SKIN-Rotterdam represents the
interest of migrant churches in the
city of Rotterdam
Update SKIN-Rotterdam
SKIN-Newsletter
S a men Kerk in Nederla nd
Spring 2011
Questions about illegality?
The Dutch laws and rules regarding the rights and obligations
Criminalising Illegality – Letter of
SKIN-Rotterdam to political parties
sent February 2011
of strangers are complicated, especially if you don’t understand
• On May 19th a broad, municipal conference on the housing
problems of many churches and religious groups is organised
The first three months of 2011 has already passed, and the
in the Burgerzaal of the Stadhuis. This issue is one of the most
year has started successfully for SKIN-Rotterdam! Our first
important issues churches have to cope with: many struggle
important meeting took place on January 21st, when the
­
to find appropriate housing for their Sunday services and other
research report ­titled “Blessings Under Pressure”, written by
meetings during the week. The Working Group on Housing
Barbara ­Gwanmesia and commissioned by SKIN-Rotterdam,
Problems of the Platform L&R, in which SKIN-Rotterdam is
was presented to alderwoman Korrie Louwes of Participation,
participating, is organising this large conference, during which
­Innovation and Higher Education, in the Norwegian church. This
representatives of the Municipal Government (aldermen
report investigates how international or migrant churches in
Karakus and Louwes, and municipal services like OBR,
Rotterdam function: on the basis of 10 case studies it becomes
DS+V and JOS), the Maas­koepel (the regional federation of
clear what these churches do and how they manage to survive.
Rotterdam ­housing ­corporations), and various experts on city
Additionally, the significance of the churches for their members
planning and the c­ onversion of church buildings, will join forces
the Dutch language well. For this reason, it is good to know for
“As a foundation concerned about the interests of international
is investigated by 2 interviews with individual members. These
to tackle these issues ­together. SKIN-Rotterdam calls upon all
members and leaders of international and migrant churches that
and migrant churches in the city of Rotterdam, we want to voice
findings lead to several recommendations towards both city
churches to join our forces on this issue, number one of the
in Rotterdam there is a place where you can get free, easy and
our great concerns about the current plans of the national
council and SKIN-Rotterdam, welfare organisations and society.
wishes of many churches, and let our voice be heard powerfully
good advice on any daily problems and questions people can
government to make illegality a criminal offence. The city of Rot-
The report and an account of the afternoon can be found on our
during this day!
encounter regarding residence permits and illegality.
terdam has approximately 20.000 undocumented inhabitants.
website www.skinrotterdam.nl (see Publicaties and Nieuws).
For more information and registration please contact Madelon
Questions like:
We urgently call on you to take a stand against these plans.
• How can you apply for a residence permit and how much
Several reasons can be mentioned why making illegality
Besides this well visited meeting, SKIN organised a workshop
does that cost?
a criminal offence is an unwise step in the wrong direction.
on Faith&Finance in the Scots International Church Rotterdam
• Can undocumented people without health insurance visit a
Firstly, criminalising illegality will cause the undocumented
­
(SICR) on March 12th, during which meeting those present
place from 14:00 to 17:00 in ‘het Zout der Aarde’, Krabben­
doctor, and what to do with a hospital bill?
people to go even further under cover, meaning they will
received a variety of information on financial management of
dijkestraat 255 in Rotterdam-South. All Rotterdam pastors are
• Can you get married when you are undocumented, and what
become ­unreachable for the government and official bodies,
churches, of obligations towards the tax man, and possibilities
warmly invited to attend this event! Theme of the day is ­‘Beauty’,
do you have to do when a child is born?
who will have no idea what is going on in these groups. This is
for fundraising. Furthermore in January the Debt Help Buddy
inspired by Romans 10:15: ‘And how shall they preach, except
• Are undocumented children allowed to go to school and
undesirable for p
­ublic health issues and vulnerable groups
project started, in which church volunteers receive a
they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them
(info@skinrotterdam.nl / 06 81691670).
