Today's Topics:
1. Britain, anarchist communist group ACG: Two years after
Grenfell - fire at Barking flats (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
2. France, Alternative Libertaire AL #295 - Nuclear: EPR poorly
welded, EDF badly barred (fr, it, pt)[machine translation]
(a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
3. [Greece] Do not give in to fear by Yannis Youlountas --
A.N.A. (pt) [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
4. Grupo Libertario Via Libre: [Colombia] Communiqué about
sexist practices and gender violence within our organization (ca,
it) [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
5. Britain, CLASS WAR'S BIGGEST RURAL ACTION SINCE WE INVADED
PEN WOOD. (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
6. Britain, anarchist communist group ACG: Unquiet Graves -
film review (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
A fire that engulfed Barking flats on Sunday June 9th could have been avoided. There had
been concerns among residents before the fire. Peter Mason, chair of Barking Residents
Association contacted the builder Bellway Homes in early May about fire risks after a BBC
Watchdog programme spotlighting fire safety hazards at two other Bellway Homes sites. ----
Bellway told him not to worry. On Sunday the fire swept through wooden cladding and
destroyed 20 homes and possessions. Another 10 flats were damaged by the fire. Two
residents were treated for smoke inhalation. ---- This is exactly the same scenario as
Grenfell, where residents' concerns about fire safety were consistently ignored. The only
difference is that whilst 72 people died at Grenfell, there were no fatalities at Barking.
Politicians including the Housing Minister, Kit Malthouse, and Theresa May herself spouted
a lot of rhetoric after Grenfell that fire safety would be urgently addressed. This has
proved to be empty words, as working class residents' concerns continue to be ignored.
SAT 22ND JUNE: HOUSING AND LAND IN RBKC
A day of workshops, talks and film, looking at the housing crisis in the borough. Hosted
by Save Earls' Court Supporters Club, Save Silchester, THINK, and Westway 23, supported by
RHN. Tickets here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/housing-and-land-in-rbkc-tickets-62845738295
http://radicalhousingnetwork.org
https://www.anarchistcommunism.org/2019/06/17/two-years-after-grenfell-fire-at-barking-flats/
------------------------------
Message: 2
The construction site of the Flamanville EPR (Manche) is accumulating so many delays and
additional costs that the construction of new nuclear power plants in France - the French
nuclear power plant reaching the end of its life - could become much more complicated.
---- The construction of the EPR (Flamanville European Pressurized Reactor) began in
December 2007 for commissioning planned in 2012 with a budget of 3.5 billion euros. These
deadlines and costs have been revised upwards several times, mainly due to manufacturing
anomalies on the tank. ---- Nonconformities were discovered in April 2018 on 66 secondary
circuit welds. EDF undertook to recover 58 welds and announced in July 2018 that their
repair would further increase the bill, bringing it to 10.9 billion euros.
And this without taking into account the 8 welds for which EDF asked the ASN to keep them
in the state: these welds pass through the containment of the reactor, and take them back
involve touching the structures of the installation.
Catastrophic financial consequences for EDF
On Tuesday 9 April, EDF was auditioned by an ASN group of experts. And patatras, the group
of experts recommends that EDF repairs these 8 defective welds " The IRSN [1]concluded
that EDF should, rather than seek to justify an acceptability in the state, proceed to the
reinstatement of welds concerned " said Thierry Charles, Deputy Director General of IRSN
[2], which could postpone the commissioning of the nuclear reactor for another two
years. The ASN should render its final opinion by the summer, but doubt is weak, the
opinions of the IRSN are generally followed. " Usually, the construction takes into
account the risk of breakage of the part concerned. However, EDF assumed that the welds
could not break " [3]. A solution for EDF would be to abandon the principle of
exclusion of rupture. " It will then take all his safety study to see what would happen
in case of rupture of the weld. But here too, it's a very complicated process. Above all,
the probability that it does not change the installation is zero, " warns Thierry
Charles. In other words, EDF would then be forced to rebuild a part of its installation to
make it able to cope with this kind of accident.
Any significant postponement of the commissioning of the EPR could have catastrophic
consequences for EDF. Of course, it would still increase the cost of construction. But
much more than that. With 33 billion euros of debt, EDF must invest in the next years
between 55 and 75 billion euros to bring its nuclear fleet up to standard. Macron
conditioned the construction of new nuclear reactors at the start of this first EPR on
French soil. But these new slippages mean that this project can not be presented before
the campaign for the presidential elections of 2022.
Jocelyn (AL Gard)
[1] Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety
[2] Mediapart, April 11, 2019
[3] Reporterre, April 12, 2019
http://www.alternativelibertaire.org/?Nucleaire-EPR-mal-soude-EDF-mal-barre
------------------------------
Message: 3
Thanks to the numerous messages of support and solidarity after the Neo-Nazi ambush that I
suffered on Thursday (13/06) at night, near the Favela Free Social Center in Piraeus. I
recover gradually from the blows, aching but determined. Far from being downcast, I'm
proud to announce great news for Rouvikonas. ---- DO NOT Cede to Fear ---- There is only
one thing to fear: it is fear itself. This is the common trap of those who claim to be
superior: authoritarian or fascist, legal or factious, with their group of policemen or
militias. The creation of consent not only passes through an imaginary construction, a
symbolic representation, an illusory reach to be submitted that presents itself as
evidence, rule, duty. This bondage is, moreover, the product of the feeling of impotence
and insecurity that awakens fear. It does not matter if the threat is direct or indirect:
to look down when it occurs is to resign oneself; to look to the other side when others
are being oppressed is to be prepared to suffer the same fate. On the other hand, not
giving in to fear is staying resolutely out of this vicious cycle, this infernal cycle,
this accumulation of unfinished business. It's screaming no, loud and strong, when silence
equals consent. It surprises those who thought to make us obey, run or ask for compassion.
