Our Democracy against their austerity!
A call for action against the EU Spring Summit
‘For a European Spring’ is a call for actions, strikes and demonstrations all over Europe on the 13th of March, and for a pan-European demonstration and creative actions in the city of Brussels on the 14th of March. It is targeted at the EU Spring Summit, where leaders from across the continent will assemble on the 14th and 15 to strengthen the European Council’s response to the crisis.
The response to date from economic and political elites in the European Union amounts to a massive attack on welfare, social rights and democracy. This has been achieved by undermining democracy, reflected in EU policies including the imposition of austerity, demands for deep cuts in social spending, attempts to weaken labour laws and the roll back of hard earned labour rights.
This course of action is dangerous, profoundly unjust, and must be reversed. While these policies are designed to rescue big banks and big business, we, the vast majority, are made to pay for the excesses of the privileged.
All over Europe struggles and strikes are happening against these unjust policies. These struggles are our struggles, and we reject the violent attempts of European states to suppress them. Now is the time for solidarity across borders and sectors, to be the force to create real democracy and social justice. We are seeking to build a society where solutions, very different to those defended by the elites and imposed by the EU, can be proposed and discussed by everybody.
We call for actions, strikes and demonstrations on the 13th March across Europe as part of a week of European resistance, with a mass mobilisation on the 14th in Brussels targeting the EU Spring Summit. We will show those in power that our growing movement will, sooner or later, be strong enough to change the course of Europe in the interest of us all.
Abolish all EU-austerity treaties and legislation!
In order to facilitate the meeting’s organization, we should start working on three aspects:
General call and meeting objectives: A text that will function as starting point and as a analytical frame. We can work on it on a pad and discuss it on the next mumble meeting on Friday 5th.
Program and contents:We have established a first deadline for proposals next Monday 8th October. After that, we will have some time to close details. We are trying to have a first draft of the contents for next week. You will find below a guide trying to clarify each space of discussion. The forms will be updated athttp://99agora.net/workshops/
We believe that in the actual context of restriction of, implementation of austerity measures and financial bail-outs that are deployed through the whole Europe but affect particullary the countries of the European periphery (the so-call PIIGS) there is a growing need of meeting, coordinating and working together with other groups and collectives beyond the local and national scales.
Therefore, the intention of this encuentro is to create a space in which we can share the stories and histories of different experiences (in round tables), to generate analitical and propositional mechanisms (workshops) and coordinate possible common actions and interventions for the next months (working groups).
Round tables will gather around the three working-areas (debt, rights and democracy) and will consist in a check-in round of 15-minutes (aprox) followed by discussion and debate. To propose an intervention in the round tables we need to receive: title of the intervention, the person or group that is going to lead it (inlcuding webs or other information) and a summary of it (no more than 150 words). The tables will be organized by related topics with a maximum of two per axis.
The workshops are practical spaces with specific objectives and methodologies. To coordinate the workshops we need to know: the title of the workshop, who is going to lead it, the methodology (presumptions and objectives), the approximate length and minimun and maximun number of participants.
The working groups will be made on site based on the composition of the workshops and round tables. Their task will be to collect the proposals produced in the different panels and workshops. An action& coordination plan will be suggested and discussed at the general assambly on Sunday.
Desde la Plataforma Ciudadana por la Auditoria Ciudadana (PACD), hemos unido fuerzas con varios colectivos en torno al eje Deuda para construir una estrategia, dinámica y calendario común (con Florencia 10+10 en mente) y con el objetivo de construir una resistencia internacional unida frente a la agenda neoliberal.
From the Citizen Debt Audit Platform in Spain (PACD), we have worked on convergence with different groups in the Debt axis in order to be able to come up with common strategies, dynamics and calender (with Florence10+10 in mind) and the objective of building a united international resistance movement to face the neoliberal agenda.
We come back on #26s and on saturday #29s we’re surrounding the Congress again
We would like to invite you to the next mobilisation as it was agreed and called upon by action meeting of Coordinadora 25s and by the spontaneous assembly that took place during the night of 25s in Sol:
On wednesday 26th September : Concentration in Neptuno Square (by the parliament), 7 pm.
On saturaday, 29th September: Surround the Congress, from 6 pm.
New calls to action could arise in the next days, we’ll keep reporting.
We don’t have organizational capacity to arrange transport to Madrid for next Saturday, so please, contact local groups which could organize them. You can write to autobuses25s@gmail.com and we’ll publish the list of transports. We will keep you updated in this website.
This announcement was made this morning in a press conference in which we have made a balance of what happened yesterday. You can read the notes or see the video here.
1) Despite the serious incidents of yesterday, we want to convey a positive idea: the massive affluence made 25s a success. Two generations have broken the strong deal cut during the Transition [from dictatorship to democracy] and have generated a social protest without comparison in the recent history of Spain. Whatever happens from now on, 25S will be considered a fresh start.
2) While the Government had been trying to criminalize social protests and portraited the demonstration as a coup d’etat, the reality was different. As it has seen, people of all ages and conditions visualized the kidnapping of democracy, under the excuse of the economic crisis. In fact, this call has been an example of citizen’s political courage to attend despite the government’s intolerable blackmail and fear campaign.
3) In front of a deaf and blind power, we reaffirm our position of non-violent civil disobedience. We condemn the provocation and infiltration techniques that were used in yesterday’s manifestation by the police to dissolve the protest. We are the first ones to regret that the focus on the violent escenes set aside the real reason that led us to the streets, which is no other that the effective occupation of our free capacity of political decision. Before the police charged, the event was non-violent and civic. It was clear that the action did not pursue to interfere in the regular work of the Parliament. The support of some members of parliament and parliamentary groups just proves that the iniciative did not seek, as announced, to literally ocuppy the Congress, but to attract the attention to the fatal distance existing between citizens and their representatives. The damges in several public offices from Izquierda Plural (a political group whose offices are nearby the protest) proves the irrationality of a Government that tries to hide its weakness and absence of legitimacy acting in an authoritarian way.
4) This has not been just a demostration of discontent, but a political statement. It would be a big mistake if, after these events, the Government does not listen these voices and keeps disregarding the desesperation and suffering its measures are causing in the spanish population.
Voltamos no 26s e o Sábado rodearemos de novo o Congresso
Desde a assembleia da acção da Coordenadora 25 s e também desde a assembleia espontânea que teve lugar na noite do 25s no Sol convida-se a estas e próximas mobilizações:
Quarta-Feira 26 de Setembro: Concentração em Neptuno, 19h.
Sábado 29 de Setembro: Rodearemos o Congreso, a partir das 18h.
De igual modo é possível que surjam convocatórias de novas acções nos próximos dias,
seguiremos informando.
Desde Madrid não temos capacidade organizativa para gerir autocarros para vir no Sábado. Por favor, contactem com colectivos locais que o possam organizar. Podeis escrever-nos a autobuses25s@gmail.com para que publiquemos a listagem de colectivos e formas de contacto neste site.
Isto anunciou-se esta manhã numa roda de prensa na que também fizemos balanço do acontecido ontem, podes ler algumas notas ao respeito ou ver o vídeo aqui.
1) Apesar dos graves incidentes de ontem, queremos transmitir una ideia positiva: o 25s foi um êxito de afluência massiva. Duas gerações romperam o consenso de ferro da transição e geraram um protesto social sem comparação na recente história espanhola.
Aconteça o que aconteça a partir de agora, o 25s é já um ponto e à parte.
