The echoes of the Leoncavallo eviction, which was followed by protests
with thousands of participants (negotiations are still ongoing with themunicipality, but without concrete results), have not yet died down. The
SOS La FORNACE Social Center in Rho, a town in the Milanese hinterland,
recently received an eviction notice from Eni, the property's owner.
This is a further attack on a space occupied in an abandoned building,
revitalized by cultural and social life and returned to the local community.
The La FORNACE Social Center was founded in March 2005 with the
occupation of the disused former Garavaglia bag factory on Via San
Martino. After that occupation and the subsequent eviction, FORNACE
occupied abandoned buildings in Rho, followed by similar evictions. This
continued until 2018, when it occupied an abandoned former Eni warehouse
on Via Risorgimento. The Social Center's activities are cultural, linked
to social outreach, but also involve social opposition on defining
issues, such as the defense of rights, especially housing, and
participation in protests, such as the No Expo protests. The Social
Center participates in various marches, displaying a banner reading
"Evictions don't shut down FORNACE."
At the important movement assembly organized at FORNACE to communicate
and address the eviction issue, it was clarified that Eni's majority
shareholder is the government, so it's easy to imagine the true
motivations behind this latest act of repression. This is the Meloni
government's widely publicized strategy during the election campaign:
closing occupied and reactivated social spaces for social use. This
repressive cycle must be broken by joining forces. The Assembly was so
well attended that the room could not accommodate all participants. In
particular, in my speech, I emphasized the importance of linking the
issue of space defense with a denunciation of Eni's policies and,
consequently, the government itself. The corporate giant derives
enormous profits from the hydrocarbon trade, through colonial practices
and predatory policies against countries considered underdeveloped but
with significant hydrocarbon deposits. This exploitation also causes
serious environmental repercussions, especially in countries like Congo
and Nigeria, where entire territories are destroyed, aquifers are
contaminated, and populations are forced to drink polluted water.
Farmers and fishermen are forced to abandon their activities due to
widespread pollution. This disaster was accomplished without even paying
the price, thanks to bribes paid to local potentates. Beyond this aspect
is the extra profits generated by the war economy, as in the case of the
Russian-Ukrainian conflict, whereby energy raw materials already
purchased at one price are sold at prices that skyrocketed after the
outbreak of war. This business has netted ENI approximately EUR40
billion, never taxed by the Meloni government, while electricity and gas
bills are draining the incomes of workers and pensioners. USI CIT has
examined these issues in depth, supported by documentation, and has
produced a brochure that was presented at the Spazio della Fornace. A
similar initiative was carried out on October 28th, presenting the
pamphlet "ENI, Oil, Gas, Pollution, Wars" at the Spazio Micene, on Via
Giuseppe Pinelli (formerly Via Micene). Comrade Daniele Ratti
illustrated the issues contained in the pamphlet, focusing in particular
on the role of Eni, a giant operating in 68 countries on five
continents, engaging in colonial plunder and environmental devastation.
Eni plays a foreign policy role and effectively dictates guidelines to
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Ministry supports and defends Eni's
operations through military missions falsely described as humanitarian.
This subservient relationship between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
and Eni is demonstrated by the fact that government officials are on
Eni's payroll and that Carabinieri units are trained by Eni for
espionage purposes. All of this is justified based on national interest
and the energy security role Eni supposedly plays. Regarding the issue
of renewable energy, which Eni appears to be promoting, it was
emphasized that this represents only a flagship that is not being given
the necessary development, because the huge profits deriving from the
hydrocarbon trade are prioritized. With a strong connection to the
Palestinian issue, the meeting also discussed the agreement signed
between Eni and the Israeli government on October 29, 2023, immediately
after the outbreak of the conflict with Palestine. This agreement grants
Eni the right to exploit the gas fields in the sea off Gaza, 62% of
which are recognized as Palestinian property by international agreements.
Representations from Fornace and other opposing social groups attended
the debate at the Micene space, as did representatives from the
University Collective of the University of Statale, which contributed to
the discussion with its own in-depth document on Eni's role. In
particular, comrades from the La FORNACE Social Center spoke,
illustrating not only the initiatives to defend their space under threat
of eviction, but also their work denouncing the pollution produced in
the area by Agip/Eni. The Agip Refinery was installed by Mattei in 1952:
its chimneys spewed chemical poisons, making the air unbreathable and
polluted with hydrocarbons. Agip closed in 1992, with the subsequent
demolition of the chimneys, leaving behind severely polluted land that
needed remediation. The site was then used as the Milan Fairgrounds in
2005. The pavilions for Expo 2015 were erected on the adjacent land, an
area also in need of redevelopment due to its high levels of pollution.
And it was the La FORNACE Social Center itself that denounced the
cleanup scam in June 2014: "We were disappointed to note that cleanup
refers to the activities carried out on the natural soil following the
characterization plan, while the first few meters of soil throughout the
entire area, both contaminated and otherwise, were, by decision of Expo
2015 S.P.A., considered waste and therefore to be sent to landfill, a
shameful waste of public money, thus destroying the commitments made to
the municipal administrations of Rho and Milan regarding cleanup
activities." In short, a story that intertwines pollution, speculation,
and profit.
These were very interesting meetings, which sparked fruitful debate and
fostered meaningful relationships among those present. All of this was
done while reaffirming our solidarity with the Fornace space, currently
under threat of eviction. Also in support of the Fornace, the fifth
edition of the AFA Underground Self-Production Festival, dedicated to
independent comics, fanzines, and self-publishing, was held on Saturday,
October 25th in the vast outdoor space. Over 100 authors exhibited their
original works in a large market exhibition. There were also meetings
and discussions, such as "Immigration, Projects, and Visions in Support
of the Palestinian People" and a debate on "When Culture Is Cleared
Out," with the participation of representatives from various Milanese
social spaces and an audience of approximately 2,000 attendees.
Enrico Moroni
https://umanitanova.org/smascherare-repressione-e-speculazioni-eni-vuole-sgomberare-c-s-la-fornace/
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