Riot - new music video in time for #J11

This music video from Gentleman's Dub Club was released on May 20, 2013. Coincidentally, the Carnival Against Capitalism in London is on Tuesday June 11.

Protests a "serious threat" to London capitalists

 

A MASSIVE wave of anti-capitalist resistance is set to hit London at the start of June.

The Stop G8 week of action ahead of the G8 Summit, featuring the J11 Carnival Against Capitalism on Tuesday June 11, is already worrying the British state.

One newspaper report says "the G8 protests represent a serious threat" and claims Home Secretary Theresa May is ordering in German water cannon, to be used on the British mainland for the first time.

It says: "Mrs May is concerned about thousands of anarchists and other protesters from North America and Europe converging on Britain next month."

A Home Office "source" is said to have told the newspaper: "There's an urgency to get the water cannons by the summer. Theresa May is actually pushing for it. The G8 is a worry for them."

There are a a number of protests lined up around London between June 6 and 14. Some anti-capitalists will be heading to Watford where the 2013 Bilderberg Conference is being held from June 6 to June 8.

UK Indymedia reports that the Stop G8 convergence "will begin on the weekend of June 8-9, with workshops and skillshares involving Green and Black Cross and Fitwatch in preparation for the J11 Carnival Against Capitalism on Tuesday June 11.

"There will then be an anti-militarist protest on Wednesday June 12 and a No Borders No Prisons! day of actions on Thursday June 13, while on Friday June 14 They Owe Us plan to appear somewhere in Canary Wharf, to reclaim and transform a space, bringing beauty and hope to the soulless heart of capitalism."

Stop G8 says the J11 Carnival Against Capitalism will be "a time to celebrate our resistance and our dreams, to bring music and colour to the streets. And also to show our strength and our anger."

Defending the Black Bloc

A PROMINENT activist in Occupy Wall Street has spoken out against "dangerous" criticism of the Black Bloc tactic by "violent peace-police".

David Graeber writes in N+1 magazine in response to an article called “The Cancer in Occupy,” by one Chris Hedges.

He tells Hedges in his open letter: "I am appealing to you because I really do believe the kind of statement you made is profoundly dangerous.

"The reason I say this is because, whatever your intentions, it is very hard to read your statement as anything but an appeal to violence. After all, what are you basically saying about what you call 'Black Bloc anarchists'?

"1) they are not part of us

2) they are consciously malevolent in their intentions

3) they are violent

4) they cannot be reasoned with

5) they are all the same

6) they wish to destroy us

7) they are a cancer that must be excised

"Surely you must recognize, when it’s laid out in this fashion, that this is precisely the sort of language and argument that, historically, has been invoked by those encouraging one group of people to physically attack, ethnically cleanse, or exterminate another—in fact, the sort of language and argument that is almost never invoked in any other circumstance.

"After all, if a group is made up exclusively of violent fanatics who cannot be reasoned with, intent on our destruction, what else can we really do? This is the language of violence in its purest form. Far more than “fuck the police.” To see this kind of language employed by someone who claims to be speaking in the name of non-violence is genuinely extraordinary."

Graeber pulls apart Hedges' claim that the Black Bloc tactic gives cops the excuse they need to attack protesters and depict them as violent.

He writes: "If the police decide to attack a group of protesters, they will claim to have been provoked, and the media will repeat whatever the police say, no matter how implausible, as the basic initial facts of what happened.

"This will happen whether or not anyone at the protest does anything that can be remotely described as violence. Many police claims will be obviously ridiculous – as at the recent Oakland march where police accused participants of throwing 'improvised explosive devices'—but no matter how many times the police lie about such matters, the national media will still report their claims as true, and it will be up to protesters to provide evidence to the contrary.

"Sometimes, with the help of social media, we can demonstrate that particular police attacks were absolutely unjustified, as with the famous Tony Bologna pepper-spray incident. But we cannot by definition prove all police attacks were unjustified, even all attacks at one particular march; it’s simply physically impossible to film every thing that happens from every possible angle all the time.

"Therefore we can expect that whatever we do, the media will dutifully report 'protesters engaged in clashes with police' rather than 'police attacked non-violent protesters'. What’s more, when someone does throw back a tear-gas canister, or toss a bottle, or even spray-paint something, we can assume that act will be employed as retroactive justification for whatever police violence occurred before the act took place."

And Graeber points out the even Gandhi, hero of the peace police, would not have taken the extreme line adopted by Hedges and his kind.

He writes: "Gandhi and his movement were regularly denounced in the media, just as non-violent anarchists are also always denounced in the media (and I might remark here that while not an anarchist himself, Gandhi was strongly influenced by anarchists like Kropotkin and Tolstoy), as a mere front for more violent, terroristic elements, with whom he was said to be secretly collaborating.

"He was regularly challenged to prove his non-violent credentials by assisting the authorities in suppressