Amsterdam: Antifa activists forced Generation Identity fascists to leave “squat”

By: sisulscz - April 23rd, 2018  Filed under: Announcement

Generation Identity fascists claimed to have squatted an apartment next to the “We Are Here” refugee squats in Amsterdam. Squatted or not, the fascists had to leave after antifa activists attacked the fascists in their “squat”.

The Generation Identity claimed that they had squatted a house in the Rudolf Dieselstraat in Amsterdam, Netherlands. But the city council of Ymere in Amsterdam’s Watergraafsmeer district, denied that the house was squatted. The fascists were invited by somebody who has a temporary rent contract to avoid a squatting action.
[Read More]

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Amsterdam: Communique from We Are Here Rudolf Dieselstraat

By: fawda - April 21st, 2018  Filed under: Communique, News

Today, an extreme right-wing organization called Identitair Verzet has taken possession of a house in Rudolf Dieselstraat, simply to provoke. They have announced their intent to do so a few days ago on their website. We are very startled by this and find it completely unacceptable. After all, we are looking for housing and a way to survive, while this group is clearly looking for conflict.

Two weeks ago our banner on the church at the James Wattstraat was set on fire by Peter van Vliet, a member of Identitair Verzet. The next morning Van Vliet came to the Rudolf Dieselstraat to try to burn a banner here again. We called the police to deal with the situation, but they chose not to arrest Van Vliet. Despite evidence that he set the banner on fire, and also while the police caught him on the roof of our office, they wanted to “not let the situation escalate,” and let the arsonist walk away.

Subsequently, a week later, Identitair Verzet returned to the James Wattstraat with a group of people. They climbed on the roof of the church and shouted racist and hateful slogans. Here too the police came down, and here too they did not take any action. They were escorted from the roof and then sent away. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: April 28th, Demonstration Solidarity with Refugees, We Are Here!

By: fawda - April 20th, 2018  Filed under: Communique, News

Saturday April 28th 2018, Demonstration Solidarity with Refugees, We Are Here!
Meeting point 14:00 at Krugerplein (not at James Wattstraat 58)
16:00 arrival at Jonas Daniël Meijerplein.

We Are Here, the refugee collective based in Amsterdam, has been campaigning for years against the inhuman Dutch asylum policy. The refugee asylum policy is not conclusive, which leads to the denial of basic rights of refugees in the Netherlands. Many of them are unable to return to their home country, leaving them in limbo and without a proper roof over their heads or the care they need.

We Are Here is squatting to show the inhumane situation in which they live and to ask for attention for the situation of refugees whose asylum requests have been denied but who can’t be deported. Time and time again We Are Here is being evicted, putting them out on the streets and back into uncertainty again, without any prospect of permanent shelter.

These refugees are not the only people in Amsterdam looking for shelter: there is a crucial situation where many Amsterdam based or born people are unable to find a place to live. Social housing, which is the only affordable option for low to middle income people, is being torn apart as real estate is sold to parties eager to capitalize on gentrification. Meanwhile, the waiting list for houses continues to grow for those who have been in need of housing for a long time. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: We Are Here village in the Rudolf Dieselstraat

By: fawda - April 1st, 2018  Filed under: News

Hello everyone! We would like to inform you that we have today successfully squatted 6 houses in the Rudolf Dieselstraat. We also have good news: after five years and for the first time, we have opened an office at Rudolf Dieselstraat 6. You are welcome at the We Are Here Village, next to Frankendael, under the Ringdijk.
We are also looking for volunteers and home items such as blankets, furniture, mattresses and more.
Ymere, the owner from the whole Rudolf Dieselstraat, has neglected the street for many years and wants now to hand it over to Camelot, a property guardian company. Together with the renters still living there, we are going to make a nice village of the street.
According people living in the neighborhood, the houses would remain in this state until August. This is the perfect moment to make our own village. How are we going to achieve that? Let’s talk about it this afternoon at the squatted church, on the James Wattstraat 58. Come along! [Read More]

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Amsterdam: Violettenstraat 10-12 squatted

By: fawda - March 25th, 2018  Filed under: Communique, News

Neighborhood letter

Dear neighbors,

We are your new neighbors living in Jordaan. We are group of four young people, who are not rich enough to be able to find a roof over our heads in what is fast becoming “Disneyland Amsterdam”.