Not to give in to fear is to refuse to look down, to look into the eyes of those who want
to dominate us, exploit us, bother us and prove that we will not surrender, that we will
keep up. Last night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought I was
impressed. But soon they realized that cold blood and determination are more than words.
Of course, I'm still sore, but I probably got away with something worse. I also owe the
end of the ambush to the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning
of the attack. This unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a
thread: that of the social bond, of presence, of solidarity. when silence is equal to
consent. It surprises those who thought to make us obey, run or ask for compassion. Not to
give in to fear is to refuse to look down, to look into the eyes of those who want to
dominate us, exploit us, bother us and prove that we will not surrender, that we will keep
up. Last night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought I was impressed.
But soon they realized that cold blood and determination are more than words. Of course,
I'm still sore, but I probably got away with something worse. I also owe the end of the
ambush to the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning of the
attack. This unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a thread:
that of the social bond, of presence, of solidarity. when silence is equal to consent. It
surprises those who thought to make us obey, run or ask for compassion. Not to give in to
fear is to refuse to look down, to look into the eyes of those who want to dominate us,
exploit us, bother us and prove that we will not surrender, that we will keep up. Last
night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought I was impressed. But soon
they realized that cold blood and determination are more than words. Of course, I'm still
sore, but I probably got away with something worse. I also owe the end of the ambush to
the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning of the attack. This
unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a thread: that of the
social bond, of presence, of solidarity. It surprises those who thought to make us obey,
run or ask for compassion. Not to give in to fear is to refuse to look down, to look into
the eyes of those who want to dominate us, exploit us, bother us and prove that we will
not surrender, that we will keep up. Last night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an
ambush thought I was impressed. But soon they realized that cold blood and determination
are more than words. Of course, I'm still sore, but I probably got away with something
worse. I also owe the end of the ambush to the arrival of a tram to the next station
shortly after the beginning of the attack. This unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A
life that sometimes has a thread: that of the social bond, of presence, of solidarity. It
surprises those who thought to make us obey, run or ask for compassion. Not to give in to
fear is to refuse to look down, to look into the eyes of those who want to dominate us,
exploit us, bother us and prove that we will not surrender, that we will keep up. Last
night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought I was impressed. But soon
they realized that cold blood and determination are more than words. Of course, I'm still
sore, but I probably got away with something worse. I also owe the end of the ambush to
the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning of the attack. This
unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a thread: that of the
social bond, of presence, of solidarity. look into the eyes of those who want to dominate
us, exploit us, bother us and show that we will not surrender, that we will keep up. Last
night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought I was impressed. But soon
they realized that cold blood and determination are more than words. Of course, I'm still
sore, but I probably got away with something worse. I also owe the end of the ambush to
the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning of the attack. This
unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a thread: that of the
social bond, of presence, of solidarity. look into the eyes of those who want to dominate
us, exploit us, bother us and show that we will not surrender, that we will keep up. Last
night, the four Neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought I was impressed. But soon
they realized that cold blood and determination are more than words. Of course, I'm still
sore, but I probably got away with something worse. I also owe the end of the ambush to
the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning of the attack. This
unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a thread: that of the
social bond, of presence, of solidarity. the four neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush
thought they were impressed. But soon they realized that cold blood and determination are
more than words. Of course, I'm still sore, but I probably got away with something worse.
I also owe the end of the ambush to the arrival of a tram to the next station shortly
after the beginning of the attack. This unexpected crowd may have saved my life. A life
that sometimes has a thread: that of the social bond, of presence, of solidarity. the four
neo-Nazis who set me up for an ambush thought they were impressed. But soon they realized
that cold blood and determination are more than words. Of course, I'm still sore, but I
probably got away with something worse. I also owe the end of the ambush to the arrival of
a tram to the next station shortly after the beginning of the attack. This unexpected
crowd may have saved my life. A life that sometimes has a thread: that of the social bond,
of presence, of solidarity.
Do not give in to fear is not to retreat from attempts at intimidation. Piraeus neo-Nazis
are furious these days to see that CSL Favela celebrates its second anniversary and
achieves what seemed impossible: to remain in a difficult neighborhood where fascists and
other nationalists have settled. With exemplary courage and many great ideas, my Favela
comrades have once again demonstrated that the only fights lost in advance are those we
dare not take. That is why I call on all those in the Attica region tonight to attend
Favela's birthday and show their solidarity with their numerous presence at this meeting
in the heart of Piraeus.
