April 2, 2008 - No. 48
Militant Actions Across Europe Denounce NATO
and Imperialist Aggression
In the lead-up to the NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania,
activists
across Europe have been organizing militant actions to oppose the
aggressive alliance and NATO expansion in Europe.
Ukranians Reject Bush Visit
and NATO Membership
 
 
In
Kiev, Ukraine, about 5,000 people gathered on March 31 to protest
against the U.S. imperialist President George W. Bush's visit, and
Ukraine's bid
for NATO membership. Activists demonstrating in Kiev's Independence
Square carried signs with
the slogans"Bush out of Ukraine," "Yankee go home," "NATO Gestapo" and
"No to NATO," as well as burning an effigy of President Bush.
Should Ukraine be accepted into NATO, "we will take
more severe
measures," a protest organizer told reporters. He added that
around 9,000 people were expected to take part in the protests from
March 31 to April 4.
Opposition to Ukraine's push for NATO membership has
also taken
place in the Ukranian parliament. A survey published in March said only
50 percent of Ukrainians support the idea of NATO membership.
 
 
Kiev, April 1, 2008. Top
left: "NATO Means Death"; right: "Bush, Don't Stick Your Nose In"
and "NATO's
Breakfast."
Bottom left; riot police surround protestors; right: Moscow, April 1, 2008. Solidarity demonstration in
outside U.S. embassy.
Romania: Anti-NATO Actions Continue in the Face of
Massive
Repression
In
Bucharest on April 1, one day before the start of the NATO summit,
activists opposing the summit reported instensifying repression of
anti-NATO activists. "Alternative-looking people are
detained by the police
for no reason" an Indymedia report says. "Afterwards the police
manufacture absurd offenses, for
example saying having a pocketknife amounts to possession of a weapon.
Every person coming to or leaving the convergence centre was in danger
of getting detained (some simply for walking to a nearby shop). The
detained are interrogated, photographed
and fingerprinted in police stations, and held for up to 24 hours," the
Indymedia report adds.
At the Romanian border several groups of activists, as
well as others were denied entry into the country.
The most involved Romanian activists around the country
were visited or called by either the local police or SRI
(Romanian information service) to be warned against participating in
any anti-NATO protests or to have their families intimidated.
March 26, 2008: signs
posted at the Romania-Bulgaria border.
30,000 police officers, military, snipers and secret
police are
occupying the city. The security alert code yellow was announced
amongst
other restrictive laws. Code yellow means that all demonstrations are
forbidden in the whole city.
Despite this repression, actions have taken place and
activists have called for solidarity actions in other
cities.
Repression update list:
March 19 - Calafat checkpoint: six anti-NATO German
activists; searched for 19 hours.
March 26 - four of the six tried to cross again at
Giurgiu
check-point.
March 27 - University of Bucharest student Tatiana
Duplei was run over and killed by a motorist in a "NATO corridor" set
up inside Bucharest, an accident that some suggest was the indirect
result of the security measures put in place for the summit.
March 28 - Cenad
check-point: "Die Young" group from Texas denied entry.
March 29, 7:00 am - Five anti-NATO activists in
Bucharest
were stopped
by the sector 3 police and taken to police station 11 for verification.
They refused to have photos taken or be fingerprinted, and were only
let go once they started making phone calls to the mass media.
March 31 - 7 Czech activists tried to cross the border
and were
detained at the border for 8 hours after which they were denied entry
into Romania. One of the activists was carrying some information from
the Czech anti-radar base movement. They were all searched and only
some CDs and leaflets were
found.
April 1, c. 12:30 am - Three activists were stopped by
sector 3
gendarmerie when they were coming back from the market. They were
stopped for 2 hours outside and then taken to section 14. Formal
charges are being brought against them for carrying 'white weapons'
(Swiss Army
knife).
April 1 - Four Polish activists tried to
cross the
border. After their license plate number was checked they were told by
the police that they knew that they were going to Bucharest to protest
against NATO and were denied entry.
April 1, c. 12:30 pm - One person was stopped by sector
3
gendarmerie on suspicion of having stolen goods on his person and taken
to the
section 3 police for verification and checking after being held 1.5
hours on the
street. He was released at around 6:00 pm.
April 1 - A bus of anti-NATO activists from Berlin was
stopped in
Pitesti. The activists were taken to the police station and after some
interrogation, were escorted out of Pitesti and started driving towards
Bucharest. They reached Bucharest late on April 1 along with the
police escort which prevented them from going to the convergence centre.
April 1 - In the late afternoon a group of four
anti-NATO
activists
passing out flyers was detained and taken to section 8 and four other
anti-NATO activists were detained and taken to section 8 as well...
April 1- in the late evening several anti-NATO activists
were
stopped and searched by police while on their way to the convergence
centre, but eventually were let go.
"Preventative Detentions"
at Convergence Centre
 
