SOLIDARITY WITH THE ANARCHISTS ARRESTED FOLLOWING THE LATEST POLICE OPERATION IN ITALY
In the early hours of 6th September 2016, an operation coordinated by the Digos (political police) of Turin led to the searches of 30 homes in various Italian regions (Piedmont, Liguria, Lazio, Umbria, Lombardy, Abruzzo, Campania, Sardinia and Emilia Romagna) and the arrest of five anarchist comrades accused of subversive association with terrorist intent. In addition, two anarchists who have been in custody since September 2012 received notification in prison.
The police operation is called “Scripta Manent” (from Latin proverb “verba volant, scripta manent” — spoken words fly away, written words remain), and is just the latest in a series of similar others carried out throughout the last decades, all of them meant to take anarchists out of the streets and into jail. Why? Because anarchist ideas and practices are dangerous to power. These are ideas and practices, theory and action, which have one and only unequivocal object: total liberation and the destruction of all forms of oppression, no matter whether we live in times of “crisis” or not. But during a period of “crisis” people often stop being passive recipients of decisions imposed from above. Anarchists, in this sense, can set an example in terms of attack, direct action and self-organization of the struggle. That’s the reason behind the many operations with fancy names (Cervantes, Night Time, Boldness, etc.) that have cost many comrades time in prison and endless judicial proceedings.
Italian public prosecutors don’t even need any evidence of “crime” to order raids and arrests against anarchists. So if you are an anarchist in Italy you can expect your home to be stormed by dozens of armed cops at any time, and you end up in jail for months on end awaiting trial for some police investigation often based on inconsistent evidence.
“Scripta Manent”, in particular, is focused on a string of direct actions claimed by various groups of the FAI, Informal Anarchist Organization, between 2004 and 2012. The attacks inserted in this investigation include the parcel-bombs sent to the CPT (detention centre for immigrants) director in Modena in May 2005, to the traffic-cops barracks in Torino-San Salvario and to the chief-police of Lecce, the explosive device against the RIS barracks (carabinieri forensics) in Parma (October 2005), the parcel-bomb sent to the Mayor of Bologna Sergio Cofferati (November 2005), the devices against the carabinieri cadets’ barracks in Fossano (June 2, 2006), the devices placed in the Turin neighbourhood Crocetta (March 2007). In order to corroborate the crime of association, another action was included in the list: the shooting and kneecapping of Roberto Adinolfi (May 2012), managing director of nuclear power company Ansaldo Nucleare, despite the fact that two comrades (Alfredo Cospito and Nicola Gai) have already been convicted and have publicly claimed this attack putting a supposed end to the case.
The comrades arrested in operation “Scripta Manent” are:
Marco Bisesti – Strada Alessandria 50/A – 15121 San Michele – Alessandria (AL)
Alessandro Mercogliano – Via Arginone 327 – 44122 Ferrara
Anna Beniamino – Via Aspromonte 100 – 04100 Latina (LT)
Danilo Emiliano Cremonese – Via Arginone 327 – 44122 Ferrara
Valentina Speziale – Via Aspromonte 100 – 04100 Latina (LT)
Alfredo Cospito and Nicola Gai – C.C Via Argione 327
44122 Ferrara (Italy)
Another comrade, Daniele, was arrested in relation to other proceedings on charges of possession of material for the manufacture of explosive devices, following the discovery in his apartment of some batteries and an electrician’s manual.
Daniele Cortelli – Str. delle Campore 32 – 05100 Terni (TR)
In the face of all this, we can only stand by the side of those who struggle against this rotten society based on exploitation and who believe in action as a means to change things. Let’s not allow repression to achieve its aims of intimidation and scaremongering that would want us to be submissive and obedient to the order of the law.