Not yielding to fear is also not allowing others to suffer injustice and repression. This
solidarity, however, must live up to the overwhelming force that sometimes falls on the
victims. In the face of recent reprisals by the Greek State, with an unprecedented
severity through legal trickery, the Rouvikonas group appeared to have been sentenced to
the arrest and imprisonment of two of its members. The sum to be obtained as a deposit
(future repair costs and daily fines) seemed impossible to meet: € 30,000 for Nikos and
another for Giorgos, the co-founder of the group. € 60,000 in total, that is, ten to
twenty times more than usual. May I help! Yesterday we managed to bring Nikos back to the
field! Although the media have announced the imminent imprisonment of our comrades, we
were able to collect and deposit the first large sum of 30,000 euros, with the support of
the whole world, young and old, including migrants with few resources insisted on
participating modestly: "They defended us so often! It's our turn to defend them! "
Tonight, I will not be able to participate in the party of my companions in the Favela,
not only because of my convalescence, but also because I planned to be with my companions
of Rouvikonas at night before returning to rest.
So where exactly are we? It's very simple. At the time of this writing, the common amount
registers 26,700 euros, that is, in reality 22,400, since 4,300 had already been withdrawn
by two previous judgments. If we count all at once (resistance box + paypal + transfers +
cash payments at K * vox or Spiros tour), we have more than doubled: 47 850 euros in
total! In other words, we have already exceeded half the amount necessary to prevent the
Greek State from imprisoning Giorgos. It takes 6 days to find 12. 150 €. 2,000 per day
until Friday 21 June, when the sum must be deposited to allow the co-founder of Rouvikonas
to leave again free. 12,150 equals one quarter of the amount collected in three weeks.
This seems almost impossible given the short time, but it is still possible, whenever we
do not surrender so close to the goal. With 47,850 of 60,000, we made 80% of the way. It
would be a shame to miss being a stone's throw away from a formidable demonstration
directed at power; this power that reigns in dividing us, isolating us, making us
indifferent and even jealous of each other.
Not yielding to fear is remembering our ability to change the course of things, ultimately
to actions, ideas, means. The fact that support sometimes comes from the other side of the
world perfectly symbolizes the horizontality of this global struggle against the newspaper
giants who still say they govern us, judge us, and arrest us. That is why the struggles
against capitalism and against fascism are inseparable. In fact, they are the two sides of
the same struggle: the struggle for individual and social emancipation, for freedom and
equality, for love and revolution, for the joy of participating in an impulse that will
one day overthrow the old authoritarian world.
Times are hard. Yes, they always were. The Nazis surround, attack at night and sometimes
even in daylight. My body attests. Capitalism hardens, destroying the social gains
achieved first and deepening inequalities later. It is an undeniable fact that only the
Nazis dare to contradict. The power is hardening, with new weapons, new tools to monitor,
and new laws to punish. Of course, given the number of victims. The picture is hard, but
it should not lead to surrender. Because it is precisely because the times are difficult
that they are open, that nothing is over and that we have the vital, cerebral and visceral
impulse to get out of it all.
Because this society is deeply deadly, we have no choice but to abandon the political
prehistory of humanity to save lives and share them differently. Because they threaten me,
they catch me and they want to steal my life, I am more determined to stop those who
attack me and the society they want to impose on me. Where our enemies try to arouse fear,
only the revolt increases: each threat floods me with adrenaline, each blow agitates my
blood, each new test makes me shake my fist more and more. They will not have us like
this. We're still standing. And to keep the course and the strength to continue, the only
one we must fear is fear itself.
blogyy.net
Translation> Sol de Abril
Related Items:
https://noticiasanarquistas.noblogs.org/post/2019/06/17/franca-comunicado-de-apoio-da-federacao-anarquista-francofona-para-yannis-youlountas/
https://noticiasanarquistas.noblogs.org/post/2019/06/15/grecia-neonazistas-agridem-yannis-youlountas-em-pireu/
anarchist-ana news agency
------------------------------
Message: 4
Grupo Libertario Vía Libre is an anarchist political organization in the city of Bogotá,
Colombia, which since its inception has been defined as a feminist group committed to the
struggle against the heteropatriarchy and for the liberation of women and sexual
dissidence. In recent years, positively influenced by the growth of the feminist movement,
we have opted to strengthen the construction and development of a gender policy, with
internal and external lines of work, that allow us to face sexism, sexist practices and
violence of gender reproduced in society, social movements and our own organization. Thus,
and as part of the process of construction of said policy, we have decided to collectively
address and process cases of sexist practices and gender violence that,
Based on the foregoing, and as part of the responses that we defined to address the cases
addressed, we decided to write this communication in order to make visible the practices
and violence that were perpetrated by men who were part of our organization and present
the processes who got ahead in each of these cases. In addition, we outline the critical
and self-critical exercises that we have done, as well as the learning and challenges that
have arisen when facing it, from the collective, to these practices and macho violence.
Grupo Libertario Vía Libre is an anarchist political organization in the city of Bogotá,
Colombia, which since its inception has been defined as a feminist group committed to the
struggle against the heteropatriarchy and for the liberation of women and sexual
dissidence. In recent years, positively influenced by the growth of the feminist movement,
we have opted to strengthen the construction and development of a gender policy, with
internal and external lines of work, that allow us to face sexism, sexist practices and
violence of gender reproduced in society, social movements and our own organization. Thus,
and as part of the process of construction of said policy, we have decided to collectively
address and process cases of sexist practices and gender violence that,
Based on the foregoing, and as part of the responses that we defined to address the cases
addressed, we decided to write this communication in order to make visible the practices
and violence that were perpetrated by men who were part of our organization and present
the processes who got ahead in each of these cases. In addition, we outline the critical
and self-critical exercises that we have done, as well as the learning and challenges that
have arisen when facing it, from the collective, to these practices and macho violence.
