Zürich: mobilisation and call for solidarity

By: fawda - April 22nd, 2020  Filed under: Communique, News, video

While the city is being bombarded with the slogan “Stay at home. Please. Everyone.” calls for people to hide in their own homes, the squatters from the Juch are given an ultimatum of 4 days until they are kicked out on the streets.

So, in the shadow of the Corona crisis, people are driven from their homes and cultural freedom is destroyed. This happens without giving reasons, announcing plans nor showing a building permit. The last weeks have probably caused some wet dreams among authoritarian forces and so it is not really surprising that a hard wind is blowing against us right now. Nevertheless, we are speechless about the impudence of the city government, which on the one hand rambles about solidarity and at the same time imposes completely counterproductive, repressive measures against a left-wing project. Last Saturday, the Corona argument was used to try to nip the pandemic-proof demo “Safety for all refugees” in the bud. Although all the precautionary measures recommended by the Confederation are being implemented, it is not possible in this city to take to the streets during a protest. However, it seems justified for the Social Department to put residents of a squat on the streets without giving any reason? [Read More]

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Zürich: Juch eviction threat

By: fawda - April 22nd, 2020  Filed under: News

On April 20, we received mail from the city of Zürich regarding the possible uses of the Juch site. The letter from the Department of Social Affairs informed us that Juch is to be prepared for potential future use from Monday, April 27. Reconstruction and demolition work is also scheduled to begin on April 27. Thus we, the squatters and users of Juch are requested to clear the area by midnight on Friday April 24. So we are supposed to clear an area within four days which we have built up over half a year.

The city of Zürich is calling for the evacuation of the area with the slogan “Stay at home. Please. Everyone” the population to stay at home. The people who live here have no second home. Their home is the Juch-area. If Juch is evacuated, there will be several dozen people who have no place to go to protect themselves and others. [Read More]

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UK: Motherfuckers change law again

By: sisulscz - April 21st, 2020  Filed under: Communique

UK UPDATE: Them mother fuckers have changed the law again to suit the interests of lazy property owners who leave places empty and unused.

The Civil Procedure Rules Practice Direction 51Z (government site here) have been updated so as to not include trespass claims and IPOs (ie most squat cases). Previously it did include them.

Therefore, as of April 20, 51Z will no longer apply to possession claims against ‘persons unknown’ or claims for interim possession orders. What does this mean in these uncertain times? This means owners will probably still try illegal methods of eviction, that’s what we are hearing from Brighton and London. How will the courts be working? Zooming?? Who knows, but it will not be a surprise if court cases happen without the awareness of the squatters.

Stay safe everybody!

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Madrid: The Government wants to evict La Ingobernable in 24 hours despite the state of emergency

By: fawda - April 16th, 2020  Filed under: Communique, News

This Tuesday, April 14, we learned through publication in the BOE (Official State Bulletin) that the Ministry of Justice was giving us 48 hours to leave the new open space occupied by La Ingobernable in Calle Alberto Bosch, 4.

The deadline is today. And we are not only faced with a new demonstration of the absolute lack of interest in dialogue between this Ministry and Minister Juan Carlos Campo, but also with a particular use of the right of an administration that has decided that its priority in the midst of the quarantine is to resume a process such as the eviction of La Ingobernable, omitting even the right of allegation, all in order to deprive Madrid of a self-managed space. In this case, there are several reasons why it seems to us to be a particularly shabby move.

Firstly, we cannot even remotely understand how this government has set as a priority in the current context the resumption of the administrative process for the eviction of this social center. A place that, as we already defended in our previous communiqué, will be essential, like the rest of the social centers, for the post-quarantine scenario. [Read More]

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Calais: Police violence an open letter

By: sisulscz - April 16th, 2020  Filed under: Communique

To the Préfet of Pas-de-Calais
To the media
To all people concerned
Calais, Monday 13 th April 2020
Open Letter from the Eritrean community of Calais Jungle

Before we get to start writing our complaint about what is happening to us with the CRS (Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité), we would like to say something about ourselves; We are migrants from Eritrea. The reason we are here is because we want to live in a safe place, and have a future. We are not criminals, we are just innocent migrants trying to go to the UK and pursue our dreams.

Our complaint is about the CRS company and their aggressive, impulsive actions on us.
They don’t think that we are humans. They called us names like monkey, bitch, etc….
And a couple weeks ago, they started threatening our lives by keeping on beating us every time they get a chance, like when they found two or three people walking around the foodstreet (note : near the food distribution place) or, in our tents when we are sleeping.
They keep driving fast towards us on the street, like they want to run us over, and they started taking people with them to some places outside of Calais and keeping on beating them until they faint out.
They hide their personal code (note: RIO number) when they are doing something wrong to us. And whenever they see we are recording while they are doing so, they break our mobiles and our bodies.
[Read More]

Wassenaar: Huize Ivicke, One Night With The VVD

By: fawda - April 15th, 2020  Filed under: Communique, News

Late last year, VVD Wassenaar organized a ‘political cafe’ on the topic of Ivicke and squatting. The event, with little sense of irony, was called ‘Kraken of Actie?’ In three words, VVD Wassenaar disregarded one and a half years of direct action to reverse the decline of a national monument, whilst presenting their party, who sat idly by until it was squatted, as the saviours of Ivicke. Can’t deny their skills as politicians.