2) Acabou por ser impossível evitar excessos num cenário que tinha sido tensado e criminalizado até ao exagero e à caricatura pela Delegação do Governo. Como se mostrou, as pessoas, de todas as idades e condições, que saíram à rua não queriam dar nenhum golpe de Estado, mas sim visibilizar o sequestro da democracia que, apesar do nosso protesto, continua tendo lugar sob a desculpa da crise económica. Nesse sentido, é um facto que a convocatória tenha sido um exemplo de coragem política da cidadania face à intolerável chantagem do medo.
3) Perante um poder que é surdo e mudo, reafirmamo-nos na nossa posição de desobediência civil não violenta, assim como condenamos as estratégias de provocação e infiltração policiais que, como aparece nalguns meios, foram utilizadas na concentração de ontem para dissolver os participantes da concentração. Somos os primeiros a lamentar que o foco nas cenas violentas que ontem desgraçadamente se produziram deixe de lado a questão de fundo que nos levou à rua e que não é outra que a ocupação efectiva da nossa capacidade de decisão política. Até ao momento das cargas, a convocatória transcorreu de forma cívica e responsável e ficou manifesto que a acção não pretendia interferir no transcurso normal da Câmara. O apoio que a convocatória teve por parte de alguns deputados e grupos parlamentares evidencia assim mesmo que a convocatória não procurava, como se anunciou, “ocupar” literalmente o Congresso, mas sim chamar a atenção sobre a funesta distância que existe entre este e a cidadania. Que vários cargos públicos de Esquerda Plural que simplesmente se encontravam no passeio sofreram também a actuação desproporcionada do corpo policial demonstra a irracionalidade de um Governo que apenas acerta a esconder a sua debilidade e falta de legitimidade de forma autoritária.
4) Esta não foi uma simples manifestação de queixas, mas sim uma manifestação política. Seria um grave erro que, após estes factos, o Governo não escutasse esta voz e continuasse a fazer caso omisso do desespero e sofrimento que está a causar a sua gestão na população espanhola.
Nous sommes revenus le 26S et Nous reviendrons samedi 29Sprochain,pour encercler le Congrès
Nous vous invitons aux prochaines mobilisations, décidées à la réunion de coordination de l’action #25S et aussi à l’assemblée spontanée qui a eu lieu dans la nuit du #25S à SOL :
Madrid : Mercredi 26 septembre : Rassemblement à la Place Neptuno,19H00.
Madrid : Samedi 29 septembre: Nous encerclons le Congrès, à partir de 18H00.
Il est possible qu’il y ait encore d’autres appels dans les prochains jours, nous continuerons à vous informer.
À Madrid nous n’avons pas la capacité d’organiser, ni de fournir des bus pour l’arrivée de samedi. Vous êtes priés de contacter les collectifs locaux,susceptibles d’organiser des déplacements. Vous pourrez nous contacter à: < autobuses25s@gmail.com > pour publier le listing des collectifs et contacts sur notre site web.
Cela a été annoncé ce matin dans une conférence de presse au cours de laquelle on a fait aussi un bilan de tout ce qui s’est passé hier. Vous pouvez voir quelques notes à ce sujet ou visionner la video ici.
1) Malgré les graves incidents d’hier, nous voulons transmettre une idée positive : l’affluence massive du #25S en fait un succès. Deux générations ont brisé le consensus de transition de fer et ont généré une contestation sociale sans précédent dans l’histoire espagnole. Quoi qu’il arrive désormais, le #25S est maintenant un tournant.
2) Il n’a pas été possible d’empêcher le débordement, dans un scénario detensions, et criminalisé de façon carricaturale par la Délégation du Gouvernement . Comme vous avez pu le voir, les personnes de tous âgeset conditions, présentes dans les rues, ne voulaient en aucun cas un coup d’état, mais éclairer le fait que la confiscation (étatique) de la démocratiecontinue, prenant la crise économique comme prétexte. L’appel a été un modèle de courage politique des citoyens, face au chantage intolérable de la peur.
3) Face au pouvoir, sourd et aveugle, nous réaffirmons notre position non-violente de désobéissance civile et nous condamnons les stratégies de provocation et d’infiltration de la police visant à disperser les participants durassemblement d’hier (voir les vidéos et reportages). Nous sommes les premiers à regretter que l’attention portée aux scènes violentes, qui se sont malheureusement produites hier, ait occulté la raison principale qui nous a fait prendre la rue et qui n’est autre que l’occupation réelle de notre capacité à prendre des décisions politiques. Avant les charges policières, le rassemblement se déroulait de manière civique et responsable et il estévident que les actions n’essayaient pas de troubler le cours normal du Congrès. Le soutien à notre appel, par quelques députés et groupes parlementaires, met en évidence que cette initiative ne cherchait pas, comme cela a été publié, à ”occuper” réellement le Congrès, mais à attirerl’attention sur le triste fossé qu’il y a entre les membres du Congès et lesCitoyens. Certains membres du groupe ”Izquierda Plural”, qui se trouvaientsimplement sur le trottoir, ont souffert aussi de l’action disproportionnée de la police. Tout ceci démontre l’irrationnalité d’un Gouvernement quiveut cacher sa faiblesse et son manque de légitimité d’une façon autoritaire.
4) Ce rassemblement n’a pas été simplement une manifestation de plaintes, mais une véritable manifestation politique. Ce serait une grave erreur que le Gouvernement n’écoute pas nos voix, en continuant à mépriser le désespoir et la souffrance que cause sa gestion à toute la population espagnole.
Torneremo il 26s e il sabato circonderemo di nuovo il Congresso
Dalla assemblea di azione della Coordinadore 25s e anche dall’assemblea spontanea che ebbe luogo nella notte del 25s al “Sol” vi invitiamo alle prossime mobilitizzazioni:
Mercoledì 26 settembre: Raduno al “Neptuno” ore 19
Sabato 29 settemre: circondiamo il Congresso, a partire dalle ore 18
Inoltre è possibile che vengano indette riunioni per nuove azioni nei prossimi giorni, vi terremo informati.
Da Madrid non abbiamo capacità organizzativa per gestire autobus per arrivare il sabato.
Perfavore, contattate i collettivi locali che possono organizzare (il trasferimento).
Potete scriverci a autobuses25s@gmail.com qui pubblicheremo la lista dei collettivi e i modi di contatto con questa pagina.
è stato annunciato questa mattina in una conferenza stampa nella quale si è anche tenuto un bilancio di quanto è successo ieri, è possibile leggere alcune note su di esso o guardare il video qui.
1) Nonostante i gravi incidenti di ieri, vogliamo trasmettere un’idea positiva: il 25s è stato un successo di afflusso massiccio. Due generazioni hanno rotto il consenso e hanno dato vita ad una protesta sociale senza precedenti nella recente storia spagnola. Qualunque cosa accada da ora in poi, il 25s è ormai un punto fermo.
2) Non è stato possibile evitare disordini in uno scenario che era stato intesito e criminalizzato con esagerazione e caricatura dagli Organi di Governo. Come si vede, le persone di ogni età e condizione, che sono scesi in piazza non hanno voluto fare nessun colpo di stato, ma rendere noto il sequestro della democrazia che, nonostante le nostre proteste, continua a svolgersi con la scusa della crisi economica. In questo senso, è un dato di fatto che l’appello (alle persone) è stato un esempio di coraggio politico dei cittadini di fronte all’intollerabile ricatto della paura.