In this regard, it should be noted that, since 2017 and up to date, Vía Libre has
addressed 4 cases of sexist practices and violence by former members of our organization
who, in turn, participated in political and social organizations in the student field,
educational, territorial, sexual dissidence and alternative communication. These
regrettable situations have meant an intense and complex internal work, which generated
emotional wear on some of our colleagues. However, we are aware that to collectively
address this type of situation is the only way to strengthen our feminist praxis and to
put a stop to machismo and heteropatriarchal domination, fighting their expressions in our
organization.
On the other hand, we are aware that in this process of construction of a gender policy
and collective approach to the aforementioned cases, we committed various political,
methodological and ethical errors and, therefore, we present this communication, which is
also an expression of an exercise of collective self-criticism and public recognition of
our irresponsible practices.
In that sense, we believe that it is key to make a recount of the experience around the
attention of the cases in order to identify successes, mistakes, learnings and challenges.
We believe that this reconstruction exercise can be a contribution to activism in general
and the political and social organizations with which we have close ties in particular.
Likewise, we believe that this exercise can generate enriching internal and external
debates in the social and political processes in which we participate.
Therefore, we invite those who read us to develop and continue with the debates in
relation to sexist practices and gender violence on the left and in the popular field.
Open and sincere debates that have always been necessary and inescapable.
1. Case of systematic physical violence and sexist practices within the framework of a
sex-affective relationship.
The first case that was attended began at the beginning of the year 2017 from the
denunciation of a situation of systematic physical violence against a companion of the
group. The aggressor was also a former member of our organization. Given the seriousness
of the facts we decided the immediate expulsion of the subject. The El Caracol Cultural
Corner, a neighborhood space in which the aggressor participated, also made the same
decision when learning about what happened. At the time, the assaulted companion decided
to go to institutional instances due to the seriousness of the case and the inability of
the group to provide effective security. However, Vía Libre accompanied the legal and
psychosocial processes decided by the compañera, who in a very valuable way decided to
stay in the organization. (See this link).
It should be noted that, until then, Vía Libre had not advanced in the construction of
protocols for the attention of violence or in the constitution of functional organic
instances that allowed to address situations of sexist practices or gender violence. While
there were some collective reflections on the matter, it was not until that moment that
some discussions began to be held on the need to create a specific space that could
address this type of case. It was then decided to generate the "gender commissions" that
would be the bodies in charge of proposing routes to address specific cases of violence
and sexist practices.
2. Case of sexist practices and gender violence in the context of a sex-affective
relationship.
The second case involved Julián López, former militant of the organization with a position
of leadership and public visibility in the libertarian political project and activist of
Acción Libertaria Estudiantil (ALE) and formerly of the Collective of Popular Education
Siembra of the Coordinator of Educational Processes Popular En Lucha, as well as the
National Assistance Corporation of Displaced, Indigenous and Peasant of Colombia
(CORANDICOL). The opening and follow-up of the case is given by explicit request of Julian
and a companion who, at that time, was a militant of the group and who had, for some
years, a sex-affective relationship with him. The request is made because Julián says that
the compañera sabotages him in the spaces of shared militancy and the compañera affirms
that Julián must review his machista practices.
As of that moment, a gender commission is formed, of a mixed nature and with reserved
management of the information, in which three militants of the organization participate
who, nevertheless, do not manage to advance in the case. At this point, it is important to
mention that, in an extraordinary meeting of the group and after two months since the
commission was formed, Julián decides to leave the group arguing that he feels politically
persecuted by punctual comrades of Vía Libre and criticizing the lack of speed in the
treatment of the case.
So things, a relay of the commission is made that is assumed by two new militants who
manage to advance in the construction of the structure of the interviews that would be
done to Julián and the compañera. However, this second team does not manage to carry out
the interviews and after a month of its formation, it is again a relief that, in this
opportunity, was in charge of only one person, the third and real person in charge of the
process, who is which in the end conducts the interviews and delivers periodic reports.
Likewise, it seems important to point out that this person, some time later, exercised
gender violence against a family member and that the case is presented in number 4 of this
press release, as well as the reflections that this situation generated in the organization.
At this point, we want to acknowledge, in the first place, the great methodological and
logistical difficulties that we had at the time of approaching this task, and the
negligence that we showed to carry out a continuous and collective research process. Also,
we recognize that as an organization we generate emotional waste among the affected people
due to the lack of speed and the inability to comply with established times.
After several months of internal discussions of the reports presented by the commission,
it was identified that Julián incurred the following sexist practices and violence:
emotional and political manipulation, lies, violations of agreements and deceptions based
on the lack of ethics of care sex-affective. Also, in the investigation it was identified
that, in response to the violence suffered, the compañera developed some hostile attitudes
that allowed her to confront Julián in the spaces of militancy.
Based on the above, the organization proposes a road map that consists of promoting
training spaces with the activists of Vía Libre about non-explicit gender violence and
gender-based violence in sexual-affective relationships and asking Julián for a
self-critical writ and reflective self in which he will specify the machista practices in
which he incurred and that were analyzed in the investigation. The document would be
shared in militancy spaces in which criticisms of Julian's practices were expressed.
