2008-05-28

May 28th 2008 Genoa -- Strasbourg/ Kehl -- Hokkaido

Letter to the Bolzaneto victims

Dear friends,

During the month of July, most probably on 21st or 22nd, the sentence concluding the Bolzaneto trial should be announced.

The public prosecutors are asking to sentence 44 people that include (high-ranking) officials and officers from the Police Force, from the Carabinieri (military police), from the prison guard service, doctors and nurses, all accused of acts of violence inflicted on those arrested or simply detained, from Friday 20th to Sunday 22nd July 2001 in the barracks at Genova Bolzaneto.

Since the specific crime of torture is not featured in our criminal code, the Public Prosecutor’s Office has charged the above with offences ranging from abuse of office, brutality, beating, grievous bodily harm, insults, abuse of authority, threats, falsehood, to failure to provide medical referral or medical assistance, amounting to a total of seventy-six years, four months and twenty days’ imprisonment. None of the accused is likely to spend even a day in prison, given that most of the crimes will have lapsed (according to the statute of limitations) by 2009.

We will, however, have achieved something, even if minimal, if the Court sentences those responsible and obtains compensation for the plaintiffs for the damage suffered, both physical and moral.

For the occasion of the sentence the Truth & Justice Committee for Genoa is organizing a series of initiatives and accommodation for all those coming to Genova. The Mayor of Genova, Ms Marta Vincenzi, has offered to provide hospitality, at the expense of the local council, for the plaintiffs who will be coming to Genova for the sentence and, for this reason, we need to know who is intending to come.

Via your e-mail address and our site we will be contacting you to inform you about the initiatives that the committee is organizing for the event and to provide all other essential information.

Best wishes,

Enrica Bartesaghi

President of the Truth & Justice Committee for Genoa

* www.veritagiustizia.it
* info@veritagiustizia.it

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Report meeting on NATO summit 2009 at Buko, Sunday 11 May 2008

1. state of affairs

* April 2009: NATO 60th anniversary: summit in Strasbourg (F) and Kehl (D)with festivities and probably opening for review of NATO Strategic Concept
* start action at NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Berlin, 23-25 May
* in Freiburg a local preparation meeting already took place, with people from Khel
* on 7 June an Afghanistan-conference takes place in Hannover, where some groups (Mouvement de la Paix (F), IALANA Germany and INESAP) also called for a meeting on the NATO-summit
* in the near neighbourhood of Kehl there are almost no active groups. 40 km further, an active group exists in Freiburg. In Freiburg people are motivated, also in Mannheim and Heidelberg.
* natogipfel2009.blogsport.de (regional website from Kehl)

* French peace movement just has a meeting where the NATO summit was discussed.
* in Belgium anti-militarist groups gathered after the Bombspotting action
* contacts with the anti-nuclear movement in France (Sortir de la Nucléaire), Les Désobéissants, group organising the No Bordercamp 2002
* ATTAC has a gathering in France. ATTAC Germany has not yet discussed the NATO summit.
* The Strasbourg/Kehl region is dependent on the EU and other institutions who have their seat there. There is also a lot of military infrastructure (Eurocorps) and the SIS-databank
* France has the EU Presidency in 2008.
* on which side of the Rhine do we want to make camps (only a few bridges!!)?

2. Communication / Logistics

* a German-language mailer already exists (“Bye Bye NATO”) which we are going to use from now on for further networking (E-mail adresses of the people present are sent to the Admin)
* how do we communicate internationally? New international and mainly English-language mailing-list, not the old G8-int-list (but the new list will be announced here).
* We make a broad coalition (how? with a clear position?)
* website? 2 languages (french-german)?

3. Public relations
schedule:

* action in Berlin: , groups check if they can sign the call and mail their decision.
* ESF (19-21 sept) for international mobilisation
* international action conference in autumn (see down)
* call for international action day 14-15 November against military infrastructure for intervention
* Peace conference Kassel (Friedensratschlag – start December)
* SiKo München (Security Conference), February 2009 as stepstone

No passive signing, but offer for active participation from diverse groups and movements (like with G8-protest): active contacting groups about how coalition building can look like, practically and concerning political positions. Political debate: collecting position papers in an english language reader?

