of the most important integration program is called “Aktion zusammen wachsen” (“Growing together”) which includes many different projects and initiatives.

It’s an education project in association with godparents. Committed citizens support children and teenagers of immigrant families by helping them to learn the German language, doing their homework or by advising and attending them on the way from school to occupation.

The program’s aims are e.g. to advance the integration of people with migration background and to invigorate, stabilize and to mobilize the civic commitment. There are also other aims like the invigoration of the existing projects and to start some new ones, or to support the social co-existence of migrants and ethnic Germans. Another very important aim is to stop discrimination and hostility against foreigners.

To realize all these things, the program has got a lot of things to do. The tasks are to provide attorneyships for migrants and of course to help with orientation and integration - especially for new migrants. Also to give advice about school and occupation and questions concerning further migration or return to their home countries. As well the support for organizations and the formation of some new ones.

Ernst-Reuter-Initiative
by Janina Babst

The Ernst-Reuter-Initiative was founded in Istanbul in 2006 by Frank Walter Steinmeier (then Foreign Secretary of Germany) and the Turkish Foreign Secretary at that time, Abdullah Gül. The aim of this initiative is the strengthening of the German-Turkish collaboration and the intensification of the intercultural dialogue of these two countries.
In the end of 2008, 16 projects had the symbol of the Ernst-Reuter-Initiative. These projects support the cooperation in art-culture, politics-media, economy and science.
One of these projects is called “Bundesmigrantinnen” - pictures of migration in public space. In this project, migrants are showing in art-style, what they are hoping and dreaming for. In workshops, the migrants talk about their experiences in the new country where they live and each oft them makes sketches about how they feel.
These sketches are developed into pictograms and are shown on advertisings and digital animation screens in the underground, on flyers or on bags. This project has staken place in the cities Berlin, Hamburg and Köln.


Integration in Seelze
by Markus Baumeister

7% of the 34.000 people, living in our town Seelze, are immigrants. But if you take into account immigrants with German nationality, especially ethnic German emigrants (e.g. from Russia), the rate is about 10%.

For this presentation, we read the local newspaper of Seelze, called “Leinezeitung” with special regard to articles about immigrants and integration projects. There were many reports about different activities and projects by the city of Seelze. These articles show that our city does a lot to improve the integration of immigrants.

The most important target of the integration work in Seelze is defined as follows: To create a good atmosphere by fighting against any hatred and hostility against immigrants.

Targets of integration in Seelze:
There are three ways in which the city of Seelze tries to reach these aims:
 personal support
 projects
 integration pilots

1.The social service does help persons in different situations individually. First of all, the immigrants make a “living-plan” together with the social workers, by taking into account the individual needs of every immigrant. Furthermore immigrants have the chance to ask for help whenever they have problems. The most important indicators for integration are education and language skills, immigrants who accept the German culture and even learn the language, have better chances to integrate themselves fast and to become independent of the state-facilities.

2.The integration is additionally promoted by special projects, supporting the approach of immigrants and Germans. In Seelze, this work is attended by a delegated woman for integration. From 2005 to 2010 she realized more than 7 projects together with the administration and immigrants. Moreover, especially children and teenagers are supported in their integration, for example by doing sports in a club, because in this age integration succeeds better.


3.Since 2009, two women support immigrated families in their every-day-life. These women work voluntarily and additionally to the staffs of the administration. Because of the short while they have been working, there are no solid results of their work yet.

Illustration of one project to integrate immigrants:
In 2008, seven immigrated boys and one German build a cargo rail station model, under instruction of the joinery and administration in Seelze. There were 3 Russian boys, 1 Turkish, 1 Albanian and 1 Polish immigrant in the project. This project had the following targets:

practical:
- learning technical skills
- focusing local workforce

educational:
- supporting solidarity
- working for the commonwealth
- supporting the understanding for each other
- establishing new social contacts

The result:
This model was issued during the 100th celebration of the cargo rail station. The boys were very proud of what they had achieved. The rail station is the biggest one in Northern Germany and one of the most important places in Seelze. Today the model is placed in the museum of local history in Seelze.The EU has supported this project financially.

Interviews by German students

From Bukarest to Berenbostel

Question: Could you please introduce yourself?
Answer: My name is Andrea, I am 32 years old and I come from Romania and I emigrated from Bukarest to Berenbostel, Germany, eight years ago.

Q: What were your reasons to emigrate? Why did you choose Germany?
A: I had personal reasons for my emigration. I got to know my husband, who comes from Germany. Eight years ago I followed him.

Q: What was your impression of Germany before you went there? Were there any personal imaginations or opinions of your family / your friends?
A: No, especially for Germany there were no imaginations. Certainly it was something special to live in a foreign country for such a long time. A few times people got jealous when they listened to my stories.

Q: How did the settling down proceed? Did you have major problems with the integration? How did you manage the unknown language?
A: I used to study German in Romania. But this basic language didn’t help me a lot. Because of my German husband my integration was immensely relieved. I was introduced to his friends and his family. I forced the people to speak with me in the English language in Germany the first time.
But my first impression of Germany was really negative. After six o’clock the streets used to be almost empty here in Berenbostel, so I asked my husband for the reason for that, because I was really confused. I lived in the capital of Romania before my emigration and I did not know anything like this. For me it was usual to go out with a friend into a cybercafé even at two o’ clock in the night.

Q: What was your entrance in the work life like?
A: After a few months I started with my first job as a waiter in a café, although I almost couldn’t speak any German. I took the menu and learned it by heart. But when costumers had any requests I understandably had my problems. Because of my husband, who works at the police station, I got my current job as an interpreter at the police station.

Q: What do you think are the differences between Germany and your mother country Romania?
A: The most differences are between the people here in Germany and the people in Romania. People in Romania are considerably friendlier and more open hearted. Also the people in Romania are more hospitable; regardless of whether he or she is poor or rich, immediately the guest is offered something. In my eyes the German people are cold, stingy and reluctant. For example when I could not sleep, I went to my friend in the middle of the night, threw stones at her window and did something with her in the city. Something like this would be inconceivable here in Germany, while this is natural in Romania.

