Berlin: Rigaer94 – First statement on the raid of 6th of October, 2021

The Berlin cops, today, 06.10.2021 at 7am, wearing their dirty trash-bag uniforms and carrying shields full of color from the resistance on 17th of June and armed, raided our political structure and living space, Rigaer94. Once again, as everyday, the servants of the state fulfill their commands and obey to the capital. The state guarantees the order of the capitalist system, so to squeeze even more profit from people and their living spaces, gain power over every life, destroy any political idea that fights against them and oppress any individual who does not fit to their plans in this capitalistic, patriarchal and racist society. It is clear that the Berlin cops still work with Lafone Investments Ltd. and are their mercenaries, who execute orders of the plan to get rid of Rigaer94 and so to force the gentrification process of Nordkiez, Friedrichshain – after they lost their last attack on us in June this year. [Read More]

Berlin: Die Rigaer lebt – an address to our friends and comrades

Thanks to every support that was developed during the last weeks and especially the last two days of preparation and collective fight against our common enemies, we managed to develop the most intensive fighting days that we could have imagined. Days which turned every plan from the state and capital into a catastrophy. A great reminder to ourselves, our collective and its supporters, how important the movement’s networks, infrastructures of solidarity and self-organisation are.

Starting with the defence of the neighbourhood against the establishment of the red zone we drew the right concequence out of the aggressions of the state and the real estate market, against the people living in the city. The announcement of danger zones and red zones, where people get easy targets for the police in order to create an atmosphere of isolation and fear, has become normality in this city of the rich. We saw in the last years many occassions where we as those who are targeted by the states attacks had to stand in almost silent protest at the fences, guarded by a militarized police force. Let’s name the eviction of the Ohlauer School in Kreuzberg, the eviction of the Kiezladen Friedel54 and all the other projects as Syndikat, Meuterei and our neighboors Liebig34. This fact can not be tolerated anymore – the people have to rise up! [Read More]

Berlin: Rigaer94, our statement on the current situation

Today, on the evening of June 16, we look back on a militant day and a temporary autonomous zone and look forward with a clenched fist. Yes, we will remember the barricades in Rigaer Straße and their collective defense for a long time with a big smile on our faces. Step by step, the Senate and the owners are burning their fingers at the attempted destruction of our home.

After the street, there are now problems on the legal level. A higher administrative court has considerably complicated the starting position for those responsible at the Senate and the letterbox company for the attack on our house. The latter, represented by Bernau, Luschnat and von Arentin, was forbidden to enter our premises at all. Moreover, the cops are to be given access only to the stairwell, attic, courtyard, etc., but not to the private apartments.

At this moment, the expert, who is now declared to be responsible, is told by our lawyers that he can inspect the fire protection in our house without any danger to his health and can come in and out without any problems. Of course, without even a cop, as we have already declared in January 2021. And we keep our word. That should have become more than clear again today. Completely in contrast to the word of numerous politicians, whether in the district or senate, that of the cops or even a windy letter box company. Some of them still dare to claim that it is not about an eviction of Rigaer94. [Read More]

Berlin: Fire protection inspection today at Rigaer94

This morning an inspection of Rigaer94 by the responsible official for building supervision/fire protection of the district office Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg took place. As we had previously announced, this independent expert inspected all the rooms of the building without the protection of the Berlin cops and without feeling threatened.

As suspected by us and now also confirmed, our house is not in a condition that makes an evacuation necessary due to fire protection. The official has also not identified any deficiencies that we cannot remedy ourselves. As has been clearly stated several times: Our own safety is important to us and we do not need cops or self-declared “owners” or “property managers” or any party to “protect” us or our neighbors from us.

The report is not yet in our hands, but it will certainly be in the hands of the Senator of the Interior when he commits political suicide with his invasion on Thursday. [Read More]

Berlin: Rigaer 94 – What‘s the price of this shithole?