• On May 21st the annual Pastor Appreciation Day will take
receive education?
among the immigrants (children, ill people) will seriously
professional three-day training on debt help (with certificate),
that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good
• What can a lawyer do for you, do you always have to pay for
suffer. These plans can therefore cause violations of the most
and a
­fterwards can start advising someone with (potential)
things!’ (KJ)
his/her services, and can a free lawyer be a good lawyer?
basic human rights as the right of education, social security and
financial problems. Because of the great amount of interest, two
• Can you work? Can you receive state benefits? What ­happens
human dignity. Secondly these plans will stimulate criminality
or three courses will start in April.
when you are arrested by the police?
by both those trying to survive and those taking advantage and
During this afternoon, SKIN-Rotterdam offers all Rotterdam
­pastor an inspiring event as a sign of appreciation for all the
good work they are doing for our society all year long! You are
­exploiting their vulnerable position, and will further polarise the
Finally, SKIN-Rotterdam organised two public seminars on
For answers to all these questions, you can safely visit the free
relationship between different sections of our population by
Saturday March 19th, the first on the possibility for pastors to
consultation hours of the Rotterdam Undocumented Migrants
making immigration a purely negative thing. Thirdly, the plans
visit church members in prison (prison ministry), the second on
will consist of a combination of lectures and performances
Support Foundation (Rotterdams Ongedocumenteerden Steun-
will cost our society much more money while it does not solve
the current developments regarding the plans of the national
(music, dance etc.), and will be published on our website
punt, ROS), without prior appointment: Monday and Thursday
the real bottleneck of our system, which is the question how
­politicians to make illegality a criminal offense – a ­development
www.skinrotterdam.nl
info@skinrotterdam.nl so we can organise the catering.
from 14.00 to 16.00 uur on this address: Rechthuislaan 52 (at
to send some people back to their home country. Detention in
which highly concerns SKIN-Rotterdam (see also the ­
letter
metro Rijnhaven). See www.stichtingros.nl. Information from
prison is much more expensive than detention in a detention
published in this newsletter). The same afternoon, SKIN-­
the ROS can also be obtained by phone through their phone
center, and the administrative load caused by extra legal
Rotterdam’s ­annual General Members’ Meeting was held, in
numbers 06-22026782 (Theo) or 06-25383472 (Connie).
procedures will increase hugely. Fourthly, the ­
government’s
which churches who are members of SKIN-Rotterdam could
plans contain the plan to deny people who have lived in the
voice their view on the work of our foundation.
Netherlands without a residence permit and would therefore
So, what is on the agenda the coming three months? As you can
be ‘criminals’, a residence permit on that ground, even though
see in the Agenda: enough! Christian Rotterdam is alive and
there may be very good facts to justify his/her ­application for a
kicking. A couple of highlights are:
warmly invited to attend together with your partner. The ­program
in
April.
Please
register
through
We hope & expect to welcome you on one of these meetings!
permit. This denies people the chance to get a residence permit
for which they might well have good reasons.
• On April 15th another research report will be presented to the
We urge you to seriously consider these arguments, in the view
alderman. This research has been done by FACIT, a foundation
of the livability of our city and society.”
working as a knowledge center on health care, living, welfare
and education, and describes and calculates the social value of
On behalf of the board of SKIN-Rotterdam,
Pastor Nana Opuku, chairman
Join the protest on:
www.geenstrafbaarstelling.nl
religious organisations in Rotterdam. Compared to “Blessings
Under Pressure”, on migrant Christians, this research is much
broader. The event will take place in the Swedish church (Parklaan 5) from 15:00 to 17:30.
Presentation of research report on January 11th 2011
Theo Visser introduces himself…
“How can in a country like the Netherlands people be reached
with the liberating news of Jezus? The soil seems so hard
sometimes. The people are much less open than in many other
countries. Is it possible that migrant have possibilities that
others don’t have? Would it be possible that God wants to use
them to bring blessings to this spiritually closed flat country?
At Rotterdam United we believe this to be certain. As inter­
denominational and intercultural forum for the growth of Gods
Kingdom in Rotterdam we are convinced that if churches join
forces, bridges can be build across cultures, and much more
will become possible. This way, the following plan arose. Every
Agenda
April 11th The EO (Evangelical Broadcasting) organises
a seminar with the theme “Migrant Churches, a gift for
the city, a challenge for the church”. With contributions of
­Andries Knevel, Lene Nissan (Iraq), Verry Patty (Molukker
in the Netherlands), Massoud Mohammad Amini (Iran),
Rhoinde Mijnals-Doth (Surinam), Moses Alagbe ­(Nigeria),
Rose Sarwin (Pakistan), Barbara Tah G
­wanmesia
­(Kameroun) en Jorge Castillo Guerra (Panama). Venue:
Oude Amersfoortseweg 79, 1213 AC Hilversum, time:
17:30 - 21:15. Please register through doordewereld@
eo.nl or 035-6474303.