Q: Please remember your first time here in Germany. Would you say that the integration was difficult because of the different traits of the people?
A: Yes, at the beginning it was really difficult. It took me almost two years to meet friends. In the first years I used to be homesick, especially at the holidays like Christmas. I thought a lot of my family and often I cried.

Q: Is there any longer a connection to your family and friends in your homeland? Do you keep in touch with Romanian clubs or associations here in Germany?
A: Still I keep up the contact to my family and friends in Romania. Also in Germany, I met some Romanian friends, but my best friend here in Germany is German and no, I don’t keep in touch with Romanian clubs.

Q: Looking back at the eight years you now live here in Germany, would you say that it was the right decision to immigrate to Germany?
A: I can only answer this question inaccurately. Maybe it would have been better to build up my life in Romania before immigrating to Germany.

Interview by Jan Helle
Translated by Andre Krahl



My interview with Ufuk Özer


Why does your family live in Germany?

My grandfather was a guest-worker in Germany. 1970 he came to Germany and was the whole time bus driver. Through a reunion of the family my father came to Germany too. I was born in Germany.

What is your impression of Germany?

In comparison to many other countries Germany is the best country in which you can live. But the contact among people is often very cold. It is a pity that many people are so cold to one another.

What was the best and what the worst experience here in Germany?

I have experienced many things here in Germany, but I have to think about it, which was good and what was bad… I will begin with my worst experience here in Germany. I was approx. 6 years old. One night a neighbour rang the doorbell. When my mother opened the peephole, the neighbour battered with a hammer against the window. He said that since we lived there it stank and we only produced trash. One evening father attacked this neighbour. Since that day there was only hatred and we couldn’t go out alone to play. It was so wicked that we had to move away. My best experience was in the time at elementary school. In elementary school was a teacher who helped me with my linguistic problems and explained much to me. She gave me much advice which often helped me. Altogehter I think I learned so many negative things.

Do you feel accepted in Germany?

In principle I would say no. I have learnt, that I was treated different than others in police controls. A policeman called me a “goddamn Döner”. I told him “I am a potato” (because I own a German identity card and the German citizenship.) My sister is medical secretary and meets, time and again, people who don’t acknowledge her as medical secretary or say, that they don’t want be examined by a Turk.

Were you ever discriminated or personally attacked because of your culture?

Oh yes, very often. Once, such things like in question three. I was often named as unprogressive and conservative because I am proud about the things I believe in.

Would you say that you are integrated into the German society?

Yes of course! I see no differences between me and a German boy. I play in a German football team, go often to a German bakery to buy my buns, visit a German speaking grammar school and live my life like a German child. And just because I celebrate Bayram instead of Christmas, because I drink tea instead of beer to celebrate something or because I go to the Turkish corner instead of discos I should be different? I follow the rules of the society but I don’t want to assimilate.

Is it possible for you to live according to your religion?

In my opinion my religion is tolerated in Germany. I think this is great.
I can exercise my religion freely. I mean, in the school I wait for the break and go to my car to pray. This is the best solution and I am not constricted.

Would you go back to Turkey or do you plan to? When, why?

No, I don’t. I was raised here. When I go back to Turkey today it would be very complicated for me to adapt to the rules there. In Turkey live different people. There the “German-Turk” is named “Alamanci”, this is very pejorative. In Turkey we are treated like foreigners. I can think about living in the Turkey, but not at the moment.

Where do you see yourself in 20 years?

I can’t say that to 100%, I have plans. The best is a job to support a family and be of use for society. I only can say that I have wishes and dreams…. But what will happen und what not, will be decided by God alone.

Please make a ranking with the words: Family, religion and culture.

On top of the list is for me my religion, in the second place is the family and then the culture. On the bottom of the list under all the other points is “fun” and all the things, that have to do with it. With this I mean the people who live from welfare money and at the cost of the normal people, those who only want to drink and party. Those people who ruin our reputation.

Interview by Vanessa Seifert



Interview with A.

My name is A. and I am the child of repatriates of German origin, who came back from Russia to Germany in 1990. I was born in Germany (Hanover) and I don’t talk Russian, although I understand a large part of the language. Both of my parents were born in Russia, but they speak nearly perfect German. My mother has a noticeable accent.
In the 1980s my parents were thinking about going to Germany because of the fact that the political and social situation was very difficult in Russia. Basic human rights were only partly given, e.g. the right to vote. Besides, my parents had to live with prejudices as Russian Germans. They were called traitors and “Nazis” and they were not allowed to speak German.
The fact that my grand-parents and other relatives had dared to leave their country of birth heartened my parents to go back to Germany, too. They needed much courage for a big step to something new. In 1990 they sold their farm and left for Germany. At this time my mother was pregnant with me in the eighth month and many of the relatives were afraid whether she could travel without any difficulties.
After arriving my parents and sister had to live in a house for asylum seekers for two years. They lived in different three-room apartments. My parents had to visit a language course to be able to talk to the Germans and my sister was in kindergarten. After the language course my father worked in the same job which he had in Russia. My mother does not have a professional education, so she is still a housewife. One of the problems my mother had was her accent so, for example, she didn’t go to parents’ evenings at our schools. Furthermore the teacher said that they had to speak German at home.
I try to help my mother often because she thinks that the Germans don’t like her because of her accent. I was afraid of prejudices so I never talked about my parents’ origin. Nowadays I am more open with this issue.
I don’t want to learn Russian because I feel like a German citizen. I am glad to live with two cultures - it’s an enrichment for me.

Translated by Sarina Steinborn and Ghadir Ballout



Interview with a third generation Turkish immigrant

Hello Burak, maybe you can tell us something about yourself before we start with the interview.

My name is Burak and I am 18 years old. I was born in Hanover and now I live in Seelze, with my mother, my father and my three younger siblings. My family owns several houses. At the moment I visit a vocational college.

Burak, the first question deals with your family. Where are your parents from and what was their job there?

My parents came from a small town near the city Izmir at the Aegean Sea. These people hadn’t a lot of money and they were working as farmers. Today you would say that they belong to the lower class.

When did your parents come to Germany and how old were they?

My maternal grandfather was a first-generation immigrant worker and he took my grandmother and my mother to Germany. She was two years old at that time. My father met my mother in Germany while visiting friends. He was 20 years old when he came to Germany. My siblings and I were born in Germany.

