Amsterdam’s New Policy: No Eviction for Emptiness…

[nederlands] [français]

As a squatter in Amsterdam, looking back on the past year is painful. 2019 dealt heavy blows to a movement that didn’t seem capable of much more than taking the beating. The city has lost its largest squats and despite numerous squatting actions, hardly any new buildings have survived the end of the year. What’s more, politicians tried to introduce a law at national level to further criminalise squatters while the media reported time and time again how afflicted property owners are being deceived repeatedly by squatters. To top it all off, the mayor concludes the year with a report on a new policy designed to implement a more rigorous approach to squatting.
There’s not much left to say beyond 2019 having been a rather grim year, making it difficult to paint a hopeful picture for squatting in Amsterdam in 2020.

We look back on a year in which we, above all, lost a lot. […Lees verder]

Benefit for Progetto 20K

Monday September 21st 2020, Benefit for Progetto 20K – VeganVoku TakeAway. Donations and benefits for Ventimiglia from Netherlands. Ajo Negro in the kitchen. Food take away to the square, from 7pm till 9pm. No reservation.

Progetto 20K is a group of people whose aim is to bring solidarity and support to migrants who become stuck in the territory of Ventimiglia due to the national and European migration policies. The main objective of the group is to support the freedom of movement for all people and to be active so that rights are obtained and guaranteed. The project called Progetto20k started in June 2016 monitoring the border and informing migrants about the rights they hold, services they can benefit from in the Italian territory, information about the situation at the French-Italian borders and tips about the trip they are willing to embark.
Every day at the French-Italian border hundreds of people are rejected by the French police and sent back to Italy, without allowing them to apply for international protection in the transalpine country. People stopped in France, mainly in the city of Menton, but also in the French territory, who do not have valid documents for expatriation, are taken by the French police corps to the PAF (Police Aux Frontières) office in Ponte San Luigi, at the so-called high border: here they are detained for several hours, the time to identify them and notify them of the “refus d’entrée”, a document declaring the person ineligible on French territory. These documents are often falsifies, changing the dates of birth so that even unaccompanied minors who would have the right to be taken into care in the country where they are located can be “legally” refused entry.
The main place where we carry out part of our activities in the city of Ventimiglia is at the Gianchette park, where the evening meal distributions are made. We provide a generator so that people can charge their own phones and power banks, and we guarantee internet access. We also distribute information material on the border, the various European states, services dedicated to asylum seekers, etc… First aid is also provided given the large number of people who are injured and bruised on a daily basis, mainly due to the long journey on foot across the Balkan route. Moreover, through mobile info-point activities, we directly inform people at the border and down in the city so that they can have all the necessary information about their rights, the journey they intend to make and the safest, most dignified, protected and effective way to do so; we directly support the people we meet every day through the collection and distribution of clothing, blankets, basic necessities and hygiene kits.
The aim of these activities is to provide people in transit with the tools they need to be able to continue their journey autonomously, creating paths of solidarity that allow them to build common practices and imaginations, beyond any border.

Ajo Negro is an anti-authoritarian collective that cooks to support events and projects of social transformation. It is run by volunteers based on a libertarian perspective. Encouraging human and non-human freedom. We are an active kitchen that criticise capitalism and welfarism. We choose vegan as a nourish option and as a political decision. We help each other in a horizontal way, considering that the collective effort is more fruitful that the individual one. […Lees verder]

Benefit for Rosa Nera squat

Thursday 17 september 2020, benefit for Rosa Nera squat. Food will be served on the Steve Bikoplein, the square next to Joe’s Garage, from 19:00 and will be directly followed by music, also on the square. Rebetika with Georges, Charis and others. No reservation, vegan food, veggies from the garden. Donations welcome. If you want food to take away, bring your own containers.

On 5 September 2020, Rosa Nera squat in Chania, Creta was evicted by surprise at 5 o’clock in the morning. 16 people sleeping inside got arrested. 5 of them are immigrants. All of them got released after some hours.
Rosa Nera was squatted in 2004. The building belongs to the Polytechnic School of Chania. Rosa Nera has been for 16 years an emblematic space, not only in Creta but for the whole Greece, for the movement. Various groups and collectives have been using the space.

During the summer, a potential buyer came to check the building and was welcomed by a group of 200 people. Prime minister Mitsotakis is from Chania and had promised many years ago that when he will be in the government, he would evict Rosa Nera.

ROSA NERA is an autonomous, anti-authoritarian political collective and since 2004, has squatted and given its name to the historical building that was formerly known as the “5th Army Division”, declaring it, for the first time in its history, a liberated space.

The squatted building of ROSA NERA, was built around 1880 by the Turks as a palace for the local pasha. It continued to house different representatives of the authority, the latest being the local military command, during the military dictatorship of Papadopoulos.

In 1985 the building passes from the ministry of defense to the ministry of education, which offers it to the Technical University of Crete, under the condition that it would be used solely for educational activities. Nevertheless, from 1985 till 2004, the building was totally abandoned.

In June 2004, the building was occupied and revived. It was transformed from a ruin that was falling apart, into a political, cultural and social activities center, as well as a house. Everything was accomplished with collective work, collective will and collective financial support. That means that the people did it all, by organizing themselves through horizontal and non-hierarchical procedures.

ROSA NERA squat had organised and operated amongst many other things, an non-commercial cafe-bar, a theater, a clothes exchange bazaar, a children’s space, an event and film projection room, a library, a workshop, a guest house, a collective kitchen, and an open vegetable-garden. At the same time, many political and cultural events were taking place, always with a free entrance or voluntary-donation based.

Most importantly, ROSA NERA, as a political group, supported and participated in social and class struggles, always standing in solidarity with the oppressed and struggling people, fighting against any exploitation and oppression, for justice, equality and freedom.