On
April 2, at approximately 12:30 pm, hundreds of police descended on the
convergence centre of the anti-NATO gathering in Bucharest. It is
reported that 54 arrests were made, all inside the convergence
centre. There was no demonstration
happening. Many of the police were wearing ski masks, and were very
hostile to journalists trying to access the scene. According to
statements made by activists, many of them were beaten
by the police. As soon as the gendarmes entered the space, they started
kicking and hitting people left and
right.
The convergence centre is located near the centre of
Bucharest in the Timpuri Noi factory which the anti-NATO demonstrators
had legally rented until April 7. According to the police, there were
accusations that some protestors had acted aggressively towards one of
the
guards near the site and
this was the pretext for the violent police intervention.
By 3:15 pm, three large paddy wagons carrying away those
arrested had already left
the site. Some other protestors and media were
gathered on the other side of the street, chanting for their release.
A police spokesperson gave a few statements to the
media in
Romanian. The following information was loosely translated by a
Romanian
speaker: "According to the spokesperson, the police found anti-NATO
banners and some paint inside the convergence centre. There was nothing
illegal. He stated that
the protestors were not terrorists and that they had been taken to the
police station to have their identities verified. Among the group of
people arrested were local activists as well as foreigners. The
spokesperson also stated that this police intervention was not against
the national constitution of Romania and that
liberty of expression is guaranteed."
News reports state that activists may be prevented from
returning
even though their contract is valid until April 7, because the
plant’s management has asked they be evicted. Activists are adamant
they will continue their work even if they are prevented from carrying
out activities in the convergence
centre.
Activists, including some who were arrested and already
been
released, held
demonstrations outside the police stations where those still detained
were being held. They marched from police station no. 11 to no. 12
carrying
banners that read "This is what democracy looks like? Police and Army
against citizens-2008" and
"Free Anti Militarists, Close NATO." At police station no. 12, an
anti-NATO activist who had been seriously injured by police was refused
medical assistance. As a result of public
pressure, the wounded protester received medical attention.
Demontrators reported that as long as the
cameras of photojournalists were present, people are able to protest on
the spot, but as soon as the journalists left, they faced the danger of
being arrested and taken inside.
At 10:17 pm later that day, a brief report posted
to Romanian
Indymedia stated that all those arrested had been released without
charges.
It should be noted that these arrests were made before
any organized
actions against the NATO summit had taken place and also in a context
where the authorities have stated they would not tolerate any
opposition to NATO during the summit. The local corporate media has
also been in a frenzy about
"dangerous anarchists" who are going to "descend on the city and break
store windows." One TV news report on Realitatea TV went so far as to
incite criminal acts of violence by encouraging viewers to throw rocks
at any demonstrators that they see on
the streets.
Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia
Skopje, April 2, 2008. Anti-NATO demonstration outside government
building.
Demonstrators in Belgium
Call for an End to NATO
In
related news, 1000 activists from across Europe to participated
in the "NATO Game Over" action at NATO headquarters in Belgium on March
22 to oppose the military action in Iraq and Afghanistan and the use of
nuclear weapons.
News agencies report 150 protesters were arrested. Police in riot gear
and others on horseback as well as water cannons were against the
protesters some of whom scaled the barbed-wire fence to gain
entry to the compound. A police spokeswoman said at least one protester
was taken to hospital with
serious injuries after falling on barbed wire.
"Demonstrations are a feature of democracy. All we hope
for with any
such protest is that it is done in a peaceful and safe manner," a NATO
official told Reuters.
"Today is close to the fifth anniversary of the war in
Iraq and we
are protesting against NATO's involvement and in particular European
countries which are allowing themselves to be used as military hubs,"
anti-war campaigner Hans Lammerant told Reuters.
"NATO has 350 U.S. nuclear weapons deployed in Germany,
Italy,
Belgium, the Netherlands, Britain and Turkey. According to
international humanitarian law these weapons are illegal."
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