3) Di fronte a un potere che è sordo e cieco, riaffermiamo la nostra posizione di disobbedienza civile non-violenta e condannaiamo le strategie di provocazione e l’infiltrazione della polizia come riportato in alcuni mezzi di comunicazione, che sono stati utilizzati per il corteo di ieri per disperdere la concentrazione dei partecipanti. Siamo i primi a lamentarsi che l’attenzione alle scene di violenza che si sono verificate ieri, purtroppo, hanno messo da parte la questione di fondo che ci ha fatti scendere in strada e che non è altro che l’occupazione di fatto della nostra capacità decisionale politica. Fino al momento delle cariche, il corteo è andato in modo civile e responsabile ed è stato dimostrato che l’azione non era destinata ad interferire con il normale svolgimento della Camera (Parlamento).
Il supporto che il corteo ha avuto da parte di alcuni parlamentari e di alcunigruppi parlamentari è anche la prova che l’iniziativa non ha cercato, come annunciato , “di occupare”, letteralmente il Congresso, ma vuole riportare l’attenzione sul divario incredibile che esiste tra il Parlamento stesso e la cittadinanza.
Che diverse cariche di governo di Izquierda Plural, che semplicemente si trovavano sul marciapiede, subirono le azioni sproporzionate della polizia mostra l’irrazionalità di un governo che riesce solo a nascondere la sua debolezza e la mancanza di legittimità di forma autoritaria.
4) Questo non è stata semplicemente una manifestazione di denunce, ma una manifestazione politica. Sarebbe un grave errore, dopo questi eventi, che il governo non ascolti questa voce e continuasse ad ignorare la disperazione e la sofferenza che sta causando la loro gestione del popolo spagnolo.
Επιστρέφουμε στις 26 Σεπτεμβρίου και το Σάββατο θα περικυκλώσουμε πάλι
Η συνέλευση δράσης του συντονιστικού 25s καθώς και η αυθόρμητη συνέλευση που έγινε τη νύχτα της 25ης Σεπτεμβρίου, καλούν στις ακόλουθες κινητοποιήσεις:
Τετάρτη 26 Σεπτεμβρίου : Συγκέντρωση στην Πλατεία Neptuno, στις 19:00.
Σάββατο 29 Σεπτεμβρίου: Περικυκλώνουμε το Κονγκρέσο από τις 18:00.
Επίσης, είναι πιθανό να προκείψουν καλέσματα για νέες δράσεις τις επόμενες μέρες. Θα συνεχίσουμε να ενημερώνουμε.
Από τη Μαδρίτη δεν έχουμε την οργανωτική δυνατότητα για να κλείσουμε λεωφορεία για το Σάββατο. Παρακαλούμε, επικοινωνήστε με τοπικές συλλογικότητες για να το οργανώσουν. Μπορείτε να μας γράψετε στο autobuses25s@gmail.com για να δημοσιεύσουμε σε αυτή τη σελίδα τη λίστα συλλογικοτήτων και τις φόρμες επικοινωνίας.
Αυτό ανακοινώθηκε σήμερα το πρωί σε μία συνέντευξη Τύπου, όπου επίσης έγινε απολογισμός των χθεσινών γεγονότων. Μπορείς να βρεις σχετικές σημειώσεις ή να δεις το βίντεο εδώ.
1) Παρά τα σοβαρά χθεσινά γεγονότα, θέλουμε να μεταδόσουμε μια θετική ιδέα: Η 25η Σεπτεμβρίου ήταν μία επιτυχία με μεγάλη προσέλευση κόσμου. Δύο γενιές μετά τη μετάβαση [από τη δικτατορία στη Δημοκρατία] γεννήθηκε μία κοινωνική διαμαρτυρία χωρίς προηγούμενο στην σύγχρονη Ισπανική ιστορία. Ό,τι και να συμβεί από εδώ και πέρα, η 15η Σεπτεμβρίου θα αποτελεί σημείο αναφοράς.
2) Η Κυβέρνηση προσπάθησε να ποινικοποιήσει τους κοινωνικούς αγώνες και κατηγόρησε τους οργανωτές για συνωμοσία πραξικοπήματος. Όμως στην πραγματικότητα, άτομα κάθε ηλικίας και κατάστασης βγήκαν απλά στο δρόμο για να καταδείξουν την “απαγωγή της δημοκρατίας” που παρά την διαμαρτυρία μας εξακολουθεί να πραγματοποιείται , με δικαιολογία την οικονομική κρίση. Υπο αυτή την έννοια, είναι γεγονός ότι αυτή η συγκέντρωη αποτέλεσε παράδειγμα πολιτικού θάρρους των πολιτών, απέναντι στον απαράδεκτο εκβιασμό του φόβου.
3) Μπροστά σε μία τυφλή και κουφή εξουσία, επιβεβαιώνουμε εκ νέου τη θέση μας για μη-βίαιη πολιτική ανυπακοή. Επίσης καταδικάζουμε τις προκλητικές και προβοκατόρικες τακτικές της αστυνομίας, που όπως φαίνεται σε ορισμένα μέσα, χρησιμοποιήθηκαν στην χθεσινή συγκέντρωση για να διαλύσουν τους διαδηλωτές. Είμαστε οι πρώτοι που λυπηθήκαμε όταν οι βίαιες σκηνές που διαδραματίστηκαν, παραμέρισαν τη βασική αιτία που μας έβγαλε στο δρόμο: την ανάπτυξη της ικανότητάς λήψης πολιτικών αποφάσεων. Μέχρι τη στιγμή των επιθέσεων της αστυνομίας, η διαδήλωση εκτυλισσόταν ειρηνικά και πολιτισμένα και ήταν φανερό ότι δεν επιδίωκε να παρέμβει στη λειτουργία του Κοινοβουλίου. Άλλωστε, η στήριξη εκ μέρους κάποιων βουλευτών και βουλευτικών ομάδων αποδεικνύει ότι η πρωτοβουλία δεν επιδίωκε κυριολεκτικά να “καταλάβει” το Κονγκρέσο, όπως ανακοινώθηκε, αλλά να τραβήξει την προσοχή στο χάσμα που το χωρίζει απ’ τους πολήτες. Το γεγονός ότι στελέχη της “Izquierda Plural” (αριστεράς) που απλά βρίσκονταν στο πεζοδρόμιο δέχτηκαν επίσης τη δυσανάλογη βία των αστυνομικών δυνάμεων, δείχνει τον παραλογισμό μιας Κυβέρνησης που προσπαθεί να κρύψει την αδυναμία και την έλλειψη νομιμότητάς με αυταρχικό τρόπο.
4) Αυτή δεν ήταν μια απλή διαδήλωση διαμαρτυρίας, αλλά μια πολιτική διαδήλωση. Θα ήταν μεγάλο λάθος για την Κυβέρνηση, αν μετά τα γεγονότα, συνέχιζε να αγνoεί τη φωνή της απελπισίας και δυστυχίας που η ίδια προκαλεί στον ισπανικό λαό.
Desde la asamblea de acción de la Coordinadora 25s y también desde la asamblea espontánea que tuvo lugar en la noche del 25s en Sol se invita a estás próximas movilizaciones:
Miércoles 26 de septiembre: Concentración en Neptuno, 19h.
Sábado 29 de septiembre: Rodeamos el Congreso, a partir de las 18h.
Asimismo, es posible que surjan convocatorias de nuevas acciones en los próximas días, seguiremos informando.
Desde Madrid no tenemos capacidad organizativa para gestionar autobuses para venir el sábado. Por favor, contactad con colectivos locales que puedan organizarlo. Podéis escribirnos a autobuses25s@gmail.com para que publiquemos el listado de colectivos y formas de contacto en esta web.