Kerk & Stichting Verzekerd!!
stichting. Alle soorten verzekeringen, algemeen en specifiek,
Op 15 maart is de nieuwste uitgave van EZA Verzekeringen
Als laatste komt het verzekeren van evenementen aan de orde.
gepresenteerd: Kerk & Stichting Verzekerd! Deze brochure
Het is voor kerken, stichtingen en hun medewerkers belangrijk
is gratis te bestellen bij EZA Verzekeringen (Hilco van Beek,
om goed geïnformeerd en goed verzekerd te zijn, omdat ook in
06-41130635).
Nederland steeds meer een claimcultuur ontstaat.
die kerken, stichtingen en hun medewerkers kunnen sluiten.
Naast Kerk & Stichting Verzekerd! verschijnt tegelijkertijd ook
month on Sunday evening we want to come together on behalf of
April 14th Manifestation Centraal Inburgeringsloket
EZA (Evangelische Zendings Alliantie) Verzekeringen is
een herdruk van het vorig jaar verschenen boekje Zending
and in cooperation with the churches in Rotterdam, focussing on
Schiekade. If the plans of the current government will
gevestigd in Terschuur en is sterk betrokken bij zending en
Verzekerd!, dat gaat over het verzekeren van zendings- en
the outreach to people who do not know Jezus yet. The Surinam
proceed, from 2012 onwards, the person who wants
evangelisatie. EZA Verzekeringen heeft ruim 35 jaar ervaring
ontwikkelingswerkers. Ook dit boekje is gratis te bestellen bij
pastor Orlando Bottenbleij will lead these gatherings. Our aim
to f­
ollow an inburgerings-course will be charged a
in het adviseren van verzekeringen en inmiddels heeft EZA
EZA Verzekeringen.
is, that Christians can bring their non-Christian friends to these
considerable amount of money, something that will ­further
Verzekeringen ruim 10.000 verzekerden mogen verwelkomen.
gatherings, so Rotterdam United can tell them the good news of
complicate the situation of people who have difficulty
In de afgelopen 20 jaar heeft EZA Verzekeringen ruim
Jezus in a way that connects to our culture. At the same time we
­finding a job because of language barriers. Therefore, it
€ 500.000,- gedoneerd aan de zending! Dat is verzekeren met
would love to see a great diversity of cultures. For this reason,
is highly recommended that anybody who wants to follow
een missie!
we want the cultural diversity of Rotterdam to be reflected in our
this course, does so as soon as possible. Please could
gatherings. What is so special about this is the fact that we have
you spread this information to the people concerned?
Het boekje Kerk & Stichting Verzekerd! behandelt alles wat
asked all Rotterdam pastors as far as possible to be involved
On April 14th, registration for the free course is open.
een kerk of stichting moet weten over verzekeringen. De
Stichting Gave has developed a brochure for people working
uiteenlopende onderwerpen in Kerk & Stichting Verzekerd!
with refugees, entitled ‘In contact met uitgeprocedeerde en
worden
en
dakloze asielzoekers’. This brochure offers brief information on
illustraties beschreven: de kerk of stichting als werkgever en de
the asylum procedure and guidelines when and how to support
personele risico’s, aansprakelijkheid, arbeidsvoorwaarden en
the asylum seeker.
verzekeringen die daarbij horen. De verschillende vormen van
The brochure offers a clear survey of the various steps that
dienstverband die bestaan voor een kerkelijk werker, predikant/
can be taken whilst in procedure, and the help that can be
voorganger, geestelijk werker/evangelist of medewerker van een
offered to an asylum seeker by Christians or churches. Though
in this project. In October 2010 we met on the Euromast in the
full denomatinational breadth, inviting as many migrant pastors
as possible. Almost unanimously these churches of Rotterdam
have support our plans! A broad Advisory Board has been
assembled, with the pastors Dick van Steenis (Kom en Zie),
Daniel Renger (Europoort), Piet de Jong (Pelgrimvaderskerk)
and Jos Slager (Pelgrimskerk) supporting Rotterdam United.
We are still looking for a migrant pastor.
It is encouraging to see that we do not want to confine
April 20th to 23rd European Congress for Christ
­(EUROCON), organised by the RCCG (Redeemed
­Christian Church of God). Venue: De Uithof Sports ­Center.
