Prague: Klinika is alive, the fight continues! Celebrating 10 years

On November 30, it will be 10 years since the occupation of Klinika, an autonomous space that we have fought for from state institutions and capitalist market logic, and which for almost five years provided a place for everyday meetings and the establishment of unpredictable friendships, a place for non-commercial cultural activities and radical emancipatory politics from below. But the clinic was also a place where the slogans of freedom, solidarity and mutual aid were put into practice.

It’s been almost five years since the Klinika squat was evicted, but the need for spaces where we can be more human than just consumers and human resources persists and may even grow, along with the rising price of real estate and the cost of living. The proof is in the newly emerging autonomous spaces. In one of these, we will meet at the “Klinika party” to not only reminisce, but also to sing, dance, feast, and recharge our batteries for the next fights. And to be in solidarity, so the event will be a benefit for another autonomous space, the Infoshop Trhlina. [Read More]

Prague: Klinika, struggle for autonomous space

20141212_Prague_Klinika_demoCzech republic is a country of „political stability“. In despite of general disillusionment in capitalism no social movements haven’t emerged yet. Whereas in other countries social protests and demonstrations underway at least, in the Czech republic demonstrations against neoliberal austerity can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Moreover even the radical left, anarchist and anti-authoritarian activities were in decline after anti-IMF and anti-NATO summit protests at the beginning of 2000’s and squatting practically disappeared.

The situation began to change slowly after the eviction the last squat in Prague in 2009. In the next years the squatting has become important repertoire of action of the small radical and autonomous milieu in Prague. In despite of police repression and quick evictions of the squats, activists used the squatting as a tool in struggle against real estate speculations, and as a symbolic challenge the dogma of private property as one of the cornerstone of capitalist ideology in the Czech republic. After 2012 only one squat (Cibulka) remained, but squatters brought attention to the issues of speculations. Besides this symbolic struggle there was long-term effort in autonomous milieu to open squatted social center as autonomous space for radical and anti-capitalists politics. [Read More]

Prague: Cibulka squat evicted

The Cibulka squat has been evicted today, four people are still in the tower, twelve have been already arrested according media report.
More info to be posted as soon as possible.

Communique 11/05/2015
Cibulka evicted

Hello comrades friends and all the others

Our beloved squat Cibulka was evicted in wednesday 6th of may The police sent “tens of tens” (as described by the media) policemen in heavy armor with a water cannon against ten residents and less than twenty visitors of the run-down building. From those they then picked out residents according to an in advance prepared list and took them in for questioning. One of us got a suspended sentence in speeded-up proceedings, seven others are prosecuted for so called unauthorized use of property. We consider the intervention not only illegitimate, but also illegal according to what is here called legal code of the state. In spite of losing a place to live, in spite of the beating, threats, bullying and contempt from the police, state offices and even “decent” society, we remain free – our fight goes on! [Read More]

Struggle for squats in Prague

On the 30th of June the Milada squat was evicted. The house was not a part of the cadastre, because it was meant to be demolished years ago. This hasn’t happened and the squatters occupied an INVISIBLE house, because for the authorities it hasn’t legally existed. This was 11 years ago. The place changed a lot, people left and came, at the moment noone from the former collective was living in the house. Few years ago, the place got through a crisis and with a new collective, more actions were held and Milada built quite a strong background and managed to cooperate with other struggles. Now, the controller of the building (UIV – Institute for Information in Education) owned by state tried to make Milada a legally acknowledged place again, though it is not sure, if they were really succesful, anyway they ordered an eviction, and paid a security agency with neonazis as employees. They used violence, hurt people sitting on the roof, destroyed all accessories of Milada and completely damaged the roof. Video (more on utube): http://www.archive.org/details/DemonstraceProtiVyklizeniSquatuMilada1.7.2009 Stencils: http://www.csaf.cz/spravy.php?sprava=1415 Twitter (mostly in czech): https://twitter.com/squatMilada

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Prague: Police attacked the recently opened space Cibulka

On Friday 14th November 2008, late in the night, police violently – and without any notice given to the owners – entered the building Cibulka in Prague. A part of the large building was inhabited by a group of autonomists, who had a sort of a verbal agreement to occupy the building and recently, they introduced the project to the public as a social and cultural space. Allegedly, the police was searching for a criminal who was supposed to be hidden in the yard. But according to people occupying the house, they haven’t noticed them of anything like that. Three of the squatters, afraid of a nazi attack or an attempted eviction, climbed up the roof. The police started to smash the roofing tiles of the already neglected building and later reported that those on the roof attacked them with tiles and bricks. The situation got even worse when one policeman did a warning shot in the air, this was followed by verbal threatening and made the squatters come down, where other aggressive behavior continued. The supporters arrived quite early, some 30-40 people tried to blockade the police cars. Four other people were arrested. Then, the police left the place and they drove to the police station. When supporters arrived in front of the office to protest against the intervention, riot police was ready and some other police violence occurred without any reason, two people were detained. Some people were released after few hours, one stayed in custody until Sunday and the three squatters were released in the morning after the incident, but charged with an attack upon a public agent.

[Read More]