However, and after the socialization of the report, Julián raises methodological
criticisms to the commission and shares a text that he wrote for ALE, in which a process
of investigation had also been opened simultaneously by macho practices. After reading and
discussing the document, the organization defined that the text was not a response to the
research that was carried out and that, moreover, it was not an exercise that recognized
the practices analyzed in detail in the process. In this sense, after three months since
the socialization meeting, in a general assembly, the organization makes the following
decisions regarding the case:
a) Socialize the investigation and resolution of the situation in the spaces where
Julian's practices and behaviors had been questioned. The socialization would be done
through the gender commissions of these spaces.
b) Do a public exercise of exposing the case, specifying the reasons for the departure of
Julián de Vía Libre and the successes and failures we had as an organization.
Towards the end of this long process of investigation and punishment, the partner involved
in this case decided to leave the organization. We are aware that the numerous mistakes we
made to address the case influenced this decision. We recognize the emotional wear that
the investigation generated and the responsibility that we have to have prolonged the
resolution of it. Also, we recognize that we were not able to generate safe spaces for
those involved, because there was a mishandling of confidential and intimate information,
leaks and rumors that violated the operating agreements of the process and revictimized
the affected companion.
3. Case of physical violence in a sex-affective relationship that occurs in the political
space.
The third case involved Sebastián Giraldo, a former militant of the organization and
activist of the Unión Sindical Federación and of the newspaper Desde Abajo, of alternative
communication. The same occurred in mid-2018 as part of an event organized in the
southwest of the country in which various social and popular organizations attended. The
opening and follow-up of the case occurs because the person involved tells a person of the
organization the need to socialize a situation of gender violence that he commits by
physically attacking, with a nudge and in the middle of a discussion, a partner with which
had had a sex-affective relationship.
As soon as the situation was socialized, a gender research commission was convened,
composed of women and with reserved information management, who had the task of deepening
the case by seeking to communicate with the affected partner and generate a specific road
map. Likewise, an agreement is reached with Sebastián, who acknowledges his grave fault
and expresses his agreement with a disciplinary process, to carry out the immediate
suspension of his political and social militancy, focusing his energies solely on the
process of self-criticism, reparation and deconstruction1 of practices macho This implied
the possibility that Sebastián could return to the organization as long as the sanction,
rectification and repair process was complied with.
Although the organization considered that the physical violence was a valid cause of
immediate expulsion, an attenuated resolution is taken, starting from factors such as
direct communication, self-critical attitude, the explicit commitment of reparation and
non-repetition that Sebastián had, a fact that nevertheless , do not underestimate the
seriousness of what happened.
The resolution of the case resulted in the continuation of the immediate suspension of its
social and political militancy and in the beginning of a process of reflection,
self-criticism and transformation that, in a first stage, would materialize in the
publication of a self-critical text, its participation in the internal space of men of the
group2 and a process of constant accompaniment. For its part, the organization assumed the
responsibility of making a public statement in front of the case and communicate with the
partner involved to link it in a process of reparation and exchange in which the affected
partner shows us her interest in not knowing anything else about this painful situation.
After the investigation process, the commission identified the following sexist practices
within the case addressed: the situation of physical violence, acts of aggression and
verbal violence and little care regarding the companion's private information. In the
development of this process, Sebastian changed his place of residence for work reasons and
was in disagreement with the sanction of suspension of social militancy that decided to
continue in explicit contradiction of previously agreed and sanctioned as a result. Faced
with the breach of the agreement, the organization defines its departure in the event of
failure to comply with the proposed roadmap.
This specific case brought different challenges for the Grupo Libertario Vía Libre, and
then we outline some of them:
a) For the first time, the militant who commits an act of gender violence approaches the
political organization to present his case on time, showing, in principle, a self-critical
attitude and accepting the design of a road map that initiates the resolution of the
situation.
This meant contemplating the possibility that a militant with a case of gender violence
could continue in the organization if and only if, it fully complied with the sanction,
that is, as long as it complied with the agreements defined. From there, it begins to talk
about the option of suspension of militancy3.
b) Likewise, it is the first time that Vía Libre addresses a case in which the partner who
is attacked does not have a direct link with the political organization or any of its
members, which meant looking for alternate means of communication that would allow us to
deepen the case , trying to make it a participant - to the extent of the possibilities -
in the construction of the roadmap, seeking to generate agreements that go through trying
to ensure the anonymity of it and a special care of your personal information. Although
the affected partner decided not to develop a more general process, the group had the
ability to contact her and present her self-criticism and repair proposal.
4. Case of physical violence in the family nucleus.
The third case involved Sebastián Patiño, militant of the organization and participant of
the Collective Also The Wind of the Coordinator of Processes of Popular Education In Fight
and of the Collective Libertaria Severas Flowers, of sexual dissidence. The same occurs in
parallel with the previous case and was communicated by the militant in a general assembly
of the organization. On this occasion, the implicated person told us immediately after the
event happened, that he had physically assaulted, through a push, a fist and a blow with a
kitchen object, a member of his family within the framework of a discussion.
