The occupation follows ongoing opposition from local residents and groups for months and can be located at: Battersea Park, South West corner near junction of Albert Bridge Road and Prince of Wales Drive, SW11 4SF.
Those occupying the play area call on Wandsworth Council to reverse the decisions to get rid of play staff and to destroy the adventure playground. They say:
[Read More]
You’ve heard it many times. While under arrest, never declare anything to the cops. But is that enough? Should you stop phoning, publishing pictures of your friends without their permission, choosing another email provider? When do you think you are not providing passive intelligence to the police? Political social centers and activist groups communicating on monitored “social media”, that is all good for the cops, they love it. Not only you are taking risks but you may put other people in danger. On the SO36 website, you’ll find a list of non-commercial providers for you to communicate in a safer way or where to move your website.
For a local insight about police intimidation in Amsterdam, have a read to Observant, the December newsletter from Buro Jansen & Jansen, the Dutch research institute on intelligence and police matters.
One of the favorite activities of Amsterdam’s mayor is throwing money out the window, evicting houses for emptiness. State sponsored gentrification, greedy housing corporations, we all know for who Van der Laan is working. The four times squatted Swammerdamstraat 12 will need your support. Later in the month, it will be the turn of the Arent Krijtsstraat 1 in Diemen. [Read More]
Solidarity actions with Villa Amalias recently happened in different Greek cities, and in Goa (India) and Sydney (Australia):
– Athens: Paint bomb attack against the old city hall, in solidarity with Villa Amalias squat
On the night of December 24th, comrades wanted to add a bit of colour to the miserable Christmas decoration that the mayor of Athens, Giorgos Kaminis, had reserved for the city. We wanted to show him that the lousy political dealings on the repression against Villa Amalias squat will not be left unanswered. He will pay the corresponding price for his choice to cover the back of the prime minister, Antonis Samaras, who wanted to prove that he is equally fascist to the far-right part of his voting audience, which slips off to the Golden Dawn party by now. [Read More]
This is a message of solidarity which goes out to the Villa Amalias squat in Greece (which has been open for 23 years offering social space, events, project space and a gerneal anti capitalist/money free space for the local community) which was raided by the state forces of repression and armd gang members (the filth/cops) this week, with a total of eight comrades being arrested and now charged with a variety of false offenses including those relating to conspire to make explosives after some empty bottles (found in the kitchen) and a small can of petrol (next to a petrol powered heater) were “discovered”.
The squat has been deeply involved in local politics and activism and has been a key counterculture and anti-capitalist free space for years and years, and is clearly doing a good job of narking off the state the Greek minister of public order stated that Villa was an “epicentre for lawlessness” ; this attack, eviction, and arrest aimed at our comrades was clearly politically motivated, aimed at shutting down the squat and crushing voices of dissident and spaces not yet constrained and infected by the virus that is capitalism.
In every country where squats and other spaces exist outside of the agreed neoliberal concensus they will attack us, agress us and attempt to destroy us; we must stand together for the politics we share, against the evils of a system that seeks to control every aspects of our lives, and in doing so fight them and their system like our lvies depend on it- because they do. An attack against one of us is an attack against all of us.
The Library Street Social Centre calls for speech and action is support of our comrades- Solidarity is a Weapon.
The Villa Amalias squat has been an open political, cultural and social space, as well as a housing collective, for the past 23 years. In all these years there have been plenty of active groups in the squat including groups on theatre, concerts, musical studio, stained glass, kids’ space, dancing, foreign languages, computing, printing press, screenings, lending library, vinyl exchange – while the squat has also hosted plenty of political and cultural events by other groups. Apart from these activities inside its building, Villa Amalias has also contributed to the resolution of neighbourhood issues by participating in the residents’ assembly of Victoria square and by organising open, outward looking activities in the area – including open mic interventions, free markets, collective kitchens and kids’ events at the square. [Read More]
Statement released on Friday, December 21, 2012
Today, on December 20th, 2012, the police raided Villa Amalias. Under the pretext of a complaint for drug dealing, they searched the building in the presence of a district attorney. Their findings are ludicrous. Nevertheless, according to Dendias [translators’ note: the minister of public order] these prove that Villa was an “epicentre for lawlessness” for 22 years and that the law, thanks to the “brave political will of [PM] Samaras” was finally restored.
