Ghent, Belgium, September 23: Manifestation to oppose war preparation

Protest against the informal EU Defence Summit 2010 (sept 23-24), Ghent, Belgium

Stop the European militarisation

During the Belgian presidency of the European Union (2nd half of 2010) the Ministers of Defence of the member states will gather for an informal summit, on September 23 and 24 in the town of Ghent. This summit will take place almost a year after the Lisbon Treaty became effective. This treaty implements a lot of instruments which pull the Union further on a track of militarisation and prepare for military interventions outside Europe. We oppose a summit that prepares for war. The European Union must not become an economic bloc with a military arm. Europe is to be a peace project which before all focuses on a social and ecological policy, which creates sustainable jobs, which garantees public services and protects social security, which realises a fair and just trade policy and invests in sustainable development. In short, Europe is to be a peace project that puts and end to neoliberal policies. We must make sure that development cooperation is not used at all for military purposes.

Bremen: Small action against the link between space research, military purposes and the FORNTEX war against refugees

General Motors of the European Army and Border Surveillance (EABS) says „Thank you“ to the space researchers at the COSPAR 2010 in Bremen.

COSPAR is a big meeting of up to 3000 space researchers from all over the world that took place in Bremen this month. It was mainly financed by the Bremen based multinationals OHB and EADS who are involved in European satellite programs like GMES or SAR-LUPE that are used by the German army and also by FRONTEX in the war against refugges.

„Thank you for your collaboration in our fight against terrorists, pirates and illegal immigrants. Your science – our wars!“ the General adressed the researchers. His soldiers handed out greeting cards to the participants that show some places in Bremen, a boat with refugees and a vessel of the marine. The action was part of the campaign against the involvement of universities, companies and state funds in Bremen in the war against refugees.

Warsaw: Protest at Frontex Fifth Anniversary Conference

Following the anti-Frontex conference in Warsaw on May 22, there were a number of small actions against the agency. Amidst rather strict secrecy and security, on May 24, Frontex started their conference in Warsaw. A few activists managed to get to the registration point and make some noise.

NL: Occupation of the deportation centre Zestienhoven

25th of March, Rotterdam, Netherlands

It is 5 am as roughly 50 activists begin the occupy the prospective deportation centre Zestienhoven, 100 meters from the airport. The "DC 16" is still under construction, but starting from next June it will imprison 576 men, women and children before their deportation. Several activists chain themselves to the main entrance, whilst 25 others climb onto the roof of the building unfolding the banner "SHAME!" and enter the premises.

At the blockaded entrance to the building site all workers (some of them migrants) are being sent home. The police negotiate to no avail – in fact, they are afraid, that the activists might blow up the gas depot located on the site. Here it must be noted, that an arson last summer had destroyed the barrack of the building site. As the police realize, that no one had come to blow up whatsoever, they proceed to action (with great helicopter support). Upon their intervention, precious time for the extension of the occupation is already won.

Even though all activist are photographed by the police during the day, the group still manages to evade searches and identity checks for the activists which are not chained to the entrance as they leave. And after useless orders, the police begin to cut the chains. All chained up activists are arrested. Hereupon, the identities of the activists on the roof are checked, which takes another two hours. Then at 5:15 pm (after a twelve hour occupation) the police also manages to arrest the group on the roof. In order to get onto the roof, they hid in a barrel which was lifted onto it by a crane.

Some news from Romania

See invitation for the meeting

The excessive security aspect has become a problem in our lives ever since we integrated into NATO, and then in the EU, then we managed to face with brio the "tests" these organizations have arranged for us. Perhaps the pride of the Romanians was not to be inferior to those great "powers" of Western economic, or show our fear of poverty and how useless we are as a state to the European political and economical discussion, when we carry only a function of pion, many times of sacrifice, in their game of chess.

It was also mentioned in political or economical circles, restricted or wide (at local and regional organizations, or meetings of the Future Group, when discussing future directions for the EU) about how much it is needed to control "breaches" in the new holy war of capitalism: the struggle against a "terrorism" who in fact is non-existent, but that includes everything that opposes them, so a war against us, against the people who have the courage to say "Why?" and "Until when?".

