Eight weeks to go for the Valreep. Mayor van der Laan was getting too impatient to evict the Valreep, social centre squatted since 24 july 2011. At the end of April, after yet another proposal by the squatters to legalise the building, the eviction letter was delivered not by some random cop but by Leen Schaap himself, the nostalgic police chief, commanding police forces during every eviction in Amsterdam. Schaap did not hesitate to climb the fences to make his way to the Valreep. “How do you feel about this?” dares he to ask while handing the letter. Idealen ontruim niet! (You can’t evict ideals!) announces the Valreep website. [Read More]
UK: Squatting as a solution to the housing crisis
The occupation of the former police station on Lower Clapton Road by Hackney residents who describe themselves as “not political” but homeless provides the owners – namely Free School Trust the Olive School – with the opportunity to prove their claimed commitment to “community service and charitable giving”, as reported on their website.
The Olive School must act humanely and negotiate with the occupiers to find a mutually beneficial deal that allows the occupiers to remain in the building until refurbishment commences.
[Read More]
Rio de Janeiro: Evictions in the favelas… for a better World Cup ?
Eviction on April 11th, 2014
[Read More]
Germany: Reoccupation of the Hambach Forest
Since April 2012, activists in Germany have occupied the Hambach forest to prevent the expansion of Europe’s largest open-cast coal mine. The mine expansion project would mean the clearcutting of the forest and the eviction of thousands of local residents. On March 27, 2014, the forest occupation was evicted by police and today, on April 26, 2014 a new occupation arose. There are platforms and walkways up in the trees and a big demonstration is taking place close by. After a couple of days of strong repressions and the constant attempt by the „authorities“ to criminalize the sruggle the reoccupation is successful. For more information and a current ticker visit our English blog (hambachforest.blogsport.de).
[Read More]
Nijmegen (Netherlands): solidarity action
Solidarity action with all the arrested during the eviction of the squatted house on Tweede Walstraat 3 in Nijmegen on 27th of April!
There is always someone, somewhere, having a feeling that screaming out loud the words of solidarity sometimes just isn’t enough. This time, this feeling of unrest was present in Nijmegen. Embraced by the dark of the night, in the very first hours of 29th of April, we entered a police parking lot. As a result of this trespassing 5 cop cars and vans got their tires slashed. As long as the police continues abusing their power… Well actually, as long as the police exists, we will see it as suiting to try and destroy everything that makes their activities possible. [Read More]
Notre-Dame-des-Landes: Thwarted Eviction of a New Squat on the ZAD
St. Jean du Tertre Resists!
Faced with the clear threat of police intervention on the ZAD, the airport opposition movement showed their determination, their unity, and their capicity to mobilize.
Farmers, squatters and citizens barricaded together the roads leading to the newly squatted house, called St. Jean du Tertre.
Dozens of tractors and several hundred people were there waiting at 5am. This massive and unified reaction will be a systematic response to any attempt of the police to come onto the zone.
[Read More]
Vienna: Cops go crazy. Three people brutally arrested. District under siege.
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. [Read More]
Great Cornard (UK): Man defies police
From local mainstream press in Suffolk, UK:
Homeless man defies police to go on squatting in village pub
A squatter living in a closed Great Cornard pub has said he has no intention of leaving despite efforts by police to move him on.
David Vernon has been making himself at home at the Highbury Barn in Canhams Road for more than three weeks.
[Read More]
Grenoble (France): Demonstration against all kinds of evictions, April 25th
FRIDAY 25 APRIL, at 12.00 am (noon)
Place de Verdun (Préfecture), Grenoble
DEMONSTRATION
Against all kinds of evictions and against the closing down of many sheltered housings (“foyers”).
For a suitable and viable housing for everyone. [Read More]
Amsterdam: Vluchtmarkt, call out for support and update on the owners’ response
On Sunday, April 13th, the ‘We Are Here‘ group occupied three empty spaces on Ten Katestraat 49, 61 and 63 in Amsterdam: ‘De VluchtMarkt’. The project will house a group of undocumented women who have been without shelter since last week. The neighbourhood and local politicians have shown their support, because they prefer to see the properties in good use rather than empty.
Ten Katestraat 61 and 63 used to be social houses owned by Rochdale, who started the demolition process to convert them into luxury apartments. Due to the financial crisis the renovation project has not been completed and, as is the case with many other Rochdale properties, the houses have been empty for years. The buildings are part of a larger block of houses including 53, 55 and 57 which, in the past had been squatted and evicted twice, and at the moment are still empty and rotting. [Read More]
Islamabad: Forced evictions
Monday, April 14: The CDA and Islamabad Police organized the demolition of dozens of katchi abadi homes along I-10 and H-10 today, rendering hundreds of people in those informal settlements homeless. Many of the residents who were evicted were either refugees from Afghanistan, or internally displaced people from Balochistan and FATA. Most did not resist or organize against the evictions because of fear of possible arrest, deportation or violent reprisal from the state. The situation in the abadis was tantamount to a man-made humanitarian disaster, with hundreds of people, including women and children, being deprived of homes without restitution or resettlement. All of these people are now without any form of shelter. [Read More]
Calais: Sudanese jungle evicted by the police
This morning at around 6am, as the sun came up, the camp known as the Sudanese jungle was evicted by the police. Following a tip off received this week suggesting the camp would be evicted and after speaking to the community who lived there, people in the camp and of the no borders collective were there doing morning watch.
The police came in incredibly large numbers, there were around 30 to 40 vehicles that came to carry out the eviction. Around 18 cars, 12 CRS vans and 6 arrest vans. They came to the jungle from four different directions, lining the motorway, to catch people that were running away. However, many people managed to avoid arrest and escape, because they had warning from the morning patrols that the police were on their way. [Read More]