What logical leap may brand empty beer bottles as “materials for the construction of molotovs?” Is it strange to have a large number of empty beer bottles in a place that hosts a concert [gig] space and a café? [Read More]
via eagainst.com (texts in En | It | Tr | De | Fr):
Once again, the State is trying to terrorise by means of sudden raids against occupied self-organized spaces.
Villa Amalias squat is housed in the building of Heyden and Acharnon street for 22 years. Within the squat hundreds of political and cultural events have been held (concerts, theatrical performances, screenings etc), while the anti-commercial culture that opposes the culture of sale and profit, power and property has found its place. It is clear now, after so many daily attacks against the antiauthoritarian/anarchist movement, that the antisocial forces of economic and political authoritarianism aim at silencing the movement, at limiting the public discussion in the agenda that is determined solely by the mainstream media and the Nazis, at prohibiting self-organized actions that start from below and outside political parties.
According to info published on Athens Indymedia, 8 comrades from the occupation were detained, and a search is being conducted in the building by the forces of state repression. Already, 200 have gothered in solidarity at Acharnon Street opposite the occupation.
We express our solidarity to Villa Amalias and to the comrades who struggle in this free social space.
PS: We understand the joy of the faithful servants of the system of power, as we observe the far-right blogs, as well as the mainstream news sites joining forces, slandering and cheering for the “success” of the suppressive State. We promise that the delight of the enemies of society will not last forever. [Read More]
At the 23rd of april in 2011, 200 people squatted the former ministry of finance in altona, a district in hamburg and declared the Autonomous Center of Altona (AZ Altona). The action was dedicated to the rise of selforganised spaces, against the ongoing housing misery in hamburg and the parallel existance of massive vacancy of office buildings in the city. After seven hours, the police evicted the building and later started penalty against the 40 squatters. Some weeks ago, the first penalty-letters were sent by prosecutors to demand more than 20000 euro in total!
Surprisingly, the building, which was empty for years, was given a few months after the squatting to be used from artist and economic initiatives again. We see this as our sucess that tenants got the building. Eventhough there is no new selforganised, uncommercial center, at least the building is used again at all. But nontheless it is strange and not acceptable that the people who rised the topic of this misery with this vacancy should now be punished by the states repression! [Read More]
As you may be aware, our plans to host a temporary community cafe run on anarchist principles in Bristol this weekend, have been scarpered after Avon & Somerset Police decided to raid Everything Is Not OK Cafe on Friday morning; evicting the building and arresting the five occupiers.
Plans were afoot to host a temporary community cafe run on anarchist principles in Bristol this weekend. On Wednesday night a crew of people entered the unused Preview Bar on Fairfax Street near Broadmead and secured the premises: Everything Is Not OK Cafe was born! [Read More]
As you may be aware, our plans to host a temporary community cafe run on anarchist principles in Bristol this weekend, have been scarpered after Avon & Somerset Police decided to raid Everything Is Not OK Cafe on Friday morning; evicting the building and arresting the five occupiers.
Plans were afoot to host a temporary community cafe run on anarchist principles in Bristol this weekend. On Wednesday night a crew of people entered the unused Preview Bar on Fairfax Street near Broadmead and secured the premises: Everything Is Not OK Cafe was born! [Read More]
On 11th November 2012 about 7 pm., after the march of the patriots organized by NOP (National Rebirth of Poland) party, a group of over 100 people invaded the premises of ALTERNA VITA Centre for Green Technologies association for ecology and education. After an unsuccessful attempt to force the entrance gate, they got inside through a neighbouring lot (owned by Gant company). Using stones, flares, bottles and truncheons, they unexpectedly attacked the residents and friends of the Association, 16 people altogether. In the course of the incident two people were brutally beaten (broken arm, head injury). One of them was admitted to hospital in a critical state.
Hello, we exist now. A network of squatters, travellers, the unrooted, homeless people, and supporters.
We’re now meeting monthly and are hosting our first event, a Squatters/Travellers Workshop & Skillshare on Thursday 20th December at 3pm, at the Red & Black Umbrella.
This will be an hour discussing the law around squatting, recent changes, and how to still squat legally in commercial buildings and on land. Followed by another hour skill-sharing how to occupy and secure spaces to live in/on.
We are currently organising events, planning projects, plotting against further criminalisation, setting up a squatters estate agents, and creating a support network for people currently squatting and for others interested in doing so.
Contact us at cardiffsquatters [at] riseup [dot] net to get involved.
Find us at www.cardiff.squat.net to stay updated.
Love & Rage!
See also: Squatters form city-wide network – South Wales Echo