Why did your parents choose Germany as their homeland and how did they get here?

As I said before my family didn’t have a very comfortable life in Turkey. In Germany there was a great economic boom and they searched for workers. In the 1960s they hired immigrant workers from Turkey and my parents expected a better life. The papers were taken care of by the employer and they got an apartment provided.

Did they come alone or with their family?

First my grandfather came to Germany as an immigrant worker and he should return after five years. But the companies wanted to keep the immigrant workers for a longer time because they didn’t want to educate new workers constantly. So my family followed him.

What did the parents of your grandparents think about this?

The people from the Anatolian villages didn’t have much money and because of that they were very proud and they expected wealth from the homecoming money.

Where there any problems leaving Turkey?

No, because there where special treaties between Germany and Turkey.

How did your parents imagine Germany to be and how did they prepare to live here?

My grandparents didn’t know Germany very well. The people from Anatolia knew that the living conditions were much better and they thought that Germany was a very rich country. Before the immigration they didn’t prepare themselves because they meant to stay only temporarily. My grandparents learnt to speak German here. My parents also visited language classes, although my mother grew up in Germany.

Did they accept the qualifications of your parents?

My father studied in Turkey, but that wasn’t accepted.

What are your parents’ professions?

My father has worked for VSM for 18 years. My mother has a small bakery in our town.
Which citizenship do your parents own, Turkish or German?
My parents and I have both citizenships.

How did you grow up? Did your parents speak Turkish or German with you and your siblings?

I was in the swimming team and now I play football in a football club in Letter. On the one hand I have got a lot of Turkish friends but on the other hand I made German friends in school. During my childhood I often visited Turkey and because of that I met other friends from there.

What would your parents say if your girlfriend was German? What would happen if you married her? How do you think about it?

I don’t care which nationality my wife might have. Sure she also can be German. But honestly I have to say my parents wouldn’t take it that easy and they may wish to have a Turkish daughter- in- law.

What do and what don’t you like about Germany?

I was born here and I like German discipline and orderliness. However, Turkish casualness can be a nice change from that as well. I don’t like the fact that many Germans are prejudiced against Turks. I really hope this will change in the future.

Do you want to move to Turkey one day? Maybe as a pensioner?

That is very unlikely, having grown up here. But I wouln’t rule it out to 100 per cent as we have many relatives in Turkey to whom we hold up the contact. My grandparents go to Turkey every year for about two months, whereas I only go every other year.

Where do you want to be buried after you die?

We have a family grave in Turkey where my grandparents and parents want to be buried. So that counts for me as well.

Thanks for the interview.

Interview by Peter-Christian Betke, translated by Vanessa Reinhold and Philipp Werner 


Interview with Elisabeth Wilk

Hello Mrs Wilk. First of all I want to thank you for your agreement to give us an interview. Please tell us, at first, something about yourself!
Wilk: Hello. My name is Elisabeth Wilk. I’m German but originally I come from Poland, near Warsaw. I was born there on 15th September 1956.

When did you come to Germany?

Wilk: At the beginning of 1960 we left Poland and moved to Hamburg.

And why did you leave your native country? Were there any special reasons for leaving?

Wilk: Of course. To cut a long story short: we left because my father got a better place of employment. In addition to that, we had relatives in Germany. So it wasn’t very hard for my parents to leave our country, especially for my father as a native German it wasn’t a problem.

Your father was German? So why did you live in Poland before?

Wilk: As far as I know he left at that time because of employment, but don’t ask me about the details. I don’t know them precisely. That’s what he has been telling me all the years. There he got to know my mother and in 1949 they married. After the marriage they stayed in Poland first, where we, both of my brothers and sisters and I, were born. We also grew up in Poland till my father received a job proposition in Germany and that was the reason for going back to Germany.

Do you remember your first impressions when you came to Germany?

Wilk: I don’t remember a lot, because I was only three years old. But what I can bring back to mind is that I was really missing my friends. There were some kids from the neighborhood that I played with. My mother told me that at the beginning I was really petulant because I wanted to see my friends. So therefore I think my first impressions weren’t very good. But from my point of view now and from my situation today I definitely would say that it was a good decision to move to Germany.

Why do you think that your decision was good?

Wilk: I simply think that my brothers and sisters and I had better chances for our futures. And of course our financial situation was better than before because of my father’s job. Moreover we have got family in Germany and in Poland. So all in all I think that the decision to move to Germany was good.

Did you experience any problems as an immigrant?

Wilk: No, as far as I know I didn’t. Because of the fact that my father was German it wasn’t a problem for us to get a German passport. We also had no problem to move into our new apartment after members of our family that live in Germany had already prepared everything for us. And as far as I know from tales there were no complications with our immigration.

Did you miss Poland after you left, apart from the fact that you missed your friends?

Wilk: We children only missed Poland because of our friends. My father was very glad to be back in Germany. Of course there were some friends from Poland he would have been happy to hold the contact to. I think my mother was the one who was hurt the most. She had never been anywhere else than in Poland. But she never blamed anybody although she had to leave her family and had to start from the beginning. Later she found an employment as a shop assistant. From that point I think she neither didn’t want to go back.

Was it hard for you to find new friends and to integrate?

Wilk: No. For us children it was very simple. Especially for my little sister who was born here in 1961 it was no problem because she was already born in the ‘’German culture’’. My other brothers and sisters and I were also already speaking German because of the fact that we were educated bilingually. And that was another point where my mother was in the worst situation. She didn’t speak German very well, but after a short time she learned to speak German and also got familiar with the new ‘’culture’’.

Did you have problems with prejudices?

Wilk: I have never experienced anything like that. Maybe because some people don’t even know that I come from Poland because I speak better German than Polish. But I remember an incident with my sister. In the beginning she spoke a lot of Polish with my brother, so they were insulted by another girl. But that was not anything grave.

Do you live here more than a German or more than a Polish person?

Wilk: German! I see myself as a German. We even lived like Germans in Poland. I would never go back to Poland. Apart from some relatives, I have no connection to that country. My sisters see it in the same way and even my mother doesn’t want to go back.

Thanks for the interview.