4. International action conference

* initial launch must not be a copy of the Rostock Conference
* open invitation for preparation meeting?: this invitation will be prepared by a small group from diverse movements from this network meeting
* action conference preferable in Strasbourg
* include local people
* who has to be contacted: Friedensratschlag, unions, IL, Attac, MSF, Bundeswehr wegtreten, Antiracist and migration groups, etc, etc (no consensus)

next meeting, where the preparation of an action conference has to be on the agenda

Sunday 1 June, Third World Haus Frankfurt (Dritte Welt Haus Frankfurt), Falkstr. 74, 60487 Frankfurt (this meeting will be publicly announced)

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Towards climate action in Copenhagen 2009

First international planning meeting

We invite you to join the 1^st international planning meeting in Copenhagen from the 13-14th of September 2008. The meeting aims at preparing a large mobilisation for direct action against the root causes of climate change in Copenhagen and throughout the world during the UN Climate Conference (30 Nov-11 Dec 2009).

We stand at a crossroads in history. The facts are undeniable. Global climate change, caused by human activities, is happening. We all know that, world over, we’re facing a manifold and deepening crisis: of the climate, energy, food, livelihoods, and of political and human rights. Scientific, environmental, social and civil society movements from all over the world are calling for action against climate change.

Massive consumption of fossil fuel is one of the major causes of global warming, a problem that threatens the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world. Instead of leading the way, governments are prioritizing economic growth and corporate interests while ignoring the speeding train of climate change hurtling towards the abyss. The corporate exploitation of the planet’s resources cannot be allowed to continue any longer. We have precious little time to react to this threat. We need action NOW to stop climate change, and if the so-called ‘leaders’ won’t lead the way, we must.

On the 30th November 2009, world leaders will come to Copenhagen for the UN Climate Conference (COP15). This will be the most important summit on climate change ever to have taken place, and it will determine how the countries of the world are going to respond to the climate threat. The decisions taken there will define the future for all the people of the world. The previous meetings give no indication that this meeting will produce anything more than empty rhetoric and a green washed blueprint for business-as-usual.

There is an alternative to the current course and it’s not some far-off dream. If we put reason before profit, we can live amazing lives without destroying our planet. But this will not happen by itself. We have to take direct action, both against the root causes of climate change and to help create a new, just and joyous world in the shell of the old. And so, we call on all responsible people of the planet to take direct action against the root causes of climate change during the COP15 summit in Copenhagen 2009.

The exact plans for our mobilization are not yet finalized. We have time to collectively decide what our best course of action may be. We encourage everyone to start mobilizing in your own countries. It is time to take the power back from the leaders not responsible enough to hold it. The power is in our hands!

Practical information

The meeting is free for everyone, accommodation and food will be provided by local activists. Note also that the meeting will be held the weekend prior to the European Social Forum (ESF) in Malmö, September 17-21. People are welcome to stay in Copenhagen in the intermediate days.

Please announce your arrival to _sept08@klimax2009.org _. We’re happy to respond to any questions you might have. You can also subscribe to the international mobilization mailing list.

Please circulate, translate and distribute this call widely

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London: Invitation to Groups and Individuals: Against the Borders, Against the G8

Why Croydon?
Looking at institutions that could be somewhat equivalent for Britain to what the G8 is for managing global capitalism, it seems like the Home Office and its Border Agency fulfil a similar function in policing and disciplining the movement of people. One of the physical locations of the Home office is Croydon:

Lunar House, the nerve centre of the UK Border Agency, where people claim asylum and where their claims are dealt.

Electric House, a reporting centre. Who goes in side may never come back - they may be detained and deported. But failing to report can lead to deportation.
Both Lunar and Electric House contain detention facilities.

Apollo House, where data is collected and evaluated, in order to determine which migrants are "useful" and allowed to stay or not and deported.

Croydon also has an Army Recruitment Centre and a nice big Shopping Centre

The idea is to cooperate with different groups, each adopting a location or topic and coming up with some form of action around it. Topics could include, but are not limited to militarism, capitalism, surveillance, sexism, racism, borders and control.

Activities could include info stalls, speeches, performances, music or whatever else the groups come up with, allowing people to move freely from one point to another.

Come and prepare the Croydon Treasure Hunt, meet nice people, exchange ideas and get creative

3pm, Sunday 1st June at the
Pullen Center, 184 Crampton Street, SE17, near Elephant and Castle