In a very similar way to the previous case, the organization in common agreement with the
researcher, who recognizes his grave error and is willing to participate in a process of
investigation and sanction organized around a gender commission, decides the immediate
suspension of his militancy political and social.
Once again, although we recognized that the act of physical violence warranted immediate
expulsion, we decided to opt for an attenuated option, due to the self-critical attitude
of Sebastián, who immediately accepted his sanction and stated his complete willingness to
attend to the road map that it was proposed.
For this case, the gender commission would be responsible for monitoring the road map
proposed by the organization and for finding communication mechanisms with its family
nucleus in order to effectively carry out the accompaniment process, as well as to seek a
reparation process with the person violated and the whole family.
The resolution of the case led to the immediate suspension of Sebastian's social and
political militancy and the beginning of a process of reflection, self-criticism and
transformation that, in a first stage, materialized in the publication of a self-critical
text, the continuous assistance to psychological therapy given that the systematic use of
violence in their daily relationships and the abuse of psychoactive substances was
identified, as well as welcoming a proposal of accompaniment by the Severas Flores, a
feminist organization of sexual dissidents, and the concurrence to the internal space of
men of the group. At the time, the urgency of communicating with the family affected by
the situation was agreed, with the idea of knowing their perspective and agreeing with her
the process of self-criticism and reparation that Sebastián would carry out,
After the investigation, the commission identified within the machista practices carried
out: Physical violence, the systematic use of violence to process conflicts, the verbal
aggression against the violated and the infantilizing attitude with which it assumed
relations with the women of its nuclear family. . For a while there were some formal
meetings with Sebastian that allowed him to account for the process he was leading. It is
worth noting that several of the commitments assumed by him were met, such as attending
psychological sessions, the construction of various self-critical and self-reflective
texts and the departure of the organizations in which he was active.
However, there was an important breach by the sanctioned party of the resolution to
suspend his social militancy, to the point that he came to exercise, a few months after
the freeze, a local leadership in the student mobilization of 2018 and win student
representation of the Graphic Design Department of the National University of Bogotá.
For our part, we recognize that the organization failed to comply with the commitment to
make a permanent accompaniment, the space of men we built had neither the regularity nor
the necessary development and was ineffective in internal discussions that would allow
progress in the resolution of the situation .
Finally, and after a meeting in which all the elements of the case were evaluated and the
important advance in the process of self-criticism and deconstruction of the sanctioned
was recognized, the latter was asked to renounce the student representation and thus
comply with the agreement. of the suspension. However, Sebastián did not agree and decided
to withdraw from Vía Libre and continue his militancy in the student sector. In addition,
it was agreed that a follow-up process would continue and the case would be made public
through a communiqué from the organization.
This case is presented as one of the most difficult for the organization because it
involves a militant who exercised leadership in gender discussions and was a public
activist of a group of sexual dissent. Below, we share some reflections that emerged
during the entire process carried out:
a) No person is exempt from committing acts of gender violence, regardless of their sexual
and gender identity, personal reflections and transformation processes that are taking
place finished. In this sense, although it is recognized that Sebastian is also traversed
by gender oppression as a sexual dissident, this does not necessarily separate him from
his privileges since he has been socialized as a man.
Although we recognize that the oppression of sexual and gender dissidents is a key point
to take into account and that can not be invisible at any time, we believe it is important
to reflect on sexist practices and violence that can also be reproduced from other places
of violence. enunciation.
b) Although there is a mutual provision of follow-up and accompaniment of the case, the
will alone is not enough. It is important to build clear road maps that explicitly show
the defined agreements, allowing a constant and rigorous evaluation. This can avoid
committing several errors that are caused by confusions and arbitrariness of both parties,
especially the sanctioned person.
c) In this specific case, although Sebastián complied with several of the proposed
agreements, the group was overwhelmed and could not comply with a judicious follow-up of
the case. It is important that in similar situations the real capacities of the
organization are evaluated in a clear manner to carry out a process of accompaniment to
the aggressor. Otherwise, you should look for alternatives or choose not to assume this
responsibility.
d) Until now it has been the political organization that has decided on the processes of
freezing a militant in a situation of gender violence. However, we see the relevance and
importance of dialogue with the other political-social and social processes in which the
person involved participates, seeking as far as possible to generate agreements and common
roadmaps to address the case and give it the centrality that these require .
It is extremely important that all organizations understand the importance of taking these
situations collectively. We know that it is difficult to assume this type of decision when
the affections play a fundamental role. However, we must break with this type of
complicity that is the daily sustenance of sexist practices and gender violence.
e) Although there was psychological support for Sebastián, a great limitation was that one
of the accompaniments, and that has lasted longer, does not have an approach towards the
resolution of cases of violence with a gender perspective. The limitation lies in the fact
that hegemonic psychology does not identify gender relations as a decisive factor in cases
of men's violence towards women and, on the contrary, they deny the centrality of this matrix.
f) Regardless of whether the organization decides to conduct a process of accompaniment
with the aggressor, it must not be forgotten that the priority and, therefore, the focus
of the entire process, is the victim, who in this case was a person that did not
participate in political spaces and failed to contact. We must bear in mind that
reparation4 is one of the central phases of the entire process of attention to cases of
gender violence; we must turn our attention to the victim, negotiate and build decisions
with her on the case.