Interview by Jasmina Tews
Translation by Gabriele Bubula


Interview with Erdem Savas

Which generation of your family emigrated to Germany and which were the reasons for their emigration?
Erdem: My grandfather and my grandmother emigrated in 1967 together with my father, who was born in Turkey in 1964. To begin with, my family lived in the city of Canakkale which is near the antique city of Troja. My grandparents have seven sisters and brothers. The main reason for their emigration was the unemployment in Turkey. In addition, my grandfather did not want to work in agriculture. As a result, they abandoned their domicile and came to Germany. Fortunately, my grandfather had a qualification from Turkey, which was accepted by the German government. As a simple guest worker, my grandfather worked for Continental, a company that produces rubber tyres. There, he had to melt the rubber. In general, this work was very difficult because of the stench, which was the reason why the foreign workers had to do this work. His qualification was very good; as a consequence he was able to work in higher positions later. Furthermore, he got a master degree in his job because he went to a master school. Accordingly, he was allowed to educate other workers in his business. After years of hard work, he went into retirement in 1995.
How did your parents’ and your journey through life continue in Germany?
Erdem: Well, my father ended school with the Certificate of Secondary Education and worked in many cities in different businesses. In the year 2000 he decided to stay in Hannover with his parents and the other family members and he began a job at VW. Fortunately, all family members are able to speak German. Only my mother and grandmother speak a lot of Turkish with me. I´d like to point out that my life was normal, as that of German people. I was born in Hanover on June 10th 1987. My parents and my older sister taught me German and therefore I was able to speak German with the other children in kindergarten. In particular, I learned Turkish from my grandmother and my mother. But I did not have to go to Koran school. After the basic education I went to junior high school. What is important is that I finished school as the only foreign person. I changed the school and went to gymnasium. I´d like to stress the point that I finished my secondary school education with the high GPA of 1.4! Now, I’m doing a “dual studies” education at VW: for three days in a week I go to the technical college in Hanover, on the other three days I work in my company as a technician. It is essential to say that I am very proud of my education because I am the first family member who finished school with a secondary school education. In the future, I am going to work in the foreign department of VW and visit a lot of countries all over the world.

So you are not the typical immigrant. Don’t you want to live like your family and have your own big family?
Erdem: First of all, I am not a typical family man and therefore I want to see the world and travel through all countries. In addition, I will create a plan for my future. I might marry in my future, too, but at the moment I have other preferences.

Does your family live like the Germans or do they have a traditional life?
Erdem: Basically, one can say that my family lives a modern, German life. Not only the German families live in a modern way, but also the Turkish families. I would like to add that my mother cooks German and Turkish food. Moreover, on Easter and on Christmas my whole family gets together like most German families. Nevertheless, we celebrate the Turkish public holidays.

Are you more a Turkish man or a German one?
Erdem: Well, I am more German than Turkish, but I feel good in both countries. This is due to the fact that I know both cultures very well, thus, I can use both advantages. To give an example, I am able to speak Turkish with my assistants. It is very helpful to explain something to them in their own language. When I was able to decide, I chose the German passport. This can be explained by saying that I feel at home in Germany. Apart from that, I have the right for work and live in Turkey. To be more accurate, I am allowed to have all rights, except the right to vote. In Germany, I always go to a Turkish hair dresser where I can practice my Turkish. It bothers nobody there, whereas I do not speak Turkish on the streets where it might bother people. What makes me Turkish is my temper and my stubbornness, but I have also German traits such as punctuality and diligence.

Has your family ever faced discrimination?
Erdem: Nobody in my family was received badly by the Germans. But al the members of my family have done a lot to adapt to German life since they came. My grandfather and father worked very hard and I am the first one to have a good starting point in life. I was brought up bilingually. And I was lucky not to look to Turkish, with my blue eyes. Many Turks still have a lot of problems at school because they don’t speak German well. This is due to the fact that they stick among themselves. They do not know where they belong. Generally, mistakes are made by both sides, Germans and Turks. A better looking after would give many a better perspective. Education is the only way, but you have to do something for it, too.

Will your parents ever go back to Turkey?
Erdem: My parents have always spent time in Turkey, so they will never lose the contact to that country. I don’t think they will ever leave Germany for good, having friends and family here and having built a house. But they might “commute” between the two countries in the future, spending the summers in Germany and the winters in Turkey. Which is what many German Turks do. It is also true that they prefer BMWs.

Interview by Saskia Sack
Translated by Nele Fischer and Svenja Struß


Interview with Natalja K.

For the subject "Integration" I had an interview with an immigrant called Natalja K. . She was born in Russia but today she lives in Germany. She and her family, her husband (Andrej K.), her son (Dieter H., birth name Dimitrij K.) and her daughter (Maria K.) emigrated from Russia to Germany in 1996. She reported something about the background, the integration and experiences which she and her family have made.
In the beginning of the interview, I asked her what were the motivation for Natalja and her family to emigrate. She told me that the main reason were their children and the future. She explained this statement with the fact that during this time the crime rate was very high in Russia and that they as parents had fears about their children. In addition, her son would have had to start the military duty in the red army. The main reason for the thoughts of emigration was the instable economic and political situation of the land. Based on this answer I asked her, why they chose Germany. The mother and the grandmother of Mr. K. already lived in Germany, so they chose Germany to reunite the family. Accordingly, I wanted to know, what the first impression was which Natalja and her family had about Germany.
Mrs. K. answered that she has to make adistinction because before they emigrated, she and her family had visited their mother and grandmother in Germany in 1994. She said that she and her family had liked it so much that they did not want to go back. The politics and economy in Germany were more stable and the circumstances were much better than in Russia. My next question was how the impression of Germany was after the emigration and whether it was still positive. She told me that the impression changed through the acute troubles like linguistic problems, no work and the increasing bureaucracy. Natalja K. said that it mas no more like in the vacation. To secure her own future and the future of the children was the only concern at that time.
I wanted to know how Natalja K. and her family were received here in Germany. She reported that there were different reactions. During the passing through the departments they met people which were very friendly to her and her family, because it was a normal situation to them. But there were also persons who showed antipathy and prejudices. After a linguistic test Mrs. K. was classified as a foreigner and according to this she got a Russian identity card.
My next question was whether she feels integrated or if there are still problems.
She answered that she feels integrated, but that there also problems: She still is considered as a Russian. Natalja and her husband recognized the prejudices and the social exclusion especially with their children. Their son changed his birthname into a German name because of problems in school, in everyday life and also because of the unsuccessful search for a traineeship. Mrs. K. said, that her family and especially their son recognize that this was the right decision, because with his German name he is treated differently and is respected by some people. Many people even don’t recognize that his parents are foreigners and he was born in Russia.
“A change of name?” I asked. Furthermore I wanted to know, whether anyone can do this or not. She answered that this is only possible in Lower Saxony at the moment. First you have to make an application for the change of the name at the civil registry office giving a written ground for the change. The base for the approval of the change of the name is that the applicant has a family member who is German citizen and is considered as repatriate. She also said, that this is a complex procedure and her son had to go often to the civil registry office and show the documents of the family and the documents of his grandmother, a copy of the identity card of his parents, the birth certificate and the documents from the late emigration to change his name from Dimitrij K. to Dieter H. This isn’t only a complex procedure, it is expensive too. You have to pay 500 Euros. Despite this complex and expensive procedure they also want to make it possible for their daughter. During the interview I asked Natalja K. whether there is still contact to Russia or if it is totally dismantled. Mrs. Natalja K. explained that the contact will still continue because her whole family still lives in Russia.
Her family still likes their home country after all these years. They watch Russian shows on TV and it is very important for them, to raise the children with two languages.
My last question was, if they plan to go back to Russia. She answered me that she doesn’t want to go back to Russia these days. She and her husband said that if the situation in Russia will continue to get better while the situation in Germany gets worse and Germany shows an instable economic and political situation they could think of going back to Russia for retirement.

