Bologna Immigrant Camp Dismantled

Von

Communique from Italian activist organisation, The Disobedients.

[N.B. "The Disobedients" is the national, Ya Basta!-fuelled network that inherited the experience of the White Overalls. Here are one of their political communiques and their press release, both texts dated January 26th, 2002. ]

A CALL ON THE INMATES OF THE EUROPEAN BASTILLE

There are gestures whose impact lasts for a long time, gestures that mark the beginning of something or the passage to a new phase of conflicts, gestures made by people who are fully conscious of their values. In the morning of January 25th, 2002, we made such a gesture. We invaded a concentration camp and dismantled it piece by piece. That prison was ready to contain hundreds of human beings whose only "fault" is being "without papers".

The Center of Temporary Permanence of Bologna was disassembled and made unusable. A group of about a hundred people, European citizens, chose to disobey an unjust law, a law that regards as "illegal" the human beings who were born outside this continent as soon as they lose their jobs, ie as soon as they are no longer exploitable for the profit of European entrepreneurs. This law denies freedom of circulation and sets up ethnic camps for people awaiting forced "repatriation", people whose countries have been devastated by poverty and war.

The people who took action against the CTP in via Mattei, Bologna, asserted their right to disobey in peaceful ways a notion of legality which violates human rights and fosters barbarity by drawing distinctions between "first class" and "second class" citizens. This inhuman and unconstitutional legality was countered by the grassroots legality of the civil society, indeed, of its remnants. It was this collective consciousness that produced the radical gesture. We acted unmasked, in broad daylight, in front of cameras and policemen. We did not harm any sentient being. We will face any political or penal consequence of what we did.

When the forces of order summoned us to surrender and give them our ID, we came out of the iron cages, hands up. Everybody was visible, recognizable and unprotected. The police charged us in cold blood. Their brutality reminded us of the Genoa days, July 20th and 21st, 2001. It was a merely punitive attack on unarmed people, an attack that caused injuries to a dozen people, including some members of the Parliament of the Republic. As a
result, twenty-one Disobedients were busted and identified by the police.

We call on the civil society.

We ask you not to leave us by ourselves in this struggle for humanity. We ask you to join us and oppose this state of permanent war, creeping discrimination and utter brutality, to oppose those who want to throw into ethnic jails, both metaphorical and real, people who are escaping from misery and bombs.

We ask you to express solidarity to the comrades busted a few days ago and the other indicted people. They just defended human dignity and the last, faint glow of Enlightenment in a world of institutional barbarians and barbaric institutions that either drop bombs on starving human beings or imprison them if they manage to leave starvation behind them. We ask you to acknowledge that gesture of disobedience as an important, little step towards the recovery of equality, freedom, dignity and justice.

It is worth trying even for us, the "first class" inmates of the Bastille Europe. Another world is not only possible: it is necessary.

The Disobedients

***

THE LESSON OF BOLOGNA

Today, for the first time in Europe, a hundred citizens of these lands, belonging to the movement of Disobedients, have taken to piece a wing of the center of detention for "sans papiers" migrants in via Mattei, Bologna, Italy.

It was an action of civil disobedience. We were absolutely peaceful and yet we were resolute. We started at 11:30 am and finished at 3 pm. The forces of order reacted unbecomingly. During the talks between police officials and a few MPs and local councillors (members of the Green Party and Rifondazione Comunista who wanted to negotiate a way out for the dismantlers), the riot squad received the order to attack. They beat up people who were unmasked and kept their hands up above their heads. They also beat up the MPs and even one of the police officials. Several people were injured at the skulls, sixteen people were prevented from climbing over the fence and had their identity cards seized. All these people could have been identified easily, with no repressive action. In spite of the usual display of state violence, the action was successful.

We proved that people can disobey unjust laws that violate human dignity and even the Constitution of the Italian Republic. We proved that the new concentration camps can be shut down. We proved that we can effectively challenge the powers-that-be thriving on corporate-driven racism and waging war on the rights of the multitudes.

Two years after the demonstration against the CTP in via Corelli, Milan, the action of Bologna marks the passage of the Disobedients from laboratory to movement. From now on the construction of a conflict based upon consensus enriches itself with the tactics devised by such great social movements as the Confederation of Peasants in France or the Indian peasants of Karnataka, the movements we are going to meet in Porto Alegre, at the 2nd World Social Forum. We are looking forward to hear the words of Mr. Vasco Errani, the left-wing governor of Emilia-Romagna: while he is going to attend the forum and endorse the document demanding freedom of circulation for all human beings, he is allowing the principles of ethnic segregation to take over Emilia Romagna: the concentration camp of via Mattei is not the only one under construction, the ones in Modena and Rimini are almost ready for inauguration.