Esto se ha anunciado esta mañana en una rueda de prensa en la que también hemos hecho balance de lo sucedido ayer, puedes leer algunas notas al respecto o ver el vídeo aquí.
1) A pesar de los graves incidentes de ayer, queremos transmitir una idea positiva: el 25s ha sido un éxito de afluencia masiva. Dos generaciones han roto el consenso de hierro de la transición y generado una protesta social sin comparación en la reciente historia española. Pase lo que pase a partir de ahora, el 25s es ya un punto y aparte.
2) Ha resultado imposible evitar el desborde un escenario que había sido crispado y criminalizado hasta la exageración y la caricatura por la Delegación de Gobierno. Como se ha mostrado, las personas, de toda edad y condición, que han salido a la calle no querían dar ningún golpe de Estado, sino visibilizar el secuestro de la democracia que, a pesar de nuestra protesta, sigue teniendo lugar bajo la excusa de la crisis económica. En este sentido, es un hecho que la convocatoria ha sido un ejemplo de coraje político de la ciudadanía frente al intolerable chantaje del miedo.
3) Ante un poder que es sordo y ciego, nos reafirmamos en nuestra posición de desobediencia civil no violenta, así como condenamos las estrategias de provocación y de infiltración policiales que, como aparecen en algunos medios, fueron utilizadas en la concentración de ayer para disolver a los participantes de la concentración. Somos los primeros en lamentar que el foco en las escenas violentas que ayer desgraciadamente se produjeron deje de lado la cuestión de fondo que nos sacó a la calle y que no es otra que la ocupación efectiva de nuestra capacidad de decisión política. Hasta el momento de las cargas, la convocatoria transcurrió de forma cívica y responsable y ha quedado de manifiesto que la acción no perseguía interferir el transcurso normal de la Cámara. El apoyo que la convocatoria ha tenido por parte de algunos diputados y grupos parlamentarios evidencia asimismo que la iniciativa no buscaba, como se anunció, “ocupar” literalmente el Congreso, sino llamar la atención sobre la funesta distancia que existe entre este y la ciudadanía. Que varios cargos públicos de Izquierda Plural que simplemente se encontraban en la acera sufrieran también la actuación desproporcionada del cuerpo policial muestra la irracionalidad de un Gobierno que solo acierta a esconder su debilidad y falta de legitimidad de forma autoritaria.
4) Esta no ha sido una simple manifestación de quejas, sino una manifestación política. Sería un grave error que, tras estos hechos, el Gobierno no escuchara esta voz y siguiera haciendo caso omiso a la desesperación y sufrimiento que está causando su gestión en la población española.
Zurück zu den 26s zu kommen, am Samstag den 29 s umkreisen wir wieder der Kongress.
Wir möchten Dich einladen zur nächsten Bewegung, wie beim Coordinadora25s Meeting und bei der spontanen Versammlung in der Nacht am 25s beschlossen wurde.
Neue Aktionen werden in den nächsten Tagen bekannt gegeben.
Wir haben am Samstag kein Transport Möglichkeiten um nach Madrid zu kommen . Bitte konntaktiere lokale Gruppen. Du kannst eine E-Mail an autobuses25s@gmail.com schreiben mit deinen Transportmöglichkeiten. Wir veröffentlichen diese dann auf unserer Webseite.
Diese Bekanntmachung wurde diesen Morgen erstellt. Eine Zusammenfassung mit den gestrigen Geschehnissen ist angehangen. Alternativ gibt es auch ein Video.
Publicado en General | 12 RespuestasNotas tras los hechos del 25sDESTACADO
Publicado el 26/09/2012 por coordinadora25s
1)Trotz der schweren Zwischenfälle gestern wollen wir eine positive Idee vermitteln: Der massive Andrang machte den 25s zu einem Erfolg. Was auch immer jetzt kommen wird, der 25s ist ein Neuanfang.
2)Wärend die Regierung versucht die Proteste zu kriminalisieren und die Dämonstrationen als Staatsstreich darzustellen, weicht die Realität davon ab. Menschen jeden alters und verschiedenster Hintergründe haben das Kidnapping der Demokratie, dass mit der Entschuldigung der Wirtschaftskrise ausgeführt wurde, aufgezeigt. Das war ein Beispiel vom Bürgerlichen Mut, trotz der unerträglichen Erpressung und der Angst-Kampagne.
Next September 25th we will surround the Spanish Congress to rescue it from a kidnapping that has turn this institution into a powerless one. A kidnapping of popular sovereingty perpetrated by the Troika and the financial markets, and executed under the blind eye or the cooperation of most of the political parties. Parties that have betrayed their election programs, their voters and all the citizens, not fulfilling their promises and contributing to their progressive impoverishment.
We surround the Spanish Congress after more than a year of intense mobilizations through all social networks, having realized that democracy is not possible when those institutions that claim to be its representatives move themselves by interests that are not those of the majority. Because we have nothing at all to discuss with the powers-to-be that have systematically proved to be blind, deaf and mute when confronted with concrete, fair and just equality and social justice demands. We surround it to rescue politics from an unsustainable and leeching economic règime, such as it is Capitalism.
We surround the Spanish Congress because we want to step forward to social mobilization, placing the focus on the recovery of citizen’s sovereignty and power. This is, democracy. We’ve grown many struggle structures, spaces for sharing and discussing both on the Internet and the public squares, at the neighborhoods and workplaces, and we’ve achieved iniciatives that we want to continue developing on a grassroots base, with no false shortcuts and step by step. Because we believe that the time for a few deciding for the rest is long gone; because opposed to those that want to steal our future, we have the means and collective intelligence to decide and build the society we want; because we need no false brokers, but resources and collective tools that actively encourage the political involvement of everybody in the common issues.
We surround the Spanish Congress this 9/25 to tell those who allegedly command us that we’ve had enough, that we’ll not comply with their unjust dictates like paying their debt, and we’ll defend the collective rights: housing education, healthcare, labour, democratic participation, public wealth. To start a process that stripe of their inmunity those who are responsible for this crisis, to judge the gamblers that created this situation instead of rewarding them.
On September, 25, we’ll demonstrate around the Spanish Congress because we want to retake responsibility over our own future and stop accepting more impositions. To tell those who hold Democracy hostage that their time for leaving is now, and to demand the destitution of this Government as a first step, because we are here to liberate Democracy with a new constituent process. An open process of direct participation in which we determine and set in motion the necessary political institutions, participation tools and legal and political resorts that we need to guarantee that collective decisions ate fully effective. A sustained constituent process which collective definition starts, but doesn’t end, on September 25.
To rescue the Congress is to deliver an invitation to other social movements to organize and join, such as public employees fighting for public services in diverse “tides” and other equality and social justice struggles. It means our refusal to accept fear, impotence and disorientation that grow from the reduction of all politics to economics and its deadly consequences such as fascism, xenophoby, racism or sexism. And to look for a collective solution.
We invite everybody who want to join us in surrounding the Spanish Congress next September 25, to cry “enough!” and continue this path to rescue Democracy and sovereignty. We want rights, democracy, justice and freedom for all the people.
We’ve taken so much, and we’re not afraid.
We’ll meet this 25S… and far beyond!
Link to the Twitter campaign: http://wp.me/p2C384-t
#YoSoy132* calls for a peaceful demonstration on Friday July 27th as part of agenda in the struggle for the democratization of the media. A symbolic blockade and closure of TV-station facilities will take place at Televisa Chapultepec.