Interview and translation by Claudia Fischer

Timea

Emotions

It was a lovely autumn day as I arrived at school. The morning was pleasant and I didn’t have a problem getting up so early.
I entered the classroom and four of my colleagues were anxious and nervous. I immediately understood their state of spirit as we were talking about Petruţa, Florina, Roxana and Paul. You could see the excitement on their faces as the big day was approaching.
I remembered than, the first school day after the summer holidays, when the whole class gathered and decided, together with our form teacher, who was going to go to Germany with the project “Immigrants, past and present”. Those were the four pupils selected to happily represent our country and city.
On that autumn day, the emotions were high. We tried to encourage our classmates, telling them that everything will be all right. We were sure that they would have a wonderful time in Germany with the other pupils and teachers. And so it was. All four of them got back from the trip filled with positive thoughts and feelings. We were all proud of them because they managed to proudly represent our College. The period 1st – 6th of December 2009 offered the participants involved in the project a rich and powerful experience. As our classmates expressed in their feedbacks, this trip was all worth, despite their anxiety and maybe even fear. They came back and shared with the rest of us all their positive energy and wonderful experiences from Germany. The satisfactions from working in the project and visiting the beautiful cities of Germany were big. We even saw photos of the participants working hard doing their job as good as possible.
Those days have gone by quickly but they will manage to stay unforgettable in their hearts.
Horvath Timea

Third Project Meeting in Germany

The third project meeting took place in Germany and was hosted by Georg - Büchner -Gymnasium Seelze.

Participants
The Romanian team (Mariana Hudrea, Simona Dicu and Flavia Costin plus their pupils) arrived on Monday 30 November followed by the remaining teams the next day;
Alasdair Watts and Colette Bourgeois from France, Huseyin Öztürk and Rafet Akay from Turkey, Monica Meneghelli and Patrizia Tommasi from Italy, Jola Prodanowska and Dorata Boryczko from Poland. Altogether 16 foreign pupils attended the project meeting from these five countries.

Accommodation
All staff were accommodated at the Hotel Waldersee in Hanover and pupils by host families. Teachers all expressed satisfaction regarding the choice of the hotel which offered excellent value for money. It should also be pointed out that staff had very positive feedback from pupils concerning host families.

Wednesday
The official meeting began on Wednesday 2 December. The head teacher Mr Gerold Muller greeted participants in the school auditorium with a short speech before a group of musicians offered us a rousing performance of some songs they had specially prepared for the occasion.
We were offered a brief tour of the GBG in groups and all were struck by the pleasant working atmosphere that pervades. Pupils remarked in particular how agreeable it was for works of art to be exhibited around the building.
We returned to the auditorium where the ‘serious business’ of the conference could begin. The Polish, Italian and Romanian groups presented films they had made interviewing immigrants. The two French pupils made a presentation, illustrated with photographs and a short video, of the ‘Jungle’ in Calais where hundreds of illegal immigrants, mainly from Afghanistan, are currently based with the expectation of somehow, or anyhow, crossing The English Channel to reach the UK. There followed a lively exchange of views particularly from those German pupils who have been studying this question in their English classes having watched the British film ‘It’s a Free World’ (on last year’s programme of activities) and the French film ‘Welcome’.
The first morning’s activities concluded with the opportunity for pupils and teachers alike to observe classes. Teachers noted the ease and the frequency with which the German pupils participated in class.
In the afternoon we were taken on a guided tour of Hanover and the day concluded with an evening meal for teachers at the “Ständige Vertretung”.

Thursday
Thursday was devoted to the question of German immigration. The political scientist Franziska Woellert from the prestigious ‘Berlin-Insitut für Bevölkerung und Entwicklung’ offered us some fascinating insights into the question illustrating her talk with graphs and statistics.
We were then introduced to three groups of immigrants (mainly parents) representing the different waves of immigration to Germany over the last thirty years; two Gastarbeiter (from Spain and Turkey), two ethnic migrants (Aussiedler from Kazakhstan and Romania) and two so-called economic migrants from Poland. Teachers and pupils were divided into mixed nationality groups and each group given the task of interviewing their immigrant. In the afternoon, groups had an hour to prepare the presentation they would make to the plenary session that followed. Pupils appreciated having the chance to express themselves in English at such length and share knowledge gained from ‘their’ immigrant with fellow participants.