5. Collective self-criticism
After presenting the cases and some of the reflections left by her treatment, we want to
recognize the mistakes and faults that we committed as an organization in order to
contribute to the healing processes of the battered companions and to make public our
self-critical exercise, thus advancing in the individual and collective transformations
necessary to make Grupo Libertario Vía Libre a space that seeks to be feminist, coherent
and safe. In this sense, we acknowledge and we grieve for the following:
a) In all cases we were ineffective in the treatment of situations, being irresponsible
with the investigation processes by not respecting the agreed times and by not complying
with the tasks assumed.
b) In the cases in which it was needed, there was no effective or collective
accompaniment. The work of accompaniment was incipient and fell on very few colleagues so
it was not assumed as a general and collective task.
c) We were irresponsible with the handling of information and, in that sense, we made it
difficult to build safe spaces. Sensitive information was leaked in some cases, violating
the privacy of the compañeras.
d) We do not consolidate non-mixed and mixed spaces for discussion, reflection and action
in the face of male-oriented violence and practices, thus failing to comply with one of
our commitments in relation to the gender policy of the organization and the treatment of
cases.
e) We do not work enough in prevention and we let go of problematic situations where macho
practices and attitudes were presented by those who later became aggressors and
perpetuated physical, verbal and psychological violence.
6. Towards the consolidation of a gender policy
We believe it is fundamental to overcome the serious shortcomings enunciated in the
counting of the cases and the collective self-criticism that we presented previously, to
develop an integral gender policy in our organization. We think that this should address
issues such as the development of specialized bodies and spaces that attend in a timely
and effective manner cases of sexist practices and violence that may arise within the
group; the search for the permanent participation of women and sexual dissidence in spaces
of agitation, discussion and political projection; the recognition and socialization of
tasks linked to the care that can take place within our political group; the publication
and the organic incorporation of the protocol of prevention and action in front of the
sexist practices and violence that we have elaborated in the last period; the promotion of
training, research and discussion processes on feminism; the strengthening of the internal
organic spaces of self-reflection and construction around the oppression of sex-gender;
and the redoubling of our commitment to the women's movement and sexual dissidence and our
commitment to feminism and the struggle against heteropatriarchy.
We hope that this self-critical and self-reflective exercise will help us to advance in
the consolidation of the previously exposed lines and to generate sincere spaces for
discussion and action in the face of the violence and machista practices that appear
within Vía Libre and the political and social spaces in those who participate We are
convinced to continue on the arduous path of constant revision and transformation of our
practices and behaviors, not with a disposition of eternal guilt and flogging but with the
will and hope that it is possible to build other types of social relationships based on
freedom and in autonomy. This is a commitment that we assume with ourselves and with our
feminist and libertarian project.
Grupo Libertario Vía Libre.
June 2019. Bogotá, Colombia
__________________________________________________________________________________
Footnotes:
1 We understand deconstruction as a constant and never-ending process that materializes in
the first moment in the recognition of machista practices and that leads to prevention and
transformation strategies from everyday practice.
2 The internal space of men emerged as an initiative after the latest cases of sexist
practices and gender violence that had taken place within the organization. In general
assembly it was agreed to promote this space in the second semester of 2018; it was
intended to be a stage for reflection on heteropatriarchy, machismo, male domination and
the privileges that derive from it and that today are the basis of gender-sex oppression.
The internal space of men also sought to carry out a process of concrete identification of
sexist practices and gender violence that militants reproduce or can reproduce in their
daily lives. To avoid the isolation and complacency that men's spaces may incur, the
separated space would combine with certain periodicity with mixed spaces. All these
instances would be promoted by a gender secretariat, and would be oriented in relation to
the common gender policy of the organization.
3 The suspension or freezing of militancy does not necessarily imply a direct expulsion.
It is a situation in which the possibility of reintegration and political reactivation
within the group and in the militancy spaces of which it was a part is opened. For Vía
Libre this means carrying out an accompaniment and constant monitoring of the case and of
the militant involved, for the suspended implies the commitment to dedicate exclusively to
a process of review, self-criticism, change of practices and reparation. It is worth
clarifying that the organization has given these discussions in the framework of the
attention of the cases addressed, so we still need to discuss whether this measure is
possible to apply in all situations or not. We recognize that we have been overwhelmed and
that these are pending central discussions.
4 Although we currently need to delve into this phase, we start by recognizing that it is
a complex process that articulates different actions, dimensions and times in order to
clarify the facts, the sanction, the reparation and the commitment of non-repetition
towards the victims of the gender violence.
Related Link:
https://grupovialibre.org/2019/06/10/comunicado-sobre-practicas-machistas-y-violencias-de-genero-al-interior-de-nuestra-organizacion/
https://www.anarkismo.net/article/31462
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Message: 5
"Wake up, England: Boris Johnson's ‘charm' is just the arrogance of those born to rule" -
Suzanne Moore ----RIGHT - Had it definitely confirmed that ROCK FM and family are living
at STANWAY HOUSE in the Cotswolds. ---- Stanley House and Gardens are open to the public
every Tuesday and Thursday in June, July and August from 2-5pm. ---- Class War are
co-ordinating so that we get people from London, Bristol and Gloucester to arrive same
time and day. We would like it if Grenfell United wanted to come plus others from North
Kensington and elsewhere. We will be taking banners, megaphone etc. We know publicising in
advance will give them foreknowledge but in an estate of 5,000 acres we are confident of
success. We will film the whole event ---- 'SEARCHING FOR ROCK' JOIN US ---- CLASS WAR'S
BIGGEST RURAL ACTION SINCE WE INVADED PEN WOOD.