Berlin, March 2021: A conflict, in which there will be no other option but to take a stand, escalates. This is not about fire safety. This argument is only a masquerade. Those ruling try to make the public believe in the morality of their actions and to create a spectacle. We have repeatedly stated that an independent fire safety expert can walk through the building with us at any time, as it happened in 2016 and November 2020. As this has been ignored, it is obvious that this mission is about the eviction and destruction of Rigaer94 as she has been existing for 30 years. It intends nothing more but a siege and a gradual transformation into a destroyed, uninhabitable house controlled by fences and security gates. It is an attempt to evict us. Those responsible chose March 11th and 12th, 2021 as kick-off. This attempt will meet our fierce resistance! [Read More]

Berlin: Rigaer94 – A thunderstorm is coming

As already explained in our last text from Friday (1), we expect from now on a bigger operation against our house. The initially ridiculous fire safety issue has led to developments that put the continued existence of Rigaer94 as a (partially) occupied space in the highest danger. We would like to explain what happened legally, what we expect concretely and what we can do now to defend this place and the idea behind it.

New judgment regarding the legal representation and the house management

During the last attack on our house in the summer of 2020, the duo of Luschnat and Bernau gathered extensive information about the house. Despite court orders in force at the time, which had unanimously declared their powers of representation for Lafone Ltd. invalid, the police task force had given the two access to large parts of the house. Pretext of the whole action were search warrants for two dwellings because of alleged social fraud and the search for a laser pointer. Luschnat and Bernau, who were involved in the operation, used the information they had obtained to compile a list of alleged fire safety deficiencies. Police also documented the house with this in mind. [Read More]

Berlin: Rigaer94 calls for international solidarity – destruction of our space expected

After the eviction of the anarcha-queer-feminist house project Liebig34 on 9th of october 2020, the offensive of state and capital against self-organized structures in the northern area of Friedrichshain and other parts of the city did not cease. The Liebig34 is since then under the control of the owner and the presence of his gang had also an affect on the local life. The so called Dorfplatz (“village square”) lying directly in front of the house was during the last months less used by residents and visitors as a common space and saw some minor confrontations with the invaders. With having taken one of the strategic points in the area and in the same time removing a political obstacle, state and capital could focus on the Rigaer94, which lies just some meters away from the Dorfplatz and has been a constant topic in the medias over the last year.

A few days ago, cops and diggers destroyed a settlement of homeless people in Rummels Bay, a few kilometers from us. The pretext here was the extreme frost, in reality it is also there to serve the profit of investors. Also expected in the next few weeks is the eviction of the Potse Youth Center – the city is in the process of removing any rebellious site. [Read More]

Berlin: International Call for Action and Discussion Days

International Call for Action and Discussion Days in Berlin 30.10.-01.11.2020
International Demo in Berlin 31.10.2020

UNITED WE FIGHT!
Connect Urban Struggles – Defend Autonomous Spaces

Over the last years we experience a global resurgence of reactionary politics. State and capital, in a constant process of intensifying exploitation and expanding repression, used the global capitalist crisis, which started a decade ago, as a chance to further restructure relations of power in their advantage. Their political answer is materialized in a shift to the right, with a political alliance of neoliberal economic policies coupled with strong nationalistic narratives and repressive policies against resistance and progressive movements. The new face of authoritarianism has unleashed an all out attack against individuals it considers unnecessary or those that choose to resist and collectivize against the ruin of their lives. In our current period, states the world over used measures against Covid-19 to extend repression, policing and surveillance against societies. At the same time, the failings of neoliberal healthcare systems have led to masses of deaths and increasing inequality due to access to healthcare. [Read More]

Berlin: Syndikat call out. Get off the defensive!

Demo August 1st – 20 o’clock – Herrfurthplatz, Berlin-Neukölln

Times have been rough not only since the coronavirus. The fascisation of society is progressing. The danger of socialism and the hatred of everything left is evoked like a prayer wheel. The horseshoe theory enjoys great popularity. Under the cloak of totalitarian theories and far from any facts, a constant equation of two supposedly equal extremes against a hallucinated bourgeois “middle” is pursued. This liberal-bourgeois equation of socialism and fascism has a certain tradition in Germany, as does the collaboration of this bourgeois “middle” with fascism in order to take action against socialism, or against everything they perceive as a socialist danger. This is also the case with their anti-feminism, another interface between the “bourgeois-conservative middle” and fascists, which aims to maintain the conservative ideas of their system of rule by maintaining the binary gender order and, to this end, tries to turn back the achievements of feminist movements.

