[Squat!net]

Thinking about violence – A critical view on the Amsterdam street-fight in 1st of October
https://indymedia.nl/nl/2010/10/69958.shtml

In advance I want to clarify that I’m totally not a (political) pacifist. I believe in armed struggle and counter-violence against all parts of the repressive system we are living in.
So coming from the Netherlands I was positive surprised by seeing such a lot of people acting offensive against the police brutality. Even If we couldn’t help the people in the house we made clear that repression against us will be answered.

But for me acting militant is not only to use violence as one part of a diversity of tactics, it’s also about reflecting it. Because of this I want to speak about a few aspects of the actions on friday (oct. 1st).

So I don’t want to be arrogant and this is only a subjective point of view. I don’t want to seem like teaching anyone an “one and only truth”. Other people will have a different point of view and so this is just a first input for further going discussions.

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About 30 years ago Squatbar The Molli started to exist. In this year 1979 the number of empty houses reached epidemic proportions and the squatting movement grew as a cabbage. Everywhere in the city squatting bars opened their doors to offer a spot for activists to meet each other. These spaces also offered the possibility to host consultation hours where people were informed and helped with squatting a house. The Molli is, with its 30 years, the longest existing squatting bar of Amsterdam and is still on Monday nights the domain of Kraak Spreekuur De Pijp and Kraakgroep De Pijp.

Of course The Molli revolves around more than squatting alone (read: social housing struggle ). The activities vary in theme, for example, feminism, Anti fascism, radical environment activism to preparing vegan dinners on Thursday evening. The Molli is maintained by a collective of volunteers. This collective wants to offer a place where everyone can feel safe. Sexism, discrimination, racism and Fascism is not permitted.

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Today, there will be an eviction wave in Amsterdam where yet again three major free spaces/social centers and several houses will be evicted, the three major space are scub (social center under the bridge), fairly recently squatted but very active http://utb.cryptodrunks.net/ “Eigenaardig”, free space and(social) housing that will be torn down to erect expensive housing in an already over-gentrified neighborhood, that was occupied by renters and squatters who had presented a perfectly viable alternative plan www.verbindingsblok.nl and the douaneloodsen at the zeeburgerkade, old monumental (or at least they should be) warehouses by the water that were in use as alternative living and working spaces for many years and will be torn down in spite of the presence of endangered species and the historical value of the buildings http://squat.net/zeeburgerkade

Its gonna be a long and exhausting day.

l.

*They come with the wave, we come with tsunami!!* *Action days against the upcoming eviction wave: * 22th June – 7th July* CREATE YOUR STRUGGLE* A call for actions all across the city! The upcoming massive eviction wave will kick around 100 people out on the streets and once again close utonomous social centers which are stages for free and open political and cultural activities.So get together with your friends and neighbours and be creative. Get out on the streets and be visible. Bring your living room, kitchen or toilet to the street in protest against bullshit government policies. Give workshops, present your projects to the public, decorate your chosen owners office or a cop station with some colourful paint (an “arrestatie groep” can be arranged when needed…)..We must fight the evictions and we must fight them united! Amsterdam has been asleep for too long. We cannot go on being divided, isolated and prejudiced against each other. It’s time to change this once and for all. So let’s stop just talking about it.. Let’s stand up and start acting!

Pass by SCUB to get updated and update others. Exchange ideas, share your knowledge and experiences, prepare your actions, pick up flyers to spread anywhere and everywhere (squats, streets, performances, various hannukkah parties..).