Freedom! Justice! Equality! We are all clandestines.

Bologna, Europe, Planet Earth, January 25th, 2002, first month of the second year of global war.

The Disobedients

bonkey

Originally posted by Von
We invaded a concentration camp and dismantled it piece by piece.
<snip>
The people who took action against the CTP in via Mattei, Bologna, asserted their right to disobey in peaceful ways
<snip>
Today, for the first time in Europe, a hundred citizens of these lands, belonging to the movement of Disobedients, have taken to piece a wing of the center of detention for "sans papiers" migrants in via Mattei, Bologna, Italy.
<snip>
It was an action of civil disobedience. We were absolutely peaceful and yet we were resolute.

I find it interesting that in one release the CTP is a concentration camp - words designed to evoke strong emotion, harkening back to the horrific camps of WW2. In the other release, it is merely a "center of detention". It strikes me that in the press release, far less invective was used to make them look more reasonable in the public eye. The contrast between the language in each of the documents is, however, very enlightening.

I also find it hysterical that these people claim the destruction of government (and hence public) property to a state of unusability is a "peacful" protest. Exactly what is peaceful about destruction of another person's property???

jc

Victor

Originally posted by bonkey
I find it interesting that in one release the CTP is a concentration camp - words designed to evoke strong emotion, harkening back to the horrific camps of WW2.

I think this has been brought about by the blurring of the (often thin) line between a concentration camp (primarily an extreme prison, work camp or internment camp) and an extermination camp (self explanatory). I don't want to get into a discussion about it, but the intention of an extermination camp is much more malicious.

Von

It's described as a concentration camp in both pieces.

Italy's political climate is a little bit different to here. In addition to owning a huge of Italy's media, Berlusconi has just made himself foreign minister. Then there's "Italy's post-fascist hopeful" on the rise. Making scapegoats out of immigrants is a standard fascist policy.

Taking doors off their hinges hardly qualifies as "violence" in my book. Whatever skewed moral code prevails at the moment, it's not really in the same league as walloping someone who has his hands in the air or shooting people when their hands are tied behind their backs.

Sand

So they ran in and thrashed a place "peacefully" Good for them. They then got arrested "brutally" - the police never just arrest left wingers, they always do it "brutally". Good for them. And what difference does it make? - they already admit that more detention centers are being built so it looks like vandalising one doesnt make a hell of a lot of difference. Primarily because these people are a tiny, hardcore and vocal minority who feel violent action is a better way of "persuading" people than actual functioning democracy- primarily because they recognise the majority disagree with their views. There is little difference between these people and common thugs - they both carry out violent acts for some cause they belives justififes their actions.

bonkey

Originally posted by Von
Taking doors off their hinges hardly qualifies as "violence" in my book.

Ah - so when they rendered it uninhabitable, all they really did was go in with their screwdrivers and remove some hinges here and there.

Yes - I can see how such light mischief would render a building uninhabitable, or how it would class as "take to pieces".

Come on - if all they did was remove some little hinges on a few doors, then they shouldnt be claiming they made it uninhabitable - they should be saying "we played a little prank that would take two workmen an hour or so to undo".

Even at that - by what standard is the destruction of someone elses property considered peaceful?

Originally posted by Sand
[bThey then got arrested "brutally" - the police never just arrest left wingers, they always do it "brutally".[/b]

Actually - I'd be inclined to give them some credence here. The Italian police are not known to be the most caring sensitive types out there, especially with groups who have any form of link to previous violence. After Genoa, I can imagine that pretty much any of the groups like the Disobedients is on the top of the Italian Police "favourite people" lists.

As for the difference it makes - they made a statement, which is all they tried to do. Whether or not their press release is accurate, the police action taken against them only serves to make a stronger statement.

jc

Von

Originally posted by Sand
There is little difference between these people and common thugs - they both carry out violent acts for some cause they belives justififes their actions.

I've met a few common thugs and none of them would be much into the tactic of letting the cops beat them up. By the way, taking a stand on a racism or human rights issue is not a solely "left wing" thing to do.

How about Greenpeace's actions against Sellafield? Are they a "violent" minority of common thugs too? Or are they just doing what others are afraid to do?

Harrumph.

There's pics of the action here

]Originally posted by Bonkey
The Italian police are not known to be the most caring sensitive types out there, especially with groups who have any form of link to previous violence. After Genoa, I can imagine that pretty much any of the groups like the Disobedients is on the top of the Italian Police "favourite people" lists.

You're sort of missing the whole point of The Disobedients Bonkey, and civil disobedience in general. They aim to be as open and transparent as possible about what they do. Article on them here.
You're right that they're targets for the Italian cops though. One of Berlusconi's election promises was to smash the group's countrywide network of social centres with "an iron fist". I've been in one in Rome. They provide language courses for immigrants and outrageous stuff like that.

