Yesterday, friday the 25th of april, two cops were lurking through the Mühlfeldgasse in the 2nd district of Vienna at around 20hr. Shortly afterwards a group of people was attacked by the cops in front of the Pizzeria Anarchia squat. Like almost everyday, the viennese cops terrorizing our district were carrying out a racist control.
A bunch of people, who were attending a public workshop, decided to start an intervention in solidarity. This intervention was limited to asking for the reason for the control (it was a normal control), asking for the identification number of the cops (30967) and taking photos for documentation. The police was taking the controlled person with them. We tried to enforce that a solidary person can accompany the police car or at least to find out to which the person was supposed to be taken to.
Suddenly 4 cops sprinted to the scene, coming from 2 different directions. Until this point, everything was relatively quiet. A moment after another copcar arrived. The cops refused allowing a person to accompany the arrested one in the copcar, but they told the policestation to which the person was being taken by the cops (Vorgartenstraße). When the people tried to leave the scene, there was a sudden attack by the cops from behind. Meanwhile more and more police units arrived. Massive violence by the police was taking place. Pepperspray, kicking, punches using batons and fists, brutal immobilization. So brutal, that one person was temporarilly unconcsious. Ambulances were ordered. At first the medics only treated the cops, who were hurt by their own pepper sprays. They weren’t allowed to treat the unconcsious person or the other people hurt. In the mean time the police kept brutalizing the defenceless persons. Some people tried to help directly. The streets surrounding the pizzeria were paved with police vans and cars, WEGA (viennese special unit) and canine squad arrived. A storming of the Pizzeria Anarchia seemed possible. The 3 immobilized people were carried off, still without medical attention.
Our district in the near of the praterstern is under police siege since days. Racist controls are a daily routine. It’s not enough anymore to say, “Cops, get the fuck out of our district”. We have to organise!
We believe this could have been a planed escalation. Which, in the light of the nearer coming eviction date on the 2nd of June, can also be seen as a demonstration of power. Anyhow the police in Vienna is going berserk for months and seems to know no limits.
This was being confirmed again, when solidary persons went to the police station to find out informations about the imprisoned persons. At first any information was denied. After an hour of waiting, about 20 WEGA cops tried to remove the group, telling them otherwise they will be imprisoned because it’s well known to which environment they belong. We have the need to state that the group was waiting quietly on the sidewalk in front of the police station. At this incident first vague informations were given. Afterwards again any information was denied. Until now we don’t know where the imprisoned persons were taken to. The group left the area because of the threatening police force, but was being stopped again two streets later. A single person was controlled, but was left alone again with no information what so ever. This intimidation attempt shows again, that this bunch of hooligans is not respecting the legal framework, on whose authority they claim to act. We don’t want to tolerate the gradual acceptance of police brutality any more.
Thanks to all solidary persons. Also to those, who couldn’t come directly. We were told, that to some persons our SMS wasn’t formulated clearly enough. We try to communicate in a even more plain way. Please take our calls for help seriously, we will only state them in cases of emergency.
We assume the controls will be increasing. We need even more supply. We will not be intimidated. Come to the pizzeria on sundays, check our blog, develop phone trees. Pizza resists. Now more than ever.
Freedom for our three friends! Freedom for Josef! Fight repression with all means necessary!
Pizzeria anarchiA
Mühlfeldgasse12, 1020 Mazzes
pizzaction.noblogs.org / pizza.noblogs.org