Jaap Edenweg 10, 2544 NL in The Hague. Theme:
­‘Restoration 2011’, headed by Pastor E.A. Adeboye,
­identified as one of the 50 most influential people in the
world by “Newsweek Magazine” in year 2008. For the
­program see www.rccgeurocon.org.
helder
en
met
aansprekende
voorbeelden
ourselves to our own churches and be afraid that others are
May 19th Conference on Church building problems, see
stealing our sheep. It is important to realise that if we want the
For Rent: Church Building in Hoogvliet
‘Update SKIN-Rotterdam’. Venue: Burgerzaal Stadhuis in
world to ­believe that the Father sent his Son, we must be one in
Centrally positioned in Hoogvliet with spacious church hall
Rotterdam , time: 10:00-17:00.
and extra rooms for youth work.
them (Joh. 17:21).
At the same time we want to strive for unity amongst many
­different types of churches in Rotterdam. Every three months
all pastors are invited for a lunch in the Pelgrimvaderskerk.
­Together we search for possibilities to pray together in every part
of the city. Why couldn’t we organise a praise-event together?
May 21st Pastor Appreciation Day SKIN-Rotterdam, 14:0017:00. Venue: het Zout der Aarde, ­Krabbendijkestraat
255, 3086 LR in Rotterdam. Theme: ‘Beauty’, a
­ ccording
to R
­ omans 10:15.
Good kitchen and foyer;
Good accessibility for public transport.
Enough parking place and free parking.
The rooms are the following:
• Large hall (maximum 350 persons);
May 28th The annual conference of PECWA (Pan
• Multifunctional room (maximum 50 persons);
• Small informal room (maximum 10 persons);
New brochure Stichting Gave:
supporting asylum seekers in or after
procedure
the brochure mainly addresses autochtone Christians, the
information is very useful as general practical introduction to the
topic. Also, it is realistic and shows where the limits of help on an
individual basis lie. The reader is advised to pray together and
ask God for advice and guidance on His will with the person,
but is also offered a survey of various organisations in the
Netherlands who can help, and information on the rights and
duties of an asylum seeker.
The brochure costs €2,50, when buying over 20 pieces €1,70.
It can be ordered through Gave
(info@gave.nl/0341-460328).
­European Christian Women Alliance): WOMAN OF What is our request for you? We really want to build towards
­ROYALTY – QUEEN FOR GOD CONFERENCE 2011
unity as churches in Rotterdam. We urgently desire more people
Enough sanitary facilities;
– ROTTERDAM. Venue: Boergoensevliet 18, 3082 KT
to experience the love of Jezus. We want the Kingdom of God to
Availability: as of direct;
­Rotterdam at 13.00. Info 06 – 41544419.
entirely or partially;
Colofon
Structural or incidental;
Newsletter SKIN-Rotterdam, year 2, spring edition. Our
In weekends and during the week;
thanks go to dhr. Connie v/d Broek, dhr. Theo Visser, EZA
Fee: to be determined
Verzekeringen, Stichting Gave and Prevest,and all other
Prevest
grow prosperously in our beautiful city. We want new churches
to be planted. And for this we need each other. We cannot and
do not want to do this work without you!
If you want to join us please contact me: t.visser@icpnetwork.nl.
June 11th WUGH Ministries will have a concert, more
­information will follow! Venue: Walraven van Halstraat 2,
3333 BZ, Zwijndrecht
people and organisations mentioned in this newsletter.
Also we would highly appreciate if you can invite people in your
June 25th Night of Churches 2011! More than 50 ­churches
churches to invite their unbelieving friends from any kind of culture
Contact:
in Rotterdam will open their doors for the city this night!
to our gatherings. For more information please see www.ru4.nl.
info@prevest.nl
is: SKIN-Rotterdam, Hang 7, 3011GG in Rotterdam.
From 18:00 to 24:00 everybody can visit these churches
Rotterdam United, because we believe together in peace for the
G. Vonk Telephone
for a variety of programs. See www.nachtderkerken.nl for
city of Rotterdam! Let’s serve each other in the Spirit of Christ!”
R. Hilkmann 06-81426892
more information
06-81434604
Do you have news for the next edition? Our address
number:
06
81691670,
e-mail:
skinrotterdam.nl, website: www.skinrotterdam.nl.
info@