The Freiburg Programme

A five year plan on deviant behaviour, creating a European space of freedom, anti-capitalism and rebellion

deutsch: http://outofcontrol.noblogs.org/post/2010/02/26/freiburg-programm

serbian: http://outofcontrol.noblogs.org/post/2010/02/26/frajburski-program

The European wide network „out of control“ was created in 2009 with the purpose of a cross-border collaboration of activists against a European security architecture. We are comprised of a wide range of activists throughout Europe, that all have in common their will to bring out a clearer overview of the European security and control architecture. We are certain that we can move on from understanding and analysing, towards structuring and organising resistance.

We focus on police collaboration and databases, policing crowds at large events such as summit protests, the security industry and security research as well as EU-wide treaties which endanger civil liberties all over the world.
We notice that there is no European wide response towards the border-crossing repression of the EU while it evolves into a state with its own powers. Struggles are taking place in some EU member states in sub-areas like data retention or of course against the EU migration regime and the Frontex agency. Further on, we also notice the lack of a common understanding of the construction of the security architecture and its European architects.

As a first step, we want to exchange experience, knowledge and information to have a clearer collective and common idea of the European security architecture. In a second step we want to establish common and convergent actions and campaigns. We are not suggesting to single out one of the numerous struggles against the European security state as a priority. But we want to ask ourselves collectively how we can struggle together to arrive at effective practices against this new security order. We are not naive. We know that it will take a lot of time of synthesising, understanding and commitment. We are looking at this project as a long term process. We are sure, that the cross-border repression organised on EU-level must be countered by cross-border solidarity and action.

After a constituting meeting in summer 2009, we came together in autumn to a broader assembly in Freiburg with participants from a handful of countries in the EU. Our first step was to analyse the means that changed the landscape of European security collaboration. We looked at technical tools such as border control sensors, biometrics, video surveillance, police usage of satellite data, flying cameras, non-lethal weapons, investigation software, “predictive analysis” and databases like the Visum Information System VIS, the Schengen Information System SIS or the fingerprint database EURODAC.

Thereupon we reviewed European level actors, such as the European Commission, its agencies Frontex, Europol and the European Gendarmerie Force EUROGENDFOR, and looked at strategies like the „Stockholm Programme“, the Lisbon Treaty, the scheduled „internal security strategy“ and the merging of police, military and intelligence. Further on, we also focused on various European companies that provide this apparatus with ever new technical gadgets.
Hereafter we discussed the radical changes which accompany the merging of internal and external security and its forces, shifting towards a database society, whilst also pushing the will to enhance surveillance and improve control by technical means.

The final session of our meeting had the aim to decide on future networking and action. We did not yet focus on concrete plans, but agreed on a long-term analysis and collaboration in various forms of protest and resistance. The idea of the five year “Freiburg Programme” was born.

AUTONOMOUS SPACE FOR MIGRANTS AND ACTIVISTS OPENS IN CALAIS

Press Release 28 January, 2010, London NoBorders

Activists from the transnational No Borders network and the French
organisation, SôS Soutien aux Sans Papiers, have opened a large warehouse for migrants in Calais[1].

The building is to be an autonomous space for migrants and activists
struggling for the right to freedom of movement. It will be host to
information-sharing, debate and practical solidarity. The Kronstadt
building is located in the town that has become the symbol of Fortress
Europe, a place where police arrests and beatings of migrants are a
daily occurrence, and where night-time pursuits are relentless[2].

By this act, they stand in solidarity with those for whom border and immigration control is a discriminatory, oppressive and unjust reality.
In a real democracy, every person enriches society in myriad ways, and
no-one is surplus to requirements; neither the unemployed, the young,
the old, or the foreign.

Opening of an Infopoint at the European Commission, Berlin

Ladies and Gentlemen!

I bid you all welcome on behalf of the Agency for Freedom of Movement! We are very pleased to greet you here today on the occasion of this festive and forward-looking action.
In the last thirty minutes we have heard and seen with what defensive measures people who enter the European Union in search of a better life are confronted.
The International Organization for Migration, IOM, attempts to prevent people from leaving when they are still in their native country.
The European border patrol agency Frontex and the border guard agencies stop people even before they reach the external borders of Europe and force them to return to where they came from.
In the countries of the EU people are held in detention camps and deportation centers. We want these conditions to become a thing of the past as soon as possible!