We are here today to bring life to an unloved, derelict place. We intend to collectively renovate a space left to rot by the squander of a profit hungry corporation and transform it into a quiet, cosy home.

The property we are squatting has been empty for 2 years. Libra International BV, a real estate speculation company, is the owner. This company owns more than a thousand properties in the Netherlands and is well known to operate in the area “between illegal and legal”; they perform house-price raising “property swaps” between their numerous shell corporations; they deliberately render buildings unlivable and leave them empty, degrading, in order to speculate on the land value; they deliberately refrain from their duties as a landlord, withholding their obligated basic maintenance of properties as a means to pressure renters who get in the way of their plans to leave. They render homes into mere sums of money to speculate over, making the city unaffordable, and unlivable for common people. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: We Are Here squats a house for a woman and two children

By: fawda - March 23rd, 2018  Filed under: Communique, News

Refugee collective We Are Here has squatted a house at Rudolf Dieselstraat 72 for a woman and two children, together with people who now live under harsh circumstances in the church in the James Wattstraat.
After more than 5 years of fighting for a normal life, we know what it means to live on the street or to continuously move from one place to another. It means that you loose all the time, your life looses sense, you are affected. Six of us have already lost their life. The pressure is rising. A solution has to come now.
The women’s building on the Burgemeester Roëllstraat 70, where 25 women of We Are Here are living since a year and a half, can be evicted by the housing corporation from the 10th of April.
Most political parties have agreed that no building of We Are Here will be evicted as long as they negotiate about the new board. We invite them to work together on a stable place and a real Amsterdam-style solution.
We are here and we need a place to live. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: ADM wins court procedure

By: fawda - February 7th, 2018  Filed under: News

Another court-case took place on January 24th, ADM asking for an interim measure in the appeal court-case of Chidda versus The Municipality of Amsterdam, about evicting the ADM.

Today February 7th 2018, we did get the interim measure so this means that we can await the verdict in our appeal case that is expected to take place in the summer of 2018. ADM stays!!!! You can read the verdict in the interim measure court-case here: https://www.raadvanstate.nl/uitspraken/zoeken-in-uitspraken/tekst-uitspraak.html?id=93981&summary_only=&q= [Read More]

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Netherlands: January 24th, new court case for the ADM

By: fawda - January 8th, 2018  Filed under: News

Another court-case is coming up: ADM asking for an interim measure in the appeal court-case of Chidda versus The Municipality of Amsterdam, about evicting the ADM.

In this upcoming court-case we ask the Raad van State, an administrative court of law, that we can await the verdict of the appeal court-case that we started, together with the Municipality, against the verdict in the court-case that was started by Chidda Vastgoed BV & Amstelimmo BV (The heirs of Bertus Lüske), which orders that the Municipality has to start enforcing the ‘bestemmingsplan’ (=> the zoning of the area, “It’s not allowed to live in this part of the harbor”). The initial verdict, given in July 2017, in fact orders the Municipality to evict us, and they started the process by handing us all a letter on August 5th. 2017 stating that we have 6 months to stop violating the zoning of the area. So in fact, for now, the Municipality has to start the eviction of the ADM any day from February 5th. 2018 onward… (!)

This interim measure court-case will be held at the Raad van State (‘The Council of the State’) in The Hague on January 24th 2018 at 11.45 (Address: Kneuterdijk 22, 2514 EN, Den Haag)

More info and background about this and other court-cases; click here [Read More]

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Amsterdam: Defend free spaces – last chance for Bajesdorp

By: fawda - November 20th, 2017  Filed under: News

Upcoming Wednesday (22.11) is our last chance to address the city of Amsterdam: Our message is clear: We want a social city and we won´t move for hotels, speculation and tax advantages.