This will be an act to speak against the manipulation of the media and the unfair support Televisa has given to the PRI candidate, Enrique Peña Nieto, in order to impose him as president of Mexico. Furthermore, recent allegations of drug-trafficking money laundry against worldwide bank HSBC has aroused previous accusations that links Enrique Peña Nieto with vote buying and money laundry trough the company Monex (http://is.gd/Kljmap). This investigation has not received the deserved attention by the mainstream media in Mexico.
UPDATE (July, 27th 8:30am): After more than 12 hours of Pacific Blockade thousands are still outside Televisa, showing one more time our sincere hunger for democratic media. All the protest has develop in peace and any problems has been reported.
Under the slogan: “Nobody gets in, everybody can get out”, #YoSoy 132 calls for a Pacific Demonstration, taking into consideration the importance and legitimacy of culture as a form of resistance, protest, and denunciation.
[List of local meet-ups below, if you don't see your city/town listed, pick a place, post it here so we can list it and promote! You have the power!!]
We’re inspired by the Quebec student strike and the popular uprising in Quebec against Law 78 and the Charest government, so …
On Wednesday, May 30, starting at 8pm, people from coast to coast to coast all over Canada are showing solidarity by banging pots and pans everywhere!
This will be the first of many casseroles nights across Canada. Once Quebec student students stop the tuition hike and Law 78, we’re all going to Stop Harper together!
*
Nous sommes inspiré(e) par la grève étudiante et le mouvement populaire du Québec contre la loi 78 et contre le gouvernement Charest.
Mercredi le 30 mai, à partir de 20h, les gens de partout au Canada montreront leur solidarité en faisant entendre un tintamarre de casseroles, joyeux oui, mais qui symbolisera aussi notre colère et notre exaspération.
Ce sera la première de plusieurs soirées de tintamarre à travers le Canada. Une fois que nous aurons atteint la victoire quant à la hausse des frais de scolarité et que la loi 78 sera abrogée, nous pourrons aussi stopper Harper ensemble!”
5. Make a poster to promote your local May 30 Casserole gathering – use the red square and pots and pans creatively. Put this poster up in your window and all over your neighbourhood.
6. Tweet about May 30 using the hashtag #CasserolesNightInCanada
*
Moyens faciles pour promulguer les Soirées Casseroles au Canada:
1. Inviter vos ami/es sur facebook
2. Téléphoner/texter vos ami/es, voisin/es, colleagues au sujet du 30 mai
3. Créer un évenement facebook pour votre coin, et afficher les co-ordonnées ici
- London, ON: “So in London, Ont. we will be doing a cacerolazo tonight (Sunday) and perhaps Tuesday as well. Wednesday Maude Barlow of the Council of Canadians is speaking — so perhaps we should we step outside from that event with our pots & pans for 15 minutes.”
This Tuesday, May 22, marks the 100th day of the ongoing Quebec student’s unlimited strike, already one of the largest student mobilizations in recent history.
During 100 days of strike, contempt, and resistance, students have mobilized against steep tuition increases, austerity and debt, and the criminalization of the right to education. In order to break the growing strike and destroy the power of the student union, the Quebec Government enacted a special emergency law (Bill 78) this past Friday. Popularly known as “Loi Fuck,” the law is a blunt and draconian tool that outlaws public assembly, imposes harsh fines for strike activity (even tacit support), and effectively makes organizing an arrestable offense.
On Tuesday in New York City, CUNY students will stand in solidarity with Quebec students who will be marching in record numbers, in defense of the right to protest, and for the right to education as we determine it.
As part of these actions, the Free University is hosting a pop-up occupation Tuesday, May 22nd in Washington Square Park at 5PM about the state of the student unlimited strike in Quebec, the criminalization of dissent, and what this means for the student movement at CUNY. All who want to come and teach a class, facilitate a discussion, or host a skill-share as part of the Free University are welcome. Those interested are asked to come to the park with a sign announcing the class and check in at the table on the North side of the fountain at 5PM. All classes will be announced on a board at 6PM.
LIST OF EVENTS FOR TUESDAY, MAY 22nd
2PM—Demonstrate, 1 Rockefeller Plaza
Demonstration in solidarity with the Quebec Student Strike
Outside the Quebec Government Offices at 1 Rockefeller Plaza
5PM—Gather, Check-in, Washington Square Park, North Side of Fountain
Gather to paint banners, make ‘book bloc’ shields, and cut red squares for the evening march.
Check-in for those who want to facilitate lectures, workshops, skill-shares, and discussions. Please bring all the materials you may need to make banners and host classes.
6PM—Free University, Washington Square Park, various locations– check board on North Side of Fountain
Teach in/Speak out assembly about the Quebec student strike, the emergency laws, and the criminalization of dissent; followed by self-organized lectures, workshops, skill-shares, and discussions of the Free University.
8PM—Assembly and March, Washington Square Park
General Assembly and March against Repressive anti-protest laws worldwide
WEAR RED—
Students in Quebec use the symbol of the “red square” to signify being financially “in the red” amid tuition hikes, cuts in social entitlements, and the spectre of spiraling student and consumer debt. We are all ‘in the red’ as long as the 1% imposes upon us austerity, debt, and repression. An increase in the powers of the police and the state anywhere is an attack on us everywhere.
For more information about the Free University, please contact maydayfreeu@gmail.com
To better coordinate information between our demonstrations, these hash tags are in use in Quebec and would help student strikers learn of our tweets, etc.
Hashtags to use:
#GGI (Greve generale illimitee/Quebec student strike/movement)
#Loi78 (Bill 78)
#manifencours (Demonstrations in progress, all actions)
Against European institutions that are undemocratic, opaque and beyond society’s control, and which work in the interests of capital.
Against a European Central Bank that exists to promote speculation by the private banking sector, increases in public debt, privatisations, and cutbacks in public services.
Against the Fiscal Pact and the collection of policies and treaties that construct a Europe of capital against the rights of persons, peoples and ecosystems. For a derogation from the Lisbon Treaty that incorporates and institutionalises all these policies.
We are joining with the mobilisations presently taking place against the European Central Bank in Frankfurt (Germany), against the G8 summit in Camp David (United States) and in support of the No campaign in the referendum in Ireland on the “Austerity Treaty”
Friday, 18th May – 1900h Location: European Commission Offices – Irish Embassy Paseo de la Castellana, 46, Madrid – Metro: Rubén Darío (L5) Called by: EconomiaSol 15M Working Group
The construction of the European Union has been a project of political, economic and financial elites. Therefore the institutions and legislative frameworks that have been created are mere mechanisms for subordinating citizens to… the interests of capital. This has led to the centralisation of political power in undemocratic entities that lie beyond society’s control, such as the European Commission and the European Central Bank, which means a loss of popular sovereignty.
The distancing of centres of power from the citizens has brought about the creation of opaque decision-making mechanisms, the loss of transparency in public affairs, and a rise in corruption and in the powers of influence of business and financial lobbies (it is calculated that there are 15,000 lobbyists in Brusssels).
Figures from the banking sector and large corporations sit at the helm of institutions such as the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, as well as various ministries and public positions of power across 16 EU countries, including Spain. Beyond this, in Italy and Greece, heads of government elected by the people have been replaced by technocrats from the banking sector.
In the opposite direction, there are numerous cases of senior public officials who go on to sit on the executive boards of big banks and transnationals, rendering obvious the close relationships and common interests that exist between political and economic powers.