On the 5th of September 2020, after 16 years of active presence in the social and political life of the town of Chania, police forces evict the squat, arrest the people inside and empty the building with the assent of the municipality and the administration of the Technical Universcity of Crete. The reason behind this eviction was the leasing of the building by the university, to a privately owned hotel group (BELVEDERE) in order to turn it into a luxury hotel.

In a town that is suffocating under the unrelenting growth of tourism, where the public space has all but disappeared and during a health crisis that has gravely affected the labour market and has highlighted the catastrophic character of the economic monoculture of tourism, the eviction of Rosa Nera and the plans of turning this historical building into another boutique hotel, seems to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.

The struggle is just beginning.

SOLIDARITY WITH ROSA NERA SQUAT

STRUGGLE FOR FREE, NON-COMMERCIAL SPACE

Chania, Greece, 2020

Rosa Nera squat http://rosanera.squat.gr/ […Lees verder]

Take Away Voku for Lesvos Mutual Aid Network

Monday September 14th 2020, Take Away Voku for Mutual Aid Network Lesvos, 7pm, no reservation.

Take-away voku for the Lesvos Mutual Aid Network. The network was started this year to support people in need on the Greek island of Lesbos, in the light of the covid-19 situation. We organise distribution of dry food items, clothes and personal support for 600 locals, migrants and everybody in need. Somebody from the Network will be present to anwser questions and give updates on the current situation on the Island with regards to the social-political situation.
Lesvos Mutual Aid Network: lesvos_network [at] protonmail [dot] com

[…Lees verder]

VOKU Benefit for ]LAG(

Monday September 7th 2020, VOKU Benefit for ]LAG(

From 19:00, delicious home made falafel on delicious home made breads. Benefit for ]LAG( Hacklab. We need to pay rent.
LAG is a hacklab project coming out of the SLUG (Squatting Linux User Group) mesh.
Our main focus is the relationship between politics and technology, both at a practical and theoretical level.
At lag we are interested in ]hacking( and at the same time in questioning what hacking is. We started this place because we wanted a place to share similar interests with other people so feel free to pass by for: installing linux, discussing technical or theoretical ideas, fix your laptop, learn to weave, build a bike, find parts, learn how to encrypt data, make experiments, deconstruct apparatuses, drink coffee, read a book, write a paper, scan a book, look at stuff through a microscope, fix your clothes, share files, take things apart, present something, potter around, add things to this list and share knowledge in any other way you want. https://laglab.org/ […Lees verder]

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Benefit for Belarusian Black Cross – VeganVoku TakeAway

Thursday September 3rd 2020, Benefit for Belarusian Black Cross – Vegan Belarusian food take away to the square, from 7pm till 9pm. No reservation.
The anti-authoritarian collective Ajo Negro is cooking at Joe’s Garage. Benefit for Belarusian Black Cross for legal and medical funds.

Ajo Negro is an anti-authoritarian collective that cooks to support events and projects of social transformation. It is run by volunteers based on a libertarian perspective. Encouraging human and non-human freedom. We are an active kitchen that criticise capitalism and welfarism. We choose vegan as a nourish option and as a political decision. We help each other in a horizontal way, considering that the collective effort is more fruitful that the individual one. […Lees verder]

PUSCII benefit on the Steve Bikoplein

Monday August 24th 2020, Another PUSCII benefit, 3rd edition, Volkseten Vegazulu, from 7pm, no reservation.

Are you allergic to Mailchimp, still making blogs on WordPress.com, lobbying on Twitter, giving up on your privacy with Facebook, showing off on Instagram, mailing with a gmail account, uploading files on Mixcloud? It is never too late to realize there are many alternatives to such corporate controlled services and make good use of existing alternatives. Let’s support an initiative like PUSCII, with a people’s kitchen serving you a plate with fresh veggies from the garden. Curious about PUSCII?
https://www.puscii.nl/
https://wiki.hackerspaces.org/PUSCII […Lees verder]

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Benefit for Kesha Niya

Thursday August 20th 2020, Benefit for Kesha Niya, Vegan Sushi, from 7pm till 9pm. No reservation.

The anti-authoritarian collective Ajo Negro is cooking at Joe’s Garage. The benefit will go to support Kesha Niya Community. Kesha Niya is an autonomous refugee support project at the French / Italian border. https://keshaniya.org/
On the 24th of August some people is driving to Ventimiglia to bring donations and help out at Kesha Niya.
We’re collecting donations to bring there. Here a list of stuff that is needed:

+ face masks and disinfectants
+ Sleeping bags and blankets
+ Toothbrushes and toothpaste
+ Soaps
+ in general stuff that is handy to have while traveling (e.g. power banks, phones, etc.)
+ Medications
+ Solar panels
+ (men’s) shoes
+ (men’s) clothes
+ backpacks
+ MONEY to cover travel costs and buy stuff there that is needed
+Tents and other camping material

Your donations are welcome at the Binnenpret and Joe’s Garage in Amsterdam and in Zaandam at the Old School squat.

Solidarity voku for El Real Under cultural center in Mexico city

Monday August 17th 2020, Solidarity voku for El Real Under cultural center in Mexico city, from 7pm till 9pm. No reservation.

Voku and take away. Bring your own container. El real under has been home of the alternative scene in Mexico city, has offered cultural, social, ecological support events and concerts for social causes, El Under is the benchmark in Mexico city as a meeting point for those who looking for art, fun and rebellion. If you want to support El Real Under you can do it direct with them.
PayPal: zedkiel [at] gmail [dot] com. ( Donations Real Under)
Bank account: 6477636272 Card no: 42131 66108 473681
Clabe: 02118 0064 7763 62726 HSBC in name of, Estefani Dolores Carmona
http://theunder.org/ […Lees verder]