To mark International Human Rights Day, we reflect on the increasing erosion of fundamental rights, worldwide, but certainly also in Europe and Belgium.

The dehumanisation of refugees is gathering pace under the Belgian government’s ‘strictest asylum policy ever’. The refusal to provide accommodation for single men seeking international protection, despite repeated court rulings, is a flagrant violation of human rights. This deliberately engineered accommodation crisis is not an isolated case, but one of many areas in which inequality is being organised.

In this edition of Grenzeloos, Spreken is Goud, 11.11.11, Broederlijk Delen, Oxfam and MO*Magazine invite you to reflect on the intersection of inequalities in our society and the growing distinction between people who ‘deserve’ rights and those whose rights are being undermined.

What does (international) solidarity mean in a context of neoliberal austerity? The dismantling of social provisions and public services is leading to increasing scarcity and impoverishment, in which migration is demonised and development cooperation is shrinking: ‘Surely we can’t take in or help everyone?’ An existence worthy of human dignity is being made conditional.

This scarcity, however, is not a natural phenomenon, but a consequence of the current global economy, in which capital is becoming increasingly concentrated in the hands of a small, extremely powerful elite. Since 2020, against a backdrop of economic and ecological crisis, the wealth of billionaires worldwide has risen by 81 per cent.

Borders do not apply to capital, companies, goods and raw materials in the same way as they do to people. Borders are therefore not natural phenomena either, but political choices, shaped by a history of colonialism and economic inequality.

How does the erosion of human rights and the rule of law relate to growing economic inequality? How do we move towards resistance and solidarity in response to an increasing ‘us-versus-them’ mentality?

On 16 December, journalist Tine Danckaers will be in conversation with Albina Fetahaj, author of Grenskolonialisme; Jihad Van Puymbroeck, communications strategist specialising in antiracism and inclusion; and Sarah Van Acker, policy expert on tax justice at Oxfam.

With her socially critical poetry spoken word artist Sakina El Kaddouri calls for a collective struggle that recognises difference.

This programme is an initiative of ‘Grenzeloos’, a collaboration between 11.11.11, Oxfam, Broederlijk Delen, MO*Magazine and Spreken Is Goud by De Roma. Under the banner of ‘Grenzeloos’, these partners jointly organise activities focusing on international solidarity and justice.