Winterthur: Defend all squats, defend decent housing for all! Gisi bleibt!

By: fawda - August 4th, 2026  Filed under: Communique, News

International Call to Action and Solidarity

Dear friends and comrades

We urgently need your help and solidarity.

The oldest squat of Winterthur/CH (and probably of Switzerland) is imminently threatened to be evicted in August. Gisi, at General-Gusian-Street 31, was squatted in January 1997 and is until now used as home for a lot of people without much money and as a social meeting point and non-profit culturals space.

Over the last years we, Häuservernetzung Winterthur, tried everything not to let this happen and to save this important house as a home and social and radical cultural space from destruction.

But the owners, SKKG – a very wealthy real estate- and art-foundation – are planning to renovate the house for five million Swiss francs to make more profit of every house they own. Letting rich people take over the last piece of inner city of Winterthur. [Read More]

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Winterthur: Gisi stays! No profit with housing!

By: fawda - December 11th, 2025  Filed under: Communique, News

Come to the Gisi Stays demo on December 20, 2025, 14:00 at the main station in Winterthur, Switzerland.

As some of you might have heard already, the Stefanini foundation for art, culture and history (SKKG) wants to evict Gisi (General-Guisan-Str. 31, Winterthur), the probably oldest squat in Switzerland, in February 2026.

All negotiation attempts to keep the house ours, alive and lived in uncommercially and self-organized have failed at the unwillingness of the foundation.

Especially SKKG, that preaches art, culture and history, wants to destroy exactly this.

Because in the past 28 years, numerous artists have given Gisi artistic diversity by organizing different workshops, concerts and events.

Over the decades many people have always lived at Gisi, permanently and temporarily. Gisi means affordable housing for many, that don’t have anything. [Read More]

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Winterthur: Zensur, a new occupation for a social centre

By: fawda - October 2nd, 2020  Filed under: Communique, News

We occupied the building on Talackerstrasse 99 this Friday evening. After it has been vacant for more than 3 years, we want to bring life to the former Sulzer office building and establish a social and cultural center.

The building is currently “owned” by Implenia, which is a driving force in the development of Winterthur into a “City of the Rich” with major projects such as LokStadt and the gentrification process of Hegi.

With the ZENSUR we want to create a space that enables people to implement projects without a lot of money. So that everyone can afford to be creative, do sports, show films and organize discussions. Every person should be able to contribute to the ZENSUR with his or her suggestions and skills to fulfill and realize their wishes and ideas collectively. [Read More]

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