Rotterdam: a house in the Pompenburg flat has been squatted

By: fawda - October 26th, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

There are new squatters in town! A house in the Pompenburg flat has been squatted by the anarchist collective RATS. It’s squatted in solidarity with the inhabitants of the Pompenburg Flat who are fighting against the demolition of the building.

The building which is home to hundreds of residents in 226 social housing homes was announced to be demolished in 2019 (and residents only found out by the newspaper!) for a 250 meter high tower developed by RED Company in collaboration with social housing corporation Havensteder and gemeente Rotterdam. The building, which was originally not in the redevelopment plans for the Pompenburg area, was campaigned to be demolished by the municipality themselves despite over 80% of the residents against demolition. These plans also call for the eviction and destruction of communal gardens in Park Pompenburg and the various community projects based in Schieblock whom are dear friends of ours, for high rise towers of mostly luxury apartments.

We stand in solidarity with the residents organizing and fighting for the last three years against backroom deals to demolish their homes. Sloop ons niet! [Read More]

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Sheffield, UK: Students are occupying The Diamond to protest the uni working with arms companies

By: sisulscz - October 24th, 2022  Filed under: News

A group of University of Sheffield students have occupied The Diamond in protest of the university’s partnership with Rolls Royce, Boeing and BAE Systems.

Sheffield Action Group has taken responsibility for the occupation following a tweet they published this morning. The group has called for “no war criminals on campus or in careers fairs.”
[Read More]

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Amsterdam: Housing justice now! Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 302 squatted

By: fawda - October 23rd, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

Sunday 23 october, rolling out a giant banner, squatters’ collective Mokum Kraakt announced that it has squatted four days ago Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 302. House peace is set, preventing the police to immediately evict. Here their public statement:

The city is cracking at the seams. The housing crisis is far from over. On top of that the energy and inflation crises are causing daily life as such to be unaffordable. At the same time, real estate investors, landlords and speculators are being pampered while mass tourism and gentrification are wrecking the liveability of the city.

The people of Amsterdam are succumbing under capital’s dead weight. Mokum is succumbing under the lack of space for young people, working people, poor people, refugees and old people. Mokum is succumbing under the stranglehold of the rich and the proprietors and the slow suffocation of alternative culture.

But Mokum fights back. We no longer accept that our city is for the rich only. That the economic and commercial interests of real estate owners are unassailable. That we can no longer give shape to our own city, its culture, the way that we live. And that living space is wasted on vacancy and neglect when most Amsterdammers may soon not be able to afford their flats, their energy or their food. [Read More]

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Paris: Ambassade des Immigrés squat evicted

By: fawda - October 19th, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

This morning, Wednesday 19 September, at 4:30 am the Ambassade des Immigrés squat was evicted in violence. There were as many police officers as inhabitants.
Women, men, children, sick and handicapped people were awakened by the doors of their rooms being crushed by the CRS, police and gendarmes. While the people were being evicted, nearly fifteen cop trucks blocked Saulnier Street and the neighborhood. The inhabitants of the squat were not able to recover their belongings or the papers they kept in their rooms…
If we didn’t believe promises, there was no way to anticipate the violence, the repression and the illegality in which the inhabitants of the Ambassade des immigrés were evicted this morning.
The current emergency concerns 6 people who were rounded up when their names were on the list of people to be housed and who are currently being held in administrative detention. They are detained on rue de l’Aubrac at the police station specialized in the arrest of undocumented migrants. These 6 people risk being sent to the CRA (Centre de Rétention Administrative) and deported to Eritrea, Sudan and Mali.

We demand their immediate release without conditions! [Read More]

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Amsterdam: Squatted hotel Rembrandt evicted

By: fawda - October 16th, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

Squatted hotel Rembrandt was evicted on the 15th of October 2022. The eviction happened after only a few days of occupation. According to the court the building was unsafe to reside in. This decision was made in our absence, we were not given the ability to present evidence in our defense and no inspection had taken place.

Even though the biggest part of the building is safe to live in and the stripped part had been closed off, the court decided to evict without a hearing. We wonder if it has something to do with the extremely expensive lawyers of the owner?

The police came by on the 14th of October to announce that we would have to leave, our lawyer confirmed they made this decision and going into high appeal would not call off the eviction. They gave us 3 hours to pack our stuff.

Autonomous Student Struggle (A.S.S.) called for a demonstration in front of the building, to protest against this ridiculous verdict to protect the landlords of the city from homeless students.The police decided not to show themselves until the next morning when they evicted us with their special forces. Resistance ensued in the form of barricades, the occupants could escape before being captured. The owner hired private security to stand in front of the door for the rest of the day. [Read More]

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Utrecht: squatted floors on the Oudegracht 106-108 illegally evicted

By: fawda - October 2nd, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

Utrecht (Netherlands) – Late Saturday evening the police nevertheless proceeded with an illegal eviction to protect the interests of the owner Caron Realestate & Management BV.