Friday
Friday morning concerned the Turkish question. Wolfgang Mertens and Till Winkler started by showing us a film that they had made the previous summer starring our Turkish colleague Hüseyin Oztürk.
Hüseyin spent the first eleven years of his life in the town of Vlotho about 60 kms from Hanover before his parents decided to move back to Turkey. The film showed Hüseyin returning to the town of his childhood rediscovering places and people he hadn’t seen for over twenty years. The film was very moving and taught us much about how uprooting an experience emigration must be.
A round table discussion involving two parents of Turkish origin and chaired by Canan Topcu, a former pupil of GBG and now successful journalist working for the Frankfurter Rundschau, dealt with the Turkish question. The debate was animated and informative with many pupils, particularly those of Turkish origin, joining in to relate their experience of living in Germany.
In the afternoon pupils were given free time. Teachers in the meantime were shown an excellent film made by the Romanian team of the second meeting in Baia Mare.

Plans for Bursa
We then got down to the business of discussing plans for Bursa. The first item on the agenda was the dates. We agreed that participants would arrive on Tuesday 25 May and that the official programme would begin on Wednesday 26 May and conclude on Friday 28 May with participants leaving on Saturday 29 or Sunday 30 May.
We discussed activities for the meeting in Bursa. Hüseyin explained that he would build his programme around the theme of immigration while also offering teams an opportunity to discover Bursa and Istanbul. Between now and May our pupils will prepare presentations on news items related to the theme of immigration or emigration covered by the media in our respective countries. These will be shown in Bursa. It was also agreed that we would continue the tradition at each of our meetings of placing pupils in mixed nationality groups, this time with the task of producing posters promoting the underlying message of tolerance and anti-racism that has been prevalent throughout the two years of our project.

Saturday
The official programme concluded with a visit to the Museum of Emigration in Ballinstadt where pupils learnt the importance of Hamburg as a port from which millions of Germans, East Europeans and Scandinavians left Europe in search of a better life in the ‘New World’.
Teams returned home on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December.

A word of thanks
On behalf of all teams I wish to thank our German colleagues for producing such a rich and varied programme that none of us shall ever forget.

Alasdair Watts
Project Coordinator

Interviewing Immigrants

Project meeting- Germany

Interview with Irina Schaad

• 44 Years old
• born in Kazakhstan
• has been living in Germany now for 19 years

Historical Background of Germans in Russia
In the 18th century Catherine the Great needed more workers for her land in Russia. Catherine the Great had a German Background and the economic situation in Germany was not very good. Therefore many people from Germany moved to Russia to find jobs and to work on the fields.
For more than 100 years the immigrants from Germany lived and worked in Russia, but they still spoke German and lived in German communities where only Germans lived.

Beginning of World War II
When Hitler invaded Russia, during Stalin's dictatorship, Stalin was afraid that the Germans who lived in Russia would assist the German troops. That is why he decided to make the Germans leave Russia and move to Siberia and Kazakhstan as a punishment where they were forced to work in labor camps.
Stalin was very cruel and arrested and murdered many people in Russia, too, when they seemed to be against the government. During this time Irina Schaad's grandparents were killed.
In the new countries where they were forced to live now, Germans did not use the German language in public anymore, because they were hated and mocked because of Hitlers politics.
Irina Schaad was born in Kazakhstan and learned the German language from her grandmother, who still spoke German as did many other older people.
When Stalin finally died, people got the opportunity to start a life in freedom and decide on their own. Unfortunately they did not know how to behave and how to use their newly earned freedom.

Irina's Arrival in Germany
When Irina arrived in Germany she was 25 years old and already had a 3 months old child. Irina and her husband were both well qualified. Her husband couldn't find a job corresponding to his qualifications, so he worked in a factory. Today he is very happy in his job, but he has more problems speaking German. Irina herself worked for an insurance company and did a training course to do her new job. She stopped working for 3 years to have another baby and bring up her child. After 3 years of maternity leave she went back to her work. Now she is in charge of the new recruits and apprentices and has many responsibilities.
When she arrived in Germany she suffered a cultural shock, because many things were different. Her parents had brought her up in a very strict way, so she had always done what her parents told her to do. In Germany children are more free and talk back to their parents. In school they can eat and drink in the classroom. And young couples live together before getting married.

Interview by Roxana Serba, Saskia Sack, Audrey Miege, Christiane Staub, Ibrahim Ozdemir, Lukas Thum, Sascha Remus, kayleigh Kirwan
José Carrascosa

We have interviewed José Carrascosa who has been living in Germany for almost 50 years. José was born in Barcelona, Spain, in 1933. His mother died when he was a baby, he only had a father and a sister. He emigrated because it was a difficult period for Spain because of the civil war from 1936 to 1939 which ended in Franco's dictatorship. Spain was isolated from the rest of Europe. The most important reason to leave Spain was that his personal freedom was restricted because of corruption in Franco's regime. After he finished his military service, he decided to emigrate. He chose Germany because of the propaganda in Franco's dictatorship. Due to the connection between Franco and Hitler during the Second World War, the image of Germany in Spain was a positive one. José thought that Germany had a great landscape with beautiful blond girls. Before leaving he prepared himself by studying German on his own. He had to decide whether to buy a dictionary or a coat and he chose the dictionary. That shows his will to integrate into German society even before he arrived in Germany.
He came to Germany by hitch-hiking and reached Frankfurt in one night. In Germany he got some problems, for example to find a flat or a job. At first he lived in a hostel and shared his room with other immigrants. Then it was easy to find a job because workforces were needed and Spanish people were well liked. While doing several jobs and traveling through Germany he got good impressions of the country. Germany was different than he had imagined. People were always on the run and the lifestyle was faster than in Spain.
In 1958 he came to Hanover where he wanted to work as surveyor but he only got a job as builder. He started working at Volkswagen in Stöcken in 1959.
José lived together with German workers to improve his language skills. In 1961 he married a German teacher. The only problem was his father-in-law because he had prejudices against foreigners. He has two children: a daughter and a son. The daughter is a German citizen and speaks Spanish, and the son is a Spanish citizen and doesn't speak Spanish.
José still has a Spanish citizenship but loves both Germany and Spain. He is well integrated in German society and he sings in the church choir and he knows almost everyone in the village he is living in.