Sand

Your comparing Greenpeace with a little known group of left wing thugs? Just to burst your bubble regarding Sellafield, Greenpeace do have widespread support regarding their protests against it, certainly in Ireland seeing as they appear to have more balls than the Irish government.

Regarding the pictures of "police brutality" I dont see any evidence of cops dragging protestors out and beating them half to death with batons or setting dogs on them. Or did you mean brutality in that they actually dared to arrest them? In fact it seems to me the vandals can be seen to be attempting to press in on the cops and I see a few raised arms amongst the vandals- hardly docile peaceful types.
http://www.sherwood.it/galleriabo25_01_02.htm

After Genoa, I can imagine that pretty much any of the groups like the Disobedients is on the top of the Italian Police "favourite people" lists.

Rioters rarely are.

Von

Greenpeace afaik, started out as an obscure "left wing" group. They were called stupid hippies, the loony left and all that.

Sorry that the photos didn't have enough blood in them. It's a bit hard to take photos of someone hitting you over the head when you have your arms in the air, but I'll send them a mail and tell them to get their act together.

About Genoa:

When you see a carabinieri's armored car closing in on you, you either escape or you react in the same way as if a weapon were being pointed at you. We, in Genoa, on the Via Tolemaide, built barricades in order to protect our safety. For three hours we had to react to the police attacks, we and many others. Carlo died defending himself from the attacks by the carabinieri. At the same time, he was there along with thousands of men and women, in order to affirm that another world is possible. There is an enormous difference between someone who builds a barricade in order to defend himself, and someone who decides to militarily suppress a broad organized movement like this one, against economic globalization. The former is affirming his right to change a reality that produces poverty and exploitation. The latter is defending the G8, an illegitimate body that is trying to make decisions about the world, ignoring the hopes and desires for a better life held by those who inhabit it.

- Luca Casarini, spokesperson for the network of social centers of the northeast, one of the "central promoters" of the Social Forum of Genoa (FSG),

On the subject of complete wilful ignorance of the anti-globalisation movement, there's a good article on the hysterically bad journalism in the run up to the World Economic Forum this weekend here.

Sand, if you're at all interested in what happened in genoa, why over 200,000 people turned out to protest and why there was so much aggro, you can find out if you get a free copy of Belgian PM Guy Verhofstadt's book.
There's contributions from:
Owens Wiwa - Brother of Ken Saro Wiwa who was topped by Shell/Nigeria
Peter Piot - Director of UNAIDS
Susan George - Vice President Of Attac France
Kofi Annan - UN Bossman
Mary Robinson - UN Big Cheese
Noreena Hertz - Author OF The Silent Takeover
Naomi Klein - Guardian hack and author of No Logo
Carlos Magarinos - DG of UN Industrial Development Organisation
Ali Rodriguez Araque - Secretary General of OPEC
The Archbishop Of Cape Town
Trade Union Leaders
The Chilean Ambassador to the EU
Professors of this and that.
Amnesty International
The Red Cross
Medecins Sans Frontieres
Oxfam
And normal people.

However, if you're not interested in what happened or why people are engaged in political activism, but still persist in expressing uninformed useless tabloid quality opinions, then as Walter said to Donny in The Big Lebowski "you have no frame of reference, you're like a child who wanders in in the middle of a movie and wants to know..."

Sand

I'll send them a mail and tell them to get their act together.

Tell them that before they start throwing accusations about brutality around, they need to have had some brutality happen.

Casarinis tirade is just confirmation that they engaged in rioting, and is a pitiful attempt to argue that anti globalisation is correct or just because somebody died in a riot.

200,000 people turned out to protest/and or riot as mentioned in your quoted piece - from a world population of 6 Billion? Armed only with emotive rhetoric and little else (apart from whatever makeshift weapons they could steal from the Genoese). Very impressive.

Ask all those UN big cheeses about Srebinica. Ive got Naomi Kleins book- its a limited piece tbh. Basically summarrised as "Theres all this horrible stuff going on - obviously free trade/capitalism is to blame". Which is pretty much the viewpoint of the rioters. Having said that I remeber one particular UN personality (might have been our own Robinson) who contracted a bout of common sense (no doubt short lived) and said they should use globalisation to spread first world ideals regarding work practices throughtout the world. This is slightly optimistic but a nice ideal to aim for. At the end of the day it will be third world workers who demand and earn their rights - they should be supported in doing so.

I dont regard rioters as political activists, but rather as crinimals.

Boston

Boston - if you cant post politely - dont post.
You might get away with it in other fora, but not here.

jc

Sand

Please stop posting your insults. Youre going to hurt my feelings, no matter how good a lot of personal attacks make you, a moderator after all, look and/or feel.