Earlier in the day, squatters had announced that they had been using the upper floors for several days.
In response, the police responded accordingly, and an officer of justice explained to the owner that a procedure will be initiated, that he could file a complain and have his arguments for a possible urgent case reviewed by the investigation judge.
This is a new procedure to get squatters out of a property faster that went into effect on July 1, 2022. [Read More]

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Utrecht: neccesity breaks law

By: fawda - October 1st, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

Squatted buildings in central Utrecht to celebrate 12 years of squatting ban

Utrecht (Netherlands) – On October 1, 2022, exactly 12 years after the Squatting and Vacancy Act (Wet Kraken en leegstand) came into effect, the office spaces above the Intersport on Oudegracht 106-108 were squatted. The squatters aim to demonstrate that squatting is still a legitimate option in addressing and combating the housing crisis and homelessness. Although the law is supposed to combat vacancy, vacancy rates have only increased since the squatting ban. At the same time, there is an unprecedented housing crisis, which means that people searching for a house are on waiting lists, miss out on houses because investors outbid them and, when they do manage to get a house, have to work their asses off to pay the rent. This while squatting and the squatting movement have been criminalized and persecuted. [Read More]

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Susa Valley: barricading weekend on the border

By: fawda - September 22nd, 2022  Filed under: News

October 01-03, weekend to build barricades at the occupied house on the border, we want to invite anyone interested to give us a hand to make the house safer, before winter! We are waiting for you !
Yallah, the autonomous occupied shelter, is in Cesana-Torinese, between Oulx and Claviere, Italy. This house is owned by Enel, the main company that manages the production but above all distribution of electricity in Italy and of course they are not very happy to have us here.
An eviction could take place at any time. Since there is always a lot to do here en not always enough skills, we want to invite anyone interested to come and spend a weekend with us at Yallah, help us to make the house safer and sharing dinners together! We have some building materials and tools, but it would be nice if more were brought in! [Read More]

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Ljubljana: statement from the Anarchist Initiative in support of the new autonomous center PLAC

By: fawda - September 11th, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

It gives us great joy to welcome the establishment of a new autonomous space PLAC in Ljubljana that started today with the communal-political occupation of the empty, derelict, and publicly-owned building on Linhart Street!

We see this occupation as a protest against the existing social order and as a concrete answer to the daily worsening of social circumstances and problems such an order creates.
Occupation is a political act of emancipation and direct action that addresses important social issues, pertaining to all of us and our collective futures. The housing crisis, high rent, and lack of non-commercial spaces for creativity and action are but a few of these issues. Indirectly, it also addresses rampant corruption, social inequality, and the distribution of the Commonwealth. The newly occupied publicly-owned building, that is managed by the DUTB (‘bad bank’ organization) quite literally represents the money we all paid for the great bank bailout of 2012. Back then, the name of the game was a shameless transfer of wealth from the have-nots to the haves. With this occupation, we are returning a small part of that stolen money to the people for communal use. [Read More]

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Ljubljana: PLAC, new autonomous zone squatted

By: fawda - September 7th, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

Last Saturday, a new autonomous zone was established in Ljubljana, called the Participatory Ljubljana Autonomous Zone (PLAC). The squat is located at 43 Linhartova Street, behind Bežigrad.

Around 13:00 on Saturday 3rd september, around 100 people entered the abandoned building of the former canteen of the Ljubljana Road Company at 43 Linhartova Street and declared the occupied building an autonomous zone. They wrote that they had created “a space for all those who have been sidelined by the socio-political order and deprived of the infrastructure for their cultural and political participation and the realization of their aspirations”. In the hours following the occupation of the empty building, the premises and the surrounding area were cleaned up. [Read More]

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Wassenaar: Ivicke remains – empty

By: fawda - September 3rd, 2022  Filed under: News

Wassenaar (Netherlands) – The inhabitants of Huize Ívicke on Rust en Vreugdlaan (avenue of rest and joy) in Wassenaar have left. The monumental country house, which they returned to meaningful use in July 2018 after years of vacancy, is once again free as a bird. What will happen to the fairy-tale mansion and the surrounding estate in the coming years, no one knows. If it were up to slum king Ronnie van de Putte, the villa would rather be on fire yesterday than today in order to ultimately make as much profit with the estate as possible.

As friends of this autonomous residential community, which has allowed the abandoned estate to flourish in an impressive way in 4 years, we are very concerned about the future of Ívicke. Although the property – with its many rooms – was built 110 years ago as a residential home, the municipality of Wassenaar has fought tooth and nail to ensure that it may no longer be inhabited by anyone. Now – in accordance with the zoning plan – an office is to be built, but which company and when? Van de Putte seems to be the last one to worry about this question. And that is worrisome, because several of his hovels have already mysteriously gone up in flames. Not for nothing has the municipality now placed fences and cameras around Ívicke. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: Wijde Heisteeg 7 call out

By: fawda - August 23rd, 2022  Filed under: Communique, News

On the 9th January 2016 a squatting action took place in the center of Amsterdam. WH7 Wijde Heisteeg 7, a 6 story building in a pretty bad shape. This action was done for two reasons, the presentation of the squatting manual and as a living/social space.
The building was chosen for being a famous example of emptiness for speculation. It is owned by P. W. Hagedoorn, A well know speculator from the city who was also involved with the Spinhuis eviction.
The house was previously squatted in 2007 till 2011. Then was evicted to remain empty for five more years till it was squatted again.
The project hosted numerous people as well a social space with a free shop and different activities. It also worked together with the neighbours and Vereniging Vrienden van de Amsterdamse Binnenstad to fight against the owner and his new project. He wanted to make a renovation that was met with opposition of both groups for different reasons. [Read More]

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