Come and support us at the Stopera @ 19:00!!!!! Bring a banner, yourself and else….:)
Amsterdam without Free Spaces = Almere

Very short notice: We in Bajesdorp heard today (Monday) that we are on the council agenda upcoming Wednesday. The city council will finalize the ¨bestemmingsplan¨ of the area Bajesdorp is part of) of our area.
Quick update on our situation: The Bijlmer Bajes (the prison) got sold last September to a project developer to realize city expansion. After lobbying within the council, the city granted extra points to developers (there was a competition) who would take us into consideration.
AM won the competition. AM project development made us a ¨part¨ of their plan, even advertising with Bajesdorp festival in 2021. They promised us space within their plans and alternatively, another location for us to be, work and live.
However, in the last meeting we had with them, we were told that the majority of Bajesdorp will be sold off to a third party and that half of Bajesdorp will demolished in Februari 2018 due to tax advantages. That third party will eventually build a hotel on site in 2021, but apparently needs to demolish half of Bajesdorp including our social centre three years prior development.

Upcoming Wednesday (22.11) is our last chance to address the city of Amsterdam: Our message is clear: We want a social city and we won´t move for hotels, speculation, anti-kraak and tax advantages. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: Support with We Are Here against an eviction

By: fawda - November 14th, 2017  Filed under: Communique, News

Solidarity with We Are Here. The residents of the Nienoord 2 (squatted since April 17th 2017) received the police letter announcing their evition: Friday morning 17 November 9:00, their property must be “left empty”. The general meeting of Sunday November 12th has permanently decided: The inhabitants will not leave the house voluntarily. They call all sympathisers of their movement to come in great numbers to their house to support their peaceful resistance. Sympathisers, let us support them and show that we do not accept this degrading policy of deterrence. We are here and we need each other to fight the system that oppresses us all. [Read More]

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Amsterdam: ADM’s XX Birthday Festival

By: fawda - September 29th, 2017  Filed under: Communique, News, Press release

ADM celebrates her porcelain jubilee!
Take a gentri-vacation on the ADM reservation

The squatted cultural freespace ADM exists 20 years in October. And that will be celebrated at the 12th, 13th and 14th of October 2017. Three days full of spectacle you do not want to miss. Artists, performers and visitors from all over the world will come to ADM this weekend to celebrate that there is still a place where unnecessary regulations do not exist, the hands of the clock are not breathing in your neck and where non-conformers walk freely.

For three years, ADM’s continued existence is under pressure, there are countless lawsuits and a lot of media attention. In early August, the court decided that the municipality of Amsterdam has to enforce the areal planning, with the result that ADM should be evicted. If this actually is going to happen is the big question, the municipality must still determine whether the so-called owner is allowed to execute the building plans. All in all, this does not change the ideals, life-lust and cultural expression of the ADMrs or the celebration of ADM’s birthday festival! [Read More]

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Amsterdam: Spinhuis to be evicted. We are militant and determined to resist

By: fawda - August 30th, 2017  Filed under: Communique, News

On the 28th of August, almost two years after the abandoned dungeon under the bridge was squatted, the Spinhuis will be evicted. The autonomous social centre will be swept away. What will come in its place will be a closed, ostensibly ‘neigbourhood initiative’ for canal homeowners, but which is widely known to be a vessel for the ambitions of Peter Hagendoorn (son of the well-known real estate speculant).
Whoever thought that we would just let this happen is wrong. Long have we fought for a social and independent Spinhuis to remain, using all the tools we had: from crowbars on doors, to negotiations with the municipality, and all the rhetorical skills and political wrangling that come with dealing with bureaucrats. However the fate of the squat had already been decided upon. Nevertheless, we remain ready to fight. From under the bridge we will take to the streets to resist the evictions of the Spinhuis and ADM, and the overwhelming commercialisation and gentrification of our city. Here follows a reflection on the past two years and the battle that is yet to come. [Read More]

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