Two of the three invited speakers were VVD politicians. Strangely enough, we were not the third invitee. The first speaker, Daniel Koerhuis, has energetically taken on the role of the latest squatter-basher in parliament for the VVD as its housing spokesperson. [Read More]

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Wassenaar: Huize Ivicke’s Nomination for 7 Most Endangered

By: fawda - April 13th, 2020  Filed under: Communique, News

In the summer of 2019, we were approached to help with the nomination process to have Huize Ivicke shortlisted as one of the 7 Most Endangered heritage sites in Europe under a program run by Europa Nostra. As the current occupants, we offered our perspective as part of the application. A photographer also came round to take pictures for Europa Nostra. While Ivicke made the shortlist of the final 14, it was not selected as one of the 7 Most Endangered. We can only presume that this is because we have saved it from immediate danger…(?)

Ivicke perspective by current occupants:

We represent the current occupants of the monumental villa Ivicke, located in Wassenaar, The Netherlands. The residence was occupied on July 4, 2018 without permissions from the owner. In light of Ivicke’s nomination for Europa Nostra’s 7 most endangered programme, we would like to share our perspective. [Read More]

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Zürich: Update from new squats in Altstetten

By: fawda - April 11th, 2020  Filed under: Communique, News

On Thursday we occupied four houses in Zurich Altstetten. This action is a sign of an inclusive solidarity. Soon the first house will be handed over to people who are constantly excluded from society and forgotten. The current situation varies from house to house. We experienced solidarity reactions from the owners, as well as incomprehension and rejection.

We are often asked why we occupy and do not choose the “legal” way:

1. we stand up for the fact that all people can live self-determined. That they themselves can decide where, how and with whom they live. We have occupied these houses in order to occupy our privilege to share with people who cannot do so themselves due to repression. [Read More]

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Zürich: We squatted four houses in Altstetten today

By: sisulscz - April 9th, 2020  Filed under: Communique

Zürich. Switzerland. April 9, 2020. We (Für alle ein Zuhause – English: A home for all) have squatted four empty houses in Altstetten today to create a home and refuge for people from the virus. Like any emergency, this one hits hardest those for whom the circumstances were already difficult before.

To protect the population, the Federal Council appeals to everyone to stay at home in solidarity. While the majority in Switzerland has the privilege of being able to retreat into a house, those who cannot are left out in the cold. Some people have no papers, their rights are denied. They are illegalized, isolated and ignored. Many of these people are locked up in so-called asylum centres, prisons and camps. Their freedom and self-determination are denied to them. Again other people have “fallen through the cracks” – they do not fit into the meritocracy. Our society accepts the premature death of all these people, because protective measures do not seem to apply to them. This situation was intolerable even before Corona. Now it becomes even clearer that it cannot go on like this for one more day.
[Read More]

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UK: Don’t believe the hype. Evictions continue despite moratorium

By: fawda - April 4th, 2020  Filed under: News

The ban is a lie. Despite the UK government declaring a “complete ban on evictions” due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, in the last 24 hours an autonomous homeless shelter in Brighton and an occupied space in Peckham have been illegally evicted by people claiming to be bailiffs, allegedly with the full support and cooperation of the Sussex and Metropolitan police officers in attendance.

The government’s no evictions claim is really just the abdication of due process and the scant judicial protections formerly afforded to tenants, squatters and the under-class in general.

Get ready. The bailiffs and their bosses are taking the law into their own hands, with the police in full support. [Read More]

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Berlin: Syndikat Stays! Eviction date officially canceled!

By: fawda - April 3rd, 2020  Filed under: Communique

The district mayor of Neukölln, Martin Hikel, already announced it in a Tagesspiegel interview and now the official confirmation from the bailiff has also reached us:

The eviction date on April 17 was officially canceled.

This also logically ends the mobilization for this date. Please spread the message on all of your channels so that it reaches as many people as possible.
In view of the current situation, this step is only more than logical, but we still have a big stone in mind. We can now breathe deeply and think about how to go on.
As is well known, postponing is not canceled. We do not know how long the corona crisis and therefore also the postponement will continue and there is still no long-term perspective for the Syndikat. In addition, of course, there is also the situation for us that we have to close due to the state orders, but still incur costs month after month.
We will now discuss for ourselves how things can go in the near future. In our political struggle, but also in the financial existence. There are some ideas and we are of course also happy to receive ideas from you.
Until then, we wish you all a lot of strength in the current situation. Do not be discouraged by individual difficulties or questionable social developments. Mutual solidarity is always the order of the day, but especially important in these times.
Corona will disappear at some point, but Syndikat remains! [Read More]

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Calais: Coronavirus, housing and deportations

By: fawda - April 2nd, 2020  Filed under: News

For more than two weeks now, France has been on lock-down. With most French people unable to leave their homes, migrants in Calais are still being evicted from theirs. Human Rights Observers in Calais have counted 45 deportations since March 17th. A police union, Synergie-Officiers, has called for an end to these daily deportations, but the department and prefecture still insist they continue. The PAF (Police Aux Frontiers) have stopped carrying out these daily deportations in the city, initially retreating to their work in the detention centre. This just means different cops do them (CRS and Gendarmerie).

The crisis that is the states’ response to the coronavirus pandemic does not show any signs of letting up. Additional powers are being granted to states from now. As one example (stay aware of others) of the state using the pandemic to meet its goals that could not otherwise be easily achieved, Greece used it to justify evicting many families from the Politechnio squat.

In Calais, health and sanitation have already been used as excuses for deportations. Despite a later ruling against the closing of shops and restaurants in the jungle, armed police seized food, water, gas, cigarettes in 2016, under pretext of “sanitary control.” Calling it a humanitarian intervention, in 2014, the state evicted about 650 people because of scabies and sanitation. Neither then nor now, the state took responsibility for creating these conditions for people or gave solutions. [Read More]

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