-------------------------------------------------
The news of Rock partying in his family mansion as Grenfell mourns 72 dead confirms CW's
analysis that it's feudal Britain that done it - from Stanway's rural everything in its
place or at its gate to the feudal rule of the gentry of RBKC over North Kensington.
THREE ACTION POINTS THAT CAN START TODAY.
1.Take a coach load of Grenfell United and others from Grenfell to Stanway. A day trip
entitled 'IN SEARCH OF ROCK' and filmed........if not a coach a car load but particularly
Frank, Ishmael and Reis if he's free
2 Need to re-activate the independence for North Ken campaign and state taking practical
steps - road blocking etc
3. Set up a PEOPLES ENQUIRY as arrival to the torpor and ennu of the present enquiry and
guarantee to deliver a verdict within the 35 days of the Aberfan enquiry and before the
other one returns in October.
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Message: 6
Unquiet Graves, the new documentary from Irish filmmaker Sean Murray, is an important work
on several levels. It Informs the viewer of state collusion, indeed state sponsorship of
sectarian murder gangs in Northern Ireland in the 1970s. It highlights this activity
before the events get lost as ‘tragic history' and it seeks some semblance of justice for
the families of the victims of security services - directed paramilitary murder. ---- The
film begins with a re-enactment of the murder of two young men, Colm McCartney and Sean
Farmer, in 1975. Returning from a Gaelic football game in Dublin, the two were stopped at
a ‘British Army' checkpoint near the village of Newtownhamilton in County Armagh and shot
dead. This murder, which came three years into the sectarian murder campaign, is returned
to, with great poignancy in animated form later in the film.
A large part of the film's content is based upon more than 15 years of research undertaken
by the Pat Finucane Centre, a human rights advocacy organisation in Northern Ireland, much
of which was published in the book Lethal Allies: British Collusion in Ireland (2013). The
book catalogued the concerted activities of the Loyalist paramilitary Mid Ulster Volunteer
Force (UVF), elements of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and the locally recruited
Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR), part of the British Army in what became known as the
Tyrone-Armagh Murder triangle.
Much of the evidence of collusion was provided by one of the active participants, John
Weir. Weir, was a sergeant in the RUC's Special Patrol Group (SPG) counter-terrorist
section and member of the UVF. His 1999 affidavit outlined in detail the consistent
collusion between security services and Loyalist Paramilitaries in the Murder Triangle and
beyond.
The modus operandi was to select ‘soft' targets, concentrating upon ‘respectable' Catholic
individuals and families without connections to the Republican movement. The highest
profile killings were that of members of the Miami Showband pop group in July 1975, but
that was an exception. The targets would be chosen, the surveillance and logistic support
provided by the security services and the murders carried out by a mix of off, and
sometimes on-duty RUC men, UDR soldiers and UVF members. RUC roadblocks, which were
normalised in rural Tyrone and Armagh, were sometimes set up to prevent witnesses. The
nominal RUC investigations into the murders returned a 100% failure to convict. Patently,
the campaign was being given the go ahead by officials much further up the chain of command.
The Glennane Gang extended their operations into the Irish Republic, planting bombs in the
border town of Dundalk and were responsible for the infamous car bombings of Monaghan and
Dublin in May 1974 which claimed 34 lives. They undertook this operation as they did many
others between 1972 and 1980, with the height of their killing between 1974 and 1976, in a
state of heightened confidence that they were protected by important sections of local and
national law enforcement. In total the gang has been connected to more than 120 murders.
Most of their atrocities were claimed in the name of the Protestant Action Force,
occasionally the Red Hand Commando - itself a part of the UVF or remained anonymous. Their
intention is generally believed to have been to spread terror and panic amongst the
Catholic/Nationalist community in the hope that this would provoke the Provisional IRA,
then on ceasefire, into tit for tat killings. This did, to a limited but bloody extent,
happen when the Republican Action Force murdered 10 Protestant building workers at
Kingsmill, South Armagh in January 1976, which is highlighted in the film.
Following this sectarian revenge attack, the Glennane Gang formulated a plan to massacre
Catholic school children and their teachers in the Armagh village of Beleeks. The
intention can only have been to escalate the situation into open civil war, drawing in the
Republican movement and forcing the hand of the British state and any reticent Loyalists.
However, the leadership of the UVF, who were contemporaneously turning a blind eye to the
horrifically brutal Shankill Butchers, were unwilling to sanction the slaughter of
innocent primary school children and the inevitable international condemnation it would
have brought.
There are ongoing attempts to uncover the full truth about the Glennane Gang and its
connections to the secret, and not too secret, state, attempts which have been hampered at
every turn, despite the Good Friday Agreement, and the ostensible embracing of openness
and reconciliation.
The documentary gives an opportunity for the perspectives and voices of the victim's
families to be foregrounded and the interviews with the relatives of those murdered are
moving and powerful. The struggle for the truth about collusion and state terror continues.
Try to see this important film. More info HERE https://www.unquietgraves.com/
https://www.anarchistcommunism.org/2019/06/17/unquiet-graves-film-review/
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