Fascist terror attacks in Hanau and Halle, right-wing networks that organize & arm themselves, armed fascists in the state apparatus that prepare for a civil war, secret service and state involvement in the NSU that are kept under lock and key. This list could easily be extended. The fascist danger is real. [Read More]

Berlin: Call for the demonstration on the 1st of August in Neukölln

The new phase of evictions has started. Not, as expected, with the announced eviction of the Kiezkneipe (neighbourhood bar) Syndikat, but with an attack from the cops.
An attack that was masked as a raid, with the plan for it to turn into an eviction of parts of our house. It was coordinated with some disgusting figures representing the so-called owner, in order to gain control of a space that is a thorn in the eye of a pacified european metropolis. On the 9th of July and the days that followed, we defended ourselves and reduced their filthy plans to ashes – taking back the evicted flat, pushing out the cops and bureaucrats and regaining control of our house.

This would not have been possible without the common fight and solidarity that goes far beyond our little rebellious neighborhood. Numerous people participated in the spontaneous gatherings in front of the house and nightly demonstrations in the richer neighborhoods of Berlin. While some people were cooking for everyone, others took part in the 24/7 shifts around the house. Many things destroyed by the cops were reconstructed almost immediately and different groups claimed actions in solidarity with Rigaer94. Showing once again, that solidarity in all its forms is our strongest weapon against the coordinated attacks from the state on the movement and its upcoming attempts to evict our spaces in Berlin. [Read More]

Berlin: Renewed alarm at Rigaer94

Today july 13th, there are strong police forces, construction workers and securities in the area. Alarm, now it’s getting exciting! Mouth-to-mouth info:

It is now being decided whether the police will take responsibility for the Rigaer94 conflict, and carry out the eviction which began Thursday 7 july and will continue today. At 8 o’clock the so-called Lusche, the new dubious alleged property manager, arrived first. He and his lawyer Bernau wanted to gain access to the house by force, which failed because of the human chain in front of it. His physical attack was answered accordingly. Then immediately masses of cops arrived, who had already been in stand by in the neighborhood but avoided the street in front of Rigaer94. There are at least a hundred of them, if not two riot squads again in action. At the same time, construction workers and the security company arrived. The construction workers called on residents “one to one”. It was reported that some of them wear Combat18 tattoos. They and the cops had to register that there was a new, massive entrance door. So for the moment, the intrusion into the house was stopped. According to information obtained, the police command at the highest level, i.e. the police chief, is currently advising. Nothing will happen until they take responsibility. What happens then will bring clarity about the operation since Thursday. Was it a coup attempt by the middle level police or a well planned action by the political leadership in an attempt to make everything look like a coincidence. The lies will stop.

On the other hand, the anger against the attackers on our living together in solidarity is endless!
Prepare yourself for everything, friends, it is serious! [Read More]

Berlin: Rigaer94, they tried to bury us but forgot that we are the seeds

From friday till saturday evening securities were in front of our house, that does not have any of its front doors anymore. Yesterday morning, around 6:30 am the cops attempted to enter again our front-house block. The so-called “Hausverwalter” Torsten Luschnat arrived at 7 am in order to enter the 4th floor flat in front house of 94. Of course, there is still no owner of the house known but the cops and their commanders in the senate decided to trust the new company, that pretends they are legally allowed to enter. Luschnat Immobilien did not even follow any legal frame and attacked the flat in order to evict it. The attack started from the construction team secured by the cops, by trying to smash through a bricked up door attempting to injure people who were behind it. The people behind the barricades showed an active defense and managed to ruin these plans. Therefore, it was impossible for the workers to enter. They and the cops went to the attic and smashed a hole into the ground ending up in the next door appartment. Unfortunately for them, also the tenant who lives there, managed to keep them out of the flat. Because of the escalation, the cops, afraid of leaving the legal frame, were not willed to continue and stopped the procedure. After those failed attempts of entering our flats, the cops stood in front of our door with the security team. At the same time, the construction team started throwing all the stuff from the ground floor flat, that had been evicted on friday, to the trash. The security team and the workers started to use the toilet and kitchen of the flat. Actually, as soon as they realized that there is a contract still existing, with a person present being able to show it, the doors of the apartment were closed. To demonstrate their power, the cops, from time to time, decided to prevent people who are not registered to come inside. In the afternoon the cops left their position in front of our house. Before the demo arrived, the securities also left being secure by cops. Hundreds of solidary people joined the demonstration and gathered in front of our house until late in the night. [Read More]