Interview by Boga Petruta, Christian Galert, Sarah Waldhauer, Christian Betke, Nils Düppers, Alice Arduini, Janina Babst, Halil Ibrahim Sunac
Renata Kurowska

Renata is an immigrant from Poland. She came here in April 1989. She used to live in Poznan, where she studied zoo technology. The reasons for her emigration were economical and personal. She traveled by car to Berlin before she moved to Hanover. At first she did many illegal jobs but she didn't want to work as a laborer so she started a course after which she had the opportunity to work in an old people's home, where she has been working for 12 years now. Her job is a pleasure for her because she always wanted to help other people. She is also very satisfied with the salary, which is very high in comparison with Poland.
When Renata first came to Germany she was very impressed by the beautiful landscape, nature and the infrastructure. She easily integrated into German society and always had a friendly relationship with other people. What she really liked was the anonymity in the big city and the way people behave. Despite of being away from her home country for many years she considers herself as Polish. As a result she refused to have a German passport. She visits Poland very often.


Piotr Kurowski

Piotr is Renata's brother. He has left Poland when he was 17 years old. It was in 1977. He has emigrated because of economical reasons. Piotr has finished his studies in Berlin. Then, he wanted to start a political career. At first, he used to work in a German Embassy. Because of his marriage with a student, he couldn't continue working as a politician. As a result of this decision he has started to work as a construction supervisor. He was doing that job for about 20 years. Now, when he is retired he has the opportunity to travel all around the world.
Piotr's first impressions when he came to Germany were very positive. Germans treated him in a very respectful way and as an equal part of their society. So he thinks that Polish people are well integrated and accepted due to the similar cultures of both countries.

All in all, we can say that both our guests are happy in Germany but they have never forgotten their Polish roots. For family reasons they are always looking forward to visiting their homeland but they are not planning to go back there for the rest of their lives.

Interview by Natalia Pawlik, Vanessa Seifert, Patryk Urbas, Markus Baumeister, Justine Laboret, Sarina Neumann, Claudia Fischer, Maria Frangou

Lotte Henz

During the Comenius project we interviewed five immigrants in mixed international groups in order to find out the specific experiences, motivation for immigration and their general views on integration.

Our group, consisting of Armin Bernsee (Germany), Paul Craciun (Romania), Florina Fanea (Romania), Jan Helle (Germany), Huseyin Karagoz (Turkey), Esther Klann (Germany), Saskia Pabst (Germany) and Adelina Steer (Germany), interviewed Mrs Lotte Henz, an ethnic German from Romania who emigrated to Germany after about ten generations of her family had lived in Romania.
She was born in 1961, is married and the mother of two children.
Mrs Lotte Henz emigrated in 1985 at the age of 24. Her motivation for emigration was family reunion and she moved to Hanover because her husband was offered a job in this area. Actually the decision to emigrate to Germany was made by her parents when she was four years old, but it took them 20 years to receive the permission.
Regarding her family history, her ancestors were settled among with a group of Catholic Germans in the South-West of Romania in order to protect the borders from the Ottoman Empire in 1783. There they formed a German community with their own churches and schools. Within this community, the German minority preserved their culture, language and traditions.
Mrs Henz said that they had no problems integrating into German society due to the facts that she spoke the language and that she was introduced by friends and relatives. That is why she considers herself special and privileged.
Thinking of her home country, she only gets nostalgic during Christmas time. Though she keeps in touch with Romanian friends and she is still interested in local politics. Mrs Henz only uses Romanian to communicate via e-mail with one Romanian friend. Also, she did not teach her children Romanian, because she did not consider it necessary. Her children only know some Romanian songs and proverbs. Still she cooks Romanian food from time to time.
She does not want to return to Romania as changes took place and there are no more family members left to visit.
Mrs. Lotte Henz pointed out that she was raised with the belief that the German minority in Romania was better than other minorities which lead her to form prejudices. But by coming to Germany her mentality changed by integrating into German society.

”I now look at the person and not at the place they come from.“
Mr. Sahin

Kemal Sahin was born in 1947 in Germany. His father came from Yugoslavia and his mother was from Germany. After their marriage they lived in Germany for a few years. He passed most of his childhood in Turkey. In 1964, when he was 17 years old, he went back to Germany. Three years later he had to go back to Turkey for military service. In 1971 he married a Turkish woman and they went back to Germany together to get work. At the beginning he had many different jobs, for example as a technician. He has got two children and three grandchildren. Today he is working for a mosque and there, he guides some tours, for example for school classes. This organization is called “Sura”.
When he came to Germany he had many language problems and so it was difficult for him to integrate.

Here are some aspects which he thinks are important for a great integration:
1. to respect the foreigners
2. to socialise with other people so prejudices can be banned
3. to be able to speak the language

In his eyes the integration starts nowadays. When he came to Germany there was no real integration for immigrants. He also thinks that equality is one of the most important preconditions for integration. In our interview he said that the integration has to start early, for example at school or kindergarten. He thinks that teachers have an important role for the children during their integration. His point of view is that religion plays a big role but it's not everything for a great integration. He expects that language is the base for communication. Everyone should be able to speak to the foreigners. He mentioned the danger of a “parallel society”. One reason for this is that the children only know their mother tongue because their families just watch the TV channels of their home countries.

Jale Yasan, Farina Meyfarth, Cem Yada, Tobias Leidig, Cecilia Moratelli, Ramazan Ozfidan, Berkay Tutuk, JasminaTews

