Another violent raid on a squatter community in Harare leaves 100 families homeless, the “Zimbabwe Standard” reports.
Police burned scores of shacks, and arrested 55 people, though a department spokesman later denied any knowledge of the raid.
More Murambatsvina?
September 14th, 2010
http://squattercity.blogspot.com/2010/09/france-targets-roma.html
In recent weeks, the government of Nicolas Sarkozy has evicted more than 1,000 Roma residents from their encampments in France and deported them to Bulgaria and Romania. Now, the European Union has called France’s recent crackdown on Gypsy communities “a disgrace”, The Guardian reports:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/14/roma-deportations-france-eu-disgrace
On 18th September 2010, the ZOO invites artists and performers from Medika Squat based in Zagreb, Croatia. This kind of exchange is the second one we do (previously we invited the Reitschule from Bern, Switzerland) and it’s a way to promote the different places of “subculture” in Europe, including squat culture.
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As we witness our world, founded on principles of money, has faced a recession and the economy in our city is under collapse, the discourse of culture and its engines (Ministry of Culture and the likes) is being silenced by the logic of a capital driven culture industry and bureaucratic processes of cultural institutions.
Autonomous Cultural Center Medika (AKC Medika) was founded on the principle of open doors, where anybody can develop an artistic discourse, be it cultural, educational, or of any other humanitarian nature, in the hope that our providing of space for such activities will be used accordingly. We offer space without any unified context in order to continually develop diversity among programs and projects that are held in the space. Therefore, if the outcome is entertaining, educational, inspirational, or informative we will have reached our goal.
How’s this for life in Pretoria? A squatter community is using a slimy, algae-filled pond to wash their clothes, the Sowetan newspaper reports.
Jacob van Gardeneren, of Lawyers for Human Rights, said: “The surrounding neighbourhoods used typical excuses to justify their involvement in these evictions – such as that the informal settlement hosts criminals. The reality is that this informal settlement hosts their gardeners, domestic workers and construction workers, who are often paid so poorly they cannot afford to travel home every day.” [Read More]
August 2010
RURAL SQUATT MEETING IN MONARS
The rural squat meeting took place this year on the beginning of july in Monars, a village squatted for 28 years in the high Garrotxa, catalan Pyrenees, spanish side.
Every year it gathers about one hundred persons, mainly coming from rural squats, around topics that are specific to squatting and rural life : collective organisation, material autonomy, « education », health, land struggles, etc. It goes with workshops, discussions and debates, that rythm the day, the subject of this meeting being mainly to see friends, to go further in relationships and to have fun together.
[Read More]
Flora stays Red!
Two steps forward and three backwards – The failure of city privatisation as a model of conflict regulation
June 2nd, 2010 – http://www.nadir.org/nadir/initiativ/roteflora/news/20100029.html
As we learnt from the media, the city of Hamburg plans to repurchase the Rote Flora. In our opinion the possible repurchase of the Rote Flora by the city is the political end of an attempt to get rid of the conflict over the project through privatisation.
On saturday 26th june 2010, 200 people and 16 trucks, mobile homes and trailers demonstrated against the possible eviction of the trailerpark in Oldenburg.
The trailerpark has been at the premises of the former slaughterhouse „am Stau“ for 16 years now.
Since 2005, the city of Oldenburg plans to build a megalomaniac project at the site, the so called „Wasserstadt“ (Watercity).
A whole new quarter should arise on 10 hectares, with cold architecture, as investors like it and the promise of high income return. A marina and a maritime „competence-center“ should form the character of the new quarter, a four star hotel should bring guests. The vision is a „modern, urban quarter“ with beautiful villas and private jetties on little town canals, surrounded by 10.000 squaremeters of office space and a whole row of luxury restaurants. As the mayor of Oldenburg, Gerd Schwandner, states it, the target group for the whole project is the „big, future elite of Oldenburg“.
Hi family!
A small mass mail to tell you about the next Meeting of Rural Squatting, in Monars, a squatted village (La garrotxa, Catalonian Pyrenees, Northern Spain) from 1st to 4th of July, 2010.
Each year this meeting is made in different villages in order to talk, exchange information about access to land through squatting, relationships in community, self organization, self sufficiency, health, “education”…
Hope to meet you there.
Love & Freedom.
For more information in spanish:
http://mislatacontrainfos.blogspot.com/2010/06/alta-garrotxa-1-4-juliol-jornades.html
See also, in english:
http://reclaimthefields.org/
Julien
Original info in german:
http://de.indymedia.org/2010/05/282480.shtml
Take that – this our city, too
29 May 2010
This space is squatted. It is squatted by us, who are excluded from the “growing city” Hamburg (special term for the new oficial development plans of the city of hamburg / BNQ). Squatted by those, who live here and who will not keep quiet.
We are here today, at this place, because the development around the so called “Bernhard-Nocht-Quartier” is an example for a city policy, which furthers the eviction of people who live here.
In this quarter of the city, where affordable housing is scarce, there is a huge area with nearly empty houses. A little bit of social housing will be allowed to remain but the rest will be transformed into over-expensive rental flats and exclusive freehold flats which only an exclusive top-end part of society can afford. We want to stand up against this spiral of exclusion.
May 12th, 2010
Waiting for news, we communicate that, around 6am of the morning, the Digos [political police] has searched many occupations (Asilo, Barocchio, Mezcal, Askatasuna) and houses, arresting three people, notifying some house arrests (it seems they’re four people) and to others, the requirement to sign in at the local police station. The repressive operation it’s a revenge for the riots occurred on the eviction of L’Ostile [last december], the restricted measures are emaned by PM Rinaudo. There’s a public assembly today afternoon at Mezcal squat to organize future iniziatives.
For live updates listen to Radio Blackout, 105.2 FM in Turin and http://stream.teknusi.org:8000/blackout.mp3 [Read More]
Under the motto of “Present, Past and… Future??? of Squatting in Europe”, some squat collectives of Barcelona organize a meeting the 17, 18, 19, and 20 of june to debate about historical, political and legal aspects of this movement in a european perspective.
So this is a calling to all collectives, projects or houses across Europe who are interested in participate to come and give an own view of your experience and situation in your city or country. In the development of the meeting, simultaneous translation equipment will be provided to everyone.
The meeting will be held in the “CSO La Forsa” (Avenida de la Fama 41, Cornella de Llobregat – Barcelona).
