Arts 2019, 8, 14 8 of 16 even listening to the songs, just because the musicians are refugees. We would like our other projects to generate the same interest.37 2.3. Musicians on Tour: Work, an Obstacle to Fair Participation? While all the musicians in the band eventually obtained a legal status in Belgium,38 many have since been affiliated to the CPAS39 and face enormous difficulties in getting paid. The musician’s work irregularity does not allow the CPAS to establish a protocol. Every month, problems concerning contracts, postpone the reception of money and cause many difficulties. The CPAS system also sets a maximum earnings ceiling: above a given amount, the musicians’ wage is deducted from their monthly allowance.40 A feeling of uselessness to work may be felt, and even more, sometimes a musician who spends money for his transport or the babysitter cannot receive additional financial compensation, and must therefore indirectly “pay” to work.41 Things are not easier for the few musicians who decide to enter the labor market by accepting non-artistic work: fixed working hours make it difficult to spend several days abroad. “The difficulty of their situation is one of the things that does not change. Even with so many concerts [ . . . ] One of the musicians had managed to leave the CPAS and was trying to make a living from classes and concerts, but after two years he gave up, it was too hard,” says Lynn Dewitte.42 However, some have been able to highlight their involvement in music as a positive point to advocate their case with the administration, as Tammam Ramadan explains: When the CPAS employees asked me to find a job, they thought music was my hobby, and proposed me to work as a vegetable cutter in a restaurant. Showing them my contracts helped me to defend my artistic project.43 Two particular barriers to a professional career were mentioned.44 On the one hand, travelling outside the Schengen area is difficult for people with the status of refugee45 . Although this situation has not yet occurred, it is a potential problem.46 On the other hand, the family situation, and the events in their country of origin disrupts the musicians a lot, even if they do not talk about it at work. In these conditions they find it difficult to devote themselves totally to their artistic production. Yet, the ‘ūd player Tristan Driessens, notes that music can sometimes ease injuries: Sometimes, there are musicians who carry on their shoulders very heavy bereavements [ . . . ] Being able to express oneself in Europe through one’s instrument, one’s art, makes it much lighter. 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 Interview with Peter Van Rompaey, Brussels, 30 August 2018 [our translation]. When they arrive in Belgium, asylum seekers must submit a file to the CGRS (Office of the commissioner general for refugees and stateless persons). In the time period preceding the granting or not of refugee status, asylum seekers are in a precarious legal status, legally not allowed to work in Belgium. CPAS (Centre public d’action sociale [Public social action center]): in Belgium, a public institution that supplies a number of social services including a monthly allowance for those who do not have a job or access to unemployment benefit. These ceilings vary according to the allowance received and the CPAS to which they are affiliated. The application of these laws differs from one CPAS to another, and even within the same CPAS, a general lack of clarity surrounds the recipients’ rights. As on this FAQ from Brussels City CPAS website: “Do I still have the right to earn money if I receive the living wage? It depends on the case: it is imperative to inform your assistant of any amount of money received”. The assistant in question is available on a permanent basis one hour a week, during which the phone line is saturated with calls. Source: “Some frequently asked questions”. Available online: http://www.cpasbru.irisnet.be/fr/index.asp?ID=66 (accessed on 27 August 2018) [our translation]. Interview with Lynn Dewitte, Brussels, 30 August 2018 [our translation]. Interview with Tammam Ramadan, Brussels, 30 August 2018 [our translation]. Interviews with Lynn Dewitte and Peter Van Rompaey, Brussels, 30 August 2018 [our translation]. Two of the musicians held Syrian passports that were expired. Moreover, the Syrian passport is not eligible to travel so some countries, like in Morocco where the band could not take part to a big world music festival. Since the Syrian embassy in Belgium is considered functional again, musicians are required to renew their passports, but are reluctant to support financially and symbolically a regime from which they had to flee.