Feedback- Paul

Nervousness. I think that is what I felt before leaving my house. Getting into the right mood was a hard job for me as it was my first time out of the country. Slowly excitement took over and all the tension dissipated as me and my family waited for the arrival of the whole group. Talking to my aunts and my mother was interesting as they showed another kind of nervousness, they were scared and excited at the same time. But as the group gathered the tension seemed to be erased. “Goodbye”, “Be careful” and “Take care” were the phrases used by our loved ones as we got into the van that took us to Cluj.
After a two hour drive to Cluj, we arrived at the hotel where we spent the night. It seemed that phones kept ringing and even now mothers, fathers and loved ones kept telling us to take care and have fun in Germany. It was only then when I realized that I was really going to another country. Thoughts kept coming and leaving my head. After the phone finally went to “sleep” it was my turn to sleep.
We woke up at 4 in the morning to get the plane. We got at the airport in Cluj at half past five with a smile on our faces. As time passed by we kept talking and changing impressions of the “adventure” that was about to unfold in front of us. Being the first time I travelled by plane, it was really exciting for me as I experienced the sensation of flying. I guess you can compare it to a car that drives at 800 kilometres per hour. During our flight we all kept talking, some of us tried to sleep and it seemed it was all in preparation of touching the German ground.
We arrived in Dortmund at about 8 o’clock, we took the bus to the train station where we took the train to Hannover, the city where we would discuss about immigration, emigration and integration. I guess at the train station was the place where we had a taste of German hospitality as a nice lady gave us some pointers regarding our trip to Hannover.
As time passed by when we travelled by train, we were getting more and more excited as we were preparing for the moment when we would meet our hosts. We arrived in Hannover at around 12 o’clock where we met them.
It was then when Armin greeted me with a great smile and I felt relaxed and almost like home. It seemed that somehow this new and exciting place for me slowly became like a familiar spot where I usually came to visit friends.
When we arrived at Armin’s home I was greeted by a man with a smile that was full of warmth and he introduced himself as Armin’s father. Because I was tired I went to sleep in order to be more active and more focused during the project reunion.
It was after my short nap when I really got to see how open Armin and his folks were. I was welcomed into the family as a friend and not as a stranger. So I have to thank the Bernsee family for making my stay in Germany an extremely pleasant one.
The first day of the meeting was another reason of excitement that took over us as we were the first group that presented their interviews. So after getting over the anxiety and butterflies that seemed to keep flying around in our stomach, we managed to deliver our introduction speech and the short film was seen by the participants. It was still on this day that the Polish and Italian group presented their work and we could all see that everyone worked hard for this conference. After that we were given a very nice tour of the school by out German hosts, consisting of Armin, Esther, Saskia and Sarah which we have to thank.
After the meal we had at school we left for a tour of Hannover where Mr. Albrecht and Mr. Winkler acted as our guides showing us Hannover’s beautiful architecture and history. After the tour we all went home and prepared for a nice evening out with everyone and some international bonding. WE all talked and exchanged opinions and impressions.
The second day a presentation of the situation of immigration and integration in Germany was presented to us. It was interesting as it presented statistics that some of us didn’t know about and as we tried to see how the integration problem could be solved we realized that we all had the same problem regarding integration of immigrants, the only thing that was different was the number.
It was on this day that we had a very interesting interview with Ms. Lotte Henz, an ethnic German (aussiedler) who lived in Romania until the age of 24 and after that she came to Germany. Hearing her story was really interesting as she told us that she had no problems integrating as she knew the language, but for other immigrants this couldn’t really apply. So she considered herself blessed and privileged for her smooth integration in the German society.
Again stage fright took over me as we had to present our interview to the participants again. But the international team that was made I think managed to deliver an interesting presentation of the interview.
On the third and last day of the conference we had to write a presentation of the interview, an activity that all the members enjoyed as everyone had their input and the product of this multicultural team was introducing himself with pride as a good result of a tiring day. After this group work the interview with a journalist and two parents took place regarding the integration of Turks in German society, the interview was multilingual and sometimes hard to follow but nevertheless interesting and informational.
On our last day in Hannover, we took a trip to the “BallinStadt” Museum of Immigration in Hamburg, where we could see the place where immigrants came into Germany and the emigrants left. The introduction was really informational and interesting as it was very thorough and presented by an immigrant. The museum was well organized presenting the evolution of the migration phenomenon in Hamburg. I found it all very interesting as it was new for me and it got me captivated. After a short visit in Hamburg we had to go back to Hannover as we had to leave for Dortmund and after that to Romania. We swiftly took off to catch the train and we were bound to Dortmund. I think it was then when homesickness really took over and we really felt tired for the first time in the last week.
The next day when we arrived in Cluj, the phones started ringing again.
Overall the conference was a success and we all had to learn new and interesting things regarding the migration phenomenon in Germany, but we still have to start accepting all persons that immigrate to our country as we are all human beings that feel and breathe. We all have the same problems, but the difference is that they are on another level.
I have to thank Armin’s family for showing me kindness and accepting me into their home for a whole week, the Georg-Büchner-Gymnasium in Seelze for hosting the conference, the participants for taking a step towards integration, even if it is only a small one,. And last but not least to my form teacher for giving me the chance to participate in this reunion and the teachers that acted as our guardians in this trip.
Paul-Cristian Craciun
Romania, Maramures, Baia Mare
“Mihai Eminescu” National College

Feedabacks - Project Reunion in Germany

I consider myself a very lucky student because I was offered the chance to go to Germany for a week. I am part of the Romanian team and I was very proud to represent my country. First I want to congratulate everyone involved, especially those who have organized this project reunion.
For me the whole experience, from beginning to end was a new one and unique.
Firstly, I had never travelled by plane, it was the first time and I was a little scared. But I realized that is not as scary as I thought, on the contrary it is very comfortable and pleasant.
Of course to get to Hanover we had to travel by bus to the train station in Dortmund and then by train. It was a long and tiring trip but worth the full effort.
I was accommodated by Sarah Waldhauer and I can say I felt like at home. Her parents are also special people and made me a great pleasure to be part of their family for a week.
The first days I visited Hanover and we went shopping and then we visited the school.
Each team presented the film with the interviews. All teams were very good and the presentations as well.
The activity that I liked most was that when we formed teams and got the interview and we presented the results. I was in the team who interviewed José Carrascosa. It was interesting to listen to his life story because I think it could represent, for all of us, an example of strength. He always wanted to be accepted in the German community and he always tried to improve his skills.
The interviews we had taken in our school had also been were very interesting. We found out about the difficulties the persons who leave their native country are being faced with.
I also liked the Hanover tour very much because we visited the most important parts of the city. Hanover is a wonderful place. Especially on the eve of winter holidays it is a very colourful city. In the Christmas market we could feel the magic and joy of the Christmas holidays.
Wednesday I had a special evening, which I will never forget. I was with Sarah’s parents at a Greek restaurant and I felt great and I thank them for those moments which they offered me.

Last but not least, we enjoyed very much visiting Hamburg and the Museum of Immigration. I liked it very much, because it reproduces very well the conditions in which immigrants lived and also what surprised me was that I could listen to each story.
In conclusion the project reunion in Germany was an experience I will never forget.
I thank once again Sarah's family and my form teacher for her trust in me and for this opportunity.

Petruta Boga

Romania