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Discussion/brainstorm evening “fucking anti-squat” Friday the 3rd of April 20.30 in Molli, van Ostadestraat 55hs, Amsterdam

Recently a number of squats have been evicted only to be filled with anti-squat. At first the evictions came about due to a 429 decision, or a flimsy and/or vague renting contract. The house won’t be used and anti-squat got put in. Recently it seems that, now that evicting on 429 has been put on hold some judges are open to rule to evict on even more dubious grounds like in this case, and other cases on an anti-squat contract. We oppose this because the buildings are not put to proper use but become almost empty again with the minimal occupation by only a few anti-squatters, while if they remained squatted, many more people could live in and make use of the space. Also it seems almost as if the courts consider an anti squat contract to be considered use. This is why we wanted to organize a discussion/brainstorm evening to formulate plans relating to this fucked up practice, addressing not only the real estate owners, but also the juridical system, and the politicians, whose actions and decisions seem only to favour the anti-squat business. We also want to use this evening to formulate ideas, plans, and campaigns, against the anti-squat agencies. You want to do something about anti-squat? Then this is your chance! This discussion/brainstorm evening is the first in a row about squatting related issues. Evenings about article 429 and the looming threat of the law for a ban on squatting will follow.

Poster: https://www.indymedia.nl/nl/2009/03/58459.shtml

http://www.molli.nl

Today the 21 of march we squatted Piet Heinkade 2 and De Ruyterkade 153-157 on “het Ij” which are part of the recently built bridge on the level of the Muzikgebouw behind Central Station. Those two spaces have been remained empty and unused since their construction or rather the construction of the bridge in 2004. The owner of the whole complex is the City Amsterdam, but the 2 squatted places are additional owned by Woningcooperatie Ymere. We are planning to use the space as an autonomous social center, where workshops, info evenings, movy evenings, peolpe’s kitchen, bar, bike repair shop, library and distro, silkscreening and many more activities will take place (see the programm for the first week below).

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10 April, Amsterdam

In and around Blijvertje, Derde Oosterparkstraat 64h, Amsterdam 14.00

“The right to the city” – what could this mean? Surely it means that people have access to basic needs like housing, clean water, and safety. But obviously the right to the city will not mean the same thing for all people and for all times. That is why we want to organize an event where we can show and debate the diversity of struggles against urban injustices. We want to get inspired by and learn from experiences of movements in the past and around the globe.

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We are a group that squatted Commelinstraat 246 – 250 on Sunday 15th of February. On Monday morning we were awakened by a group of at least ten men, led by Menno Jeen Bos (the owner of this building) into the house. They broke down the door, and threatening physical violence, they demanded that we leave within ten seconds.

By breaking into this house, where we had secured the right to domestic peace, they took the law into their own hands. They throw us out onto the street and then threw our belongings down from the second floor onto our heads. Due to these actions a few people sustained physical injuries.

The police came and asked mister Bos the reason for the disturbance. He claimed that the house had not been empty for a year and that anti-squatters were living there last sunmmer. We know this is a lie for we have received from several neighbours, declarations that say that the house is empty for at least a year (average astimation – 2 years). When mister Bos could not reproduce any documentation for his story, the police respected our legal rights to be there and let us back into the building, with no further immediate action taken against mister Bos.

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Here is some very incomplete information on problems around a newly squatted building. It is very unclear, what did really happen from these fragments of information:

This afternoon, on the 18th of january 2008, two ground floor spaces in the Vinkzicht building in the Kinkerstraat were squatted. Soon after the squat the police arrived, inspected the buildings and OK’ed the squat action for the time being. Soon after that -the police had not left yet- some thugs showed up, started harassing the squatters and smashed a window of a snackbar next to the squat. One of these thugs got arrested. The whole scene calmed down and a start was made with cleaning up the place. At seven thirty a gang of about 20-25 thugs showed up, who all spoke Russian. They forced their way into the building with brute force and viciously attacked the squatters, injuring three of them. One had to be admitted into hospital with a fractured jaw. The thugs operated in an organized fashion, as if they were used to using violence together. Soon after the police arrived, and the thugs convinced them that they had been sitting inside peacefully, and that the squatters had attacked them. Only after people from the neighborhood had interfered did the police realize their mistake and then decided to enter the building and arrest the thugs that remained there. The building was then handed over to the squatters again, who have started repairing the damage done by the thugs and firmly barricading the place up.

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