Within this framework, the European Central Bank exists as an institution in the service of capital. As the sole issuer of money, instead of funding states it lends money to the banking sector at very low interest rates (currently at 1%), money that is then used to patch up the banking sector itself and to speculate on states’ public debt.
This is the speculative game in which ratings agencies, risk premiums and highly profitable financial derivatives for betting on the bankruptcy of entire states come into play. States take on the enormous private debt of banks …and private corporations, who are the beneficiaries and ultimate causes of the crisis. This debt can be considered illegitimate, because its creation has not been for the benefit of citizens, but for private interests.
Debt thereby becomes a mechanism for subordination to economic powers, which through the Euro Pact and the Fiscal Pact (Austerity Treaty) impose cuts and privatisations on basic public services, the deregulation of the labour market, the lowering of salaries, pensions and welfare payments and the prioritisation of the payment of debt over and above any other public expenditure, as implemented with the reform of article 135 of our constitution. All this entails the dismantling of the present and future welfare state; the loss of citizen rights so that they can be put in the service of capital.
We will not continue to allow this crisis to be paid for by working people, the unemployed, the retired, the sick, migrants, and students! Let those who created the crisis pay for it! For a Europe of people and not of capital!
“Ireland vote NO for us”
Solidarity action on Ireland’s Referendum on the “Austerity Treaty”
Ireland stands out as the only country among the 25 signatories to the EU Fiscal Pact that will submit the treaty to a referendum. On the 31st of May, the Irish people will have the opportunity to decide on its future, to say NO to austerity and cuts in social spending, through a rejection of the treaty.
Ireland is currently immersed in an economic recession which it will not be able to exit should the EU Austerity Treaty be applied. This treaty imposes deep cuts and rises in taxes which will especially affect the poorest and most vulnerable. The Fiscal Pact stipulates that Ireland must ensure that its ‘structural deficit’ does not exceed 0.5% of GDP. The Irish government claims that the deficit will reach 3.7% in 2015, which means that cuts in spending on public services will rise by more than 5 billion euro in order to meet the deficit target; a rise in the austerity applied to social spending that had already been planned for the next three years and which has caused a rise in unemployment and emigration.
The second reason for voting NO to the Austerity Treaty is the struggle for a real democracy. The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has declared that the stipulations in the treaty will be ‘valid forever’. Even if one is in favour of the treaty, is it right to allow that this should be valid forever? Is it right to accept that those countries that go above the ceiling set for spending can be reported to the European Court of Justice by any of the other participants in the pact, and can be subjected to fines of up to 0.1% of their GDP? Certain crucial aspects of government policy would be removed even further from public debate and placed in the hands of judges and technocrats who have not been democratically elected.
Across Europe there is a growing movement in support of the vote against the Fiscal Pact in the Irish referendum. We are counting on the Irish people to vote against this treaty in the name of all those people who have been deprived of their voice, who have been denied the opportunity to vote in a referendum in their own countries. We ask the Irish people to vote NO to the Austerity Treaty.
Blockupy Frankfurt!
Resistence against the austerity policies of the Troika and governments – For international solidarity and the democratisation of all spheres of life.
From the 15M movement we join with the protests from the 16th to the 19th of May in Frankfurt against the anti-crisis policies of the European Union, policies that are driving millions of people into unemployment, precarity and misery. We will bring our outrage to one of the epicentres of power: the financial district of Frankfurt, headquarters of the European Central Bank and of many other powerful banks and financial conglomerates.
All across Europe mobilisations and protests are taking place against the massive programmes of cutbcks and privatisations, of wage cuts, increases in the retirement age, the elimination of public sector jobs and rescue packages for the banking sector.
The policies imposed by the EU promote division and xenophobia, they feed confrontation among working people, the unemployed and the precarious in different European countries. With these events we demonstrate our rejection of these policies, sending a signal of solidarity alongside all those people and movements who have been long fighting against the attacks on our rights and our future.
The protest events in Frankfurt are a continuation of the mobilisations of the Global Day of Action of 12M. At the same time in the US, actions will take place against the G8 summit, a summit that out of fear of popular protests has been moved from Chicago to Camp David.
Against global oppression, a global response! No to the Fiscal Pact! For a derogation from article 136 of our Constitution! For a derogation from the Lisbon Treaty!
No al Pacto Fiscal de la UE – No a los recortes Contra el Golpe de Estado Financiero DESMONTANDO las MENTIRAS de la UE Concentración- Cacerolada
Contra unas instituciones europeas no democráticas, opacas y sin control social, que trabajan por los intereses del capital.
Contra un Banco Central Europeo que sirve para alimentar la especulación de la banca privada, el incremento de la deuda pública, las privatizaciones y los recortes en los servicios públicos.
Contra el Pacto fiscal y el conjunto de políticas y tratados que construyen una Europa del capital frente a los derechos de las personas, los pueblos y los ecosistemas. Por la derogación del Tratado de Lisboa que recoge e institucionaliza todas estas políticas.
Nos sumamos a las movilizaciones que estos días tienen lugar contra el Banco Central Europeo en Frankfurt (Alemania), contra la cumbre del G8 en Camp David (EEUU) y en apoyo a la campaña por el NO en el referéndum de Irlanda sobre el “Tratado de Austeridad”.
Viernes, 18 de mayo – 19.00 h.
Lugar: Sede de la Comisión Europea – Embajada de
Irlanda
Paseo de la Castellana, 46, Madrid – Metro:
Rubén Darío (L5)
Convoca: Grupo de Trabajo EconomíaSol-15M
La construcción de la Unión Europea ha sido un proyecto de las élites políticas, económicas y financieras. Así, tanto las instituciones como los marcos legislativos creados no son sino mecanismos de sometimiento de la ciudadanía a los intereses del capital. Esto ha llevado a la centralización del poder político en organismos no democráticos que quedan lejos del control social, como la Comisión Europea o el Banco Central Europeo, lo que supone una pérdida de soberanía popular.
El alejamiento de los centros de poder respecto a la ciudadanía ha fomentado la creación de mecanismos de toma de decisiones opacos, la pérdida de transparencia en la gestión pública, el aumento de la corrupción y de la capacidad de influencia de los lobbies empresariales y financieros (se calcula que existen unos 15.000 lobbistas en Bruselas).
La gente de la banca y las grandes corporaciones ocupa las cúpulas de instituciones como el Banco Central Europeo o el Fondo Monetario Internacional, así como diversos ministerios y altos cargos en 16 países de la UE, entre los que se encuentra España. Más allá, en Italia y Grecia se ha sustituido a jefes de gobierno elegidos por el pueblo por tecnócratas procedentes de la banca.
En el otro sentido, son numerosos los casos de altos cargos públicos que pasan a formar parte de los consejos de administración de grandes bancos y transnacionales, lo que hace patente las fuertes relaciones e intereses comunes que existen entre los poderes políticos y los económicos.
En este marco, el Banco Central Europeo se constituye como institución al servicio del capital. Siendo el único organismo que tiene capacidad para emitir moneda, en lugar de financiar a los estados lo que hace es prestar dinero a la banca a tipos de interés muy bajos (en la actualidad al 1%), dinero que se utiliza para tapar los agujeros de la propia banca y para especular con la deuda pública de los estados.
Es en este juego especulativo en el que intervienen las agencias de calificación, las primas de riesgo y los derivados financieros que ofrecen grandes beneficios apostando a la bancarrota de países enteros. Los estados asumen la enorme deuda privada de los bancos y grandes corporaciones, beneficiarios y causantes últimos de la crisis. Una deuda que se puede considerar ilegítima, porque su creación no ha sido en provecho de la ciudadanía, sino de intereses particulares.
La deuda se convierte así en un mecanismo de sometimiento a los poderes económicos, que a través del Pacto del Euro y el Pacto Fiscal (Tratado de Austeridad) imponen el recorte y privatización de servicios públicos básicos, la desregulación del mercado laboral, el descenso de salarios, pensiones y prestaciones sociales y la priorización del pago de la deuda por delante de cualquier otro gasto público implementada con la reforma del artículo 135 de nuestra constitución. Todo esto supone el desmantelamiento del estado social presente y futuro; la pérdida de derechos de la ciudadanía para ponerlos al servicio del capital.
¡No vamos a seguir permitiendo que la crisis la paguen las personas trabajadoras, paradas, jubiladas, enfermas, migrantes y estudiantes! ¡Que la crisis la pague quien la ha creado! ¡Por una Europa de las personas y no de los capitales!
“IRLANDA vota NO por nosotr@s”
Acción solidaria para el Referéndum de Irlanda sobre el “Tratado de Austeridad”
Irlanda se distingue como el único país de los 25 signatarios del Pacto Fiscal de la UE que someterá el tratado a referéndum. El 31 de mayo, el pueblo irlandés tendrá la oportunidad de decidir su futuro, a decir NO a la austeridad y los recortes en gastos sociales, a través de un rechazo del tratado.
Actualmente, Irlanda está inmersa en una recesión económica de la que no podrá salir si se aplica el Tratado de Austeridad de la UE, que impone profundos recortes y subidas de impuestos que afectarán especialmente a las personas más empobrecidas y vulnerables. El Pacto Fiscal estipula que Irlanda debe conseguir que su “déficit estructural” no supere el 0,5% del PIB. El gobierno irlandés anuncia que el déficit alcanzará un 3,7% en 2015, lo que significa que los recortes en los gastos públicos para servicios sociales y la subida de los impuestos aumentarán en más de 5.000 millones de euros para cumplir con el nuevo objetivo de déficit; un incremento de la austeridad en los gastos sociales que ya se había planeado para los próximos tres años y que ha provocado un aumento del desempleo y de la emigración.
La segunda razón para votar NO al Tratado de Austeridad es la lucha por una democracia real. La canciller alemana Ángela Merkel ha declarado que lo estipulado en el tratado tendrá “validez para siempre”. Incluso si uno está a favor del tratado ¿es correcto permitir que sea válido para siempre? ¿O aceptar que aquellos países que superen el techo de gasto podrán ser denunciados al Tribunal de Justicia de la UE por cualquiera de los otros participantes del pacto, y estar sujetos a multas de hasta el 0.1% de su PIB? Algunos aspectos cruciales de la política gubernamental se alejarían, todavía más si cabe, del debate público y se entregarían a manos de unos jueces y unos tecnócratas que no habrían sido elegidos de forma democrática.
En toda Europa crece el movimiento que apoya el voto en contra del Pacto Fiscal en el referéndum de Irlanda. Contamos con el pueblo irlandés para vote en contra de este tratado en nombre de todas aquellas personas a las que se ha privado de su voz, a las que se ha negado la oportunidad de votar en un referéndum en sus propios países. Pedimos a l@s irlandes@s que voten NO al Tratado de Austeridad.
¡Blockupy Frankfurt!
Resistencia contra las políticas de austeridad de la Troika y los gobiernos – Por la solidaridad internacional y la democratización de todos los ámbitos de la vida.
Desde el movimiento 15M nos unimos a las protestas del 16 al 19 de mayo en Frankfurt contra las políticas anti-crisis de la Unión Europea, políticas que están llevando a millones de personas al paro, la precariedad y la miseria. Llevaremos nuestra indignación a uno de los epicentros del poder: el distrito financiero de Frankfurt, sede del Banco Central Europeo y de muchos otros poderosos bancos y conglomerados financieros.
En toda Europa se realizan movilizaciones y protestas contra los masivos programas de recortes y privatizaciones, la bajada de salarios, el incremento de la edad de jubilación, la eliminación de empleos públicos y los paquetes de ayudas a la banca.
Las políticas impuestas por la UE fomentan la división y la xenofobia, alientan el enfrentamiento entre las personas trabajadoras, desempleadas y precarias de los distintos países europeos. Con estas jornadas mostramos nuestra repulsa a estas políticas, lanzando una señal de solidaridad junto con todas las personas y movimientos que ya desde hace mucho tiempo luchan contra los ataques a nuestros derechos y a nuestro futuro.
Las jornadas de protesta de Frankfurt dan continuidad a las movilizaciones del Día de Acción Global del 12M. Al mismo tiempo y en los EEUU tendrán lugar acciones contra la cumbre del G8, cumbre que por miedo a las protestas populares ha sido ya trasladada desde Chicago a Camp David.
¡Ante la opresión global, una respuesta global! ¡No al Pacto Fiscal! ¡Por la derogación del articulo 136 de nuestra Constitución! ¡Por la derogación del Tratado de Lisboa!
Today, on the one year anniversary of the indignados movement in Spain, people from around the world representing the global Occupy movement went onto the streets to say ENOUGH to the corrupt capitalist economic system that has lead the world into a global financial crisis, making the lives of the majority of the world’s citizens every day more precarious. I myself, a dual American and Spanish citizen, have witnessed the effects of the crisis in the United States, Spain, Serbia and now the United Kingdom, and was lucky enough to participate in the day’s demonstrations in London where a large crowd with a diverse array of smiles and messages filled the streets with their demands for a more just society.
I arrived in front of St. Paul’s Cathedral at around 12.30 pm, a half an hour before the day’s activities were planned to kick off, and was immediately startled by the disproportionate number of police deployed. Down a small side street behind St. Paul’s where I locked up my bicycle, I spotted at least 5 squad cars. Sure, the crowd was large, but the majority of the day’s participants were peaceful protesters waving flags and signs, yelling slogans in favour of the 99% and dancing to the beat of music in the street. These smiling faces, people of all ages with dogs and babies, could hardly constitute a threat that would justify the financial expenditure necessary to deploy such a highly visible police presence.
I approached a police officer to enquire after the best place to lock up my bike. The officer eyed me up and down, and noticing my polite demeanour calmly asked me where I was heading. “Here”, I stated without flinching, nodding towards the plaza in front of St. Paul’s. “Your staying here?” replied the policeman, his face falling in dismay as he realized he was talking to one of “them”. “Well you’d better lock it up far from here”, he warned me, “because if we have to do anything it might be removed”. I walked away wondering what the officer had meant by “do anything”. The police present were visibly nervous and had obviously been briefed so that if anyone so much as blinked in the wrong direction police force would be deployed.
Despite the initial surprise at the nervous aggression with which the officers paced around the plaza eyeing up everyone from anarchists inAnonymous masks to grandmothers sitting in the sun with a sign calling for “Real Democracy Now”, I realized that it wasn’t the participants that made the police so nervous but the message. As one of the afternoon’s speakers so aptly noted, the police are here to protect the status quo, and what every single person in front of St.Paul`s on the 12th of May 2012 was asking for was Change. Fundamental, real, visible, immediate change so that they can go on living their lives without the constant fear of losing their jobs, their benefits, their homes, and even their lives.
The day’s speakers were diverse and passionate and demonstrated the many faces of the precarity we are all experiencing to greater or lesser degrees. From the disabled woman who ironically addressed the crowd screaming,” I apologize to all of you, because it was me, me and my disabled peers, we caused the financial crisis by claiming benefits”, and who explained how the benefits keeping her safe and alive are about to be cut due to the government’s austerity measures, to the university student who pointed out that no one had planned for a system to be formed in which the mistake of one individual in a corporation could affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of others, everyone had a different story, a new example of how the system is failing us all.
The day kicked off with a member of the New Economics Institute www.neweconomicsinstitute.orgwho explained how the financial crisis had begun and the effects the economic policies of the 1% are having on the lives of real people in the United Kingdom, Greece, around Europe and around the world. The second speaker, a G.P (general practitioner) from the U.K´s National Health Service (NHS)explained how the financial crisis is leading the government in the United Kingdom to push to privatize the healthcare system and emulate the inhumane and exclusionary health system upheld in the United States. Other speakers included lawyers, university professors, members of the Spanish indignados movement, people calling for the protection of common space and even a representative of theOccupy Leyton Marshes www.saveleytonmarsh.wordpress.com movement that demonstrated how the current financial crisis and the government greed in light of the pending Olympic Games has lead to corporate land grabs of green spaces at the local level. What all these people had in common was their determination to continue the struggle, to build up a mass movement and to fight for social justice, for equality and security.
What the world witnessed today in London, and in cities and towns around the world, is that these people aren’t a threat requiring police with batons that aim to protect everyone’s god given right to private property. The Occupy movement is made up of people from every walk of life, the employed, the unemployed, students, mothers, fathers and neighbours. The face of the 99% are the mothers who demand safe green public places for their children to grow up in, the people born with disabilities who are unable to work and need financial support in order to live a healthy safe life, the under 25 who doesn’t want to have to choose between going into debt and having a future, the university professor who is watching the economic system of his country crumble and the suicide rates skyrocket, the doctor who doesn’t want to turn someone away for treatment because they couldn’t afford to pay for insurance.
The 99% are all of us, because evolution has created a world in which not all of us are equal, and every one of us is different and unique. Any one of us could end up in a position in which we need to ask for help from the community around us, where we may need a social security net in place in order to make it safely through the night. All of us hope that we will never end up in this sort of position, but if one day some of us do end up in a situation in which we are unable to fend for ourselves, it will be better not to wonder why we didn’t fight earlier for a system that ensures the wellbeing of each and every member of society, no matter who we are or what we need. In the current system, however, it doesn’t matter how hard you work, study or plan for the future, the future is never certain.
Society exists so that we can work together to take care of each other, so we can ensure the survival of our species and our planet. The global Occupy movement is important, world altering and getting more media attention than any other social movement in decades because it is demanding something tangible that all of us want and need. It is demanding that a security net be put firmly in place because the future is for all of us, and all of our children, no matter who they are or what their situation. We may not be the same, but we all equally deserve a future without fear and without precarity. On May 12th 2012, one year after the Indignados movement sparked a wave of global protest, the Occupy movement has shown the world it is here to stay, that we will continue to struggle, to go into the streets and to demand justice. Why? Because the world is for more than just the 1%, the world is for all of us. We all deserve a fair chance and a life without fear, and we will Occupy until we get it!
Hundreds of thousands flock into Puerta del Sol as part of a global day of action to commemorate the first anniversary of the 15-M movement.Why would we need political parties if we can have a political party? That’s the question that rang through my head as I roamed around Puerta del Sol last night, climbing on top of the metro station to see a crowd of hundreds of thousands amassed in the square. In one corner, people were actively debating alternatives to capitalism and representative democracy — in another, hundreds were dancing wildly to the revolutionizing beats of a professional drum circle.At midnight, the square was still crammed with people. Earlier, tens of thousands had marched to Sol from four different corners in the city. Walking along with the Southern march, we witnessed the incredible sight of more people joining us in every single neighborhood we passed through. In a sign that the 15-M movement has effectively decentralized itself, neighborhood assemblies amassed locally and then joined the larger marches to Sol.
The principle reason the indignados took back to the square last night is that this week marks the first anniversary of the movement. On May 15 last year, several dozens of activists followed in the footsteps of the Tahrir revolutionaries and pitched the first tents on Puerta del Sol, marking the birth of a non-violent popular protest movement that would quickly spread throughout Spain, to Greece and then on to Wall Street and beyond.
As part of this anniversary, the assemblies of the 15-M movement called for another global day of action, like the one on October 15 last year. The call was answered by hundreds of thousands of people in 60 Spanish cities and at least 50 countries throughout the world. In Tel Aviv, tens of thousands took to Rabin Square to fire up their own movement again, while Occupy London protesters were met with a police crackdown on their attempt to set up a new camp.
But there was another, less festive reason the indignados were back in the square this weekend. A year down the line, a right-wing government has come to power and the economic situation has only further aggravated. With investors fearing a Greek-style escalation of the country’s debt troubles, Spain has now become the focal point in Europe’s never-ending crisis. In response, the government pushed through the most radical austerity program on the continent.
Furthermore, the government made a move this week to bail-out the country’s third biggest lender, Bankia, which had long been beset with trouble as more and more homeowners began to default on their mortgages. Spain is plagued with the highest unemployment in the developed world: almost 25 percent for the average population and over 50 percent for the younger generation. Since 2007, over 350.000 families (!!!) have been evicted from their homes.
Yet despite the dark clouds of debt hanging over the country, the atmosphere in Sol last night was exhilarating and festive. When at some point a number of police vans retreated from the square, hundreds started dancing and screaming all around them, screaming “Sol belongs to the people!”. Towards 2am, thousands sat down in the middle of the square for the first general assembly since the demobilization of the camp in June last year. Noone seemed to mind the fact that the authorities had officially “forbidden” the presence of any protesters in the square after 10pm.
But then, towards 5am in the morning, as the crowds began to thin out and hundreds had already passed out on their makeshift cardboard beds, the police suddenly did move in. In a violent crackdown on the completely peaceful temporary autonomous space that had been created, policemen roughly dragged away protesters, arresting at least a dozen and a half, and pinning one girl to a wall for at least 20 minutes.
Yet, as usual, the indignados showed immediate resolve. Today, from 5pm on, thousands flocked back into the square and many thousands more are expected to join them tonight. Until May 15, the movement has organized dozens (if not hundreds) of thematic assemblies and workshops in squares and parks across Madrid, ranging from healthcare and economics to infrastructural questions and future actions. Similar activities are underway across Spain.
All of this is telling us something very important: our movement survived the cold winter months and is gearing up for another season of simultaneous contestation and co-creation. Last night, the people had smiles upon their faces, for the movement once more proved that it remains a force to be reckoned with. One message circulating on Twitter yesterday perfectly captured the mood here in Madrid: “this is not an anniversary — it’s a tradition!”
Hundreds of thousands flock into Puerta del Sol as part of a global day of action to commemorate the first anniversary of the 15-M movement.Why would we need political parties if we can have a political party? That’s the question that rang through my head as I roamed around Puerta del Sol last night, climbing on top of the metro station to see a crowd of hundreds of thousands amassed in the square. In one corner, people were actively debating alternatives to capitalism and representative democracy — in another, hundreds were dancing wildly to the revolutionizing beats of a professional drum circle.At midnight, the square was still crammed with people. Earlier, tens of thousands had marched to Sol from four different corners in the city. Walking along with the Southern march, we witnessed the incredible sight of more people joining us in every single neighborhood we passed through. In a sign that the 15-M movement has effectively decentralized itself, neighborhood assemblies amassed locally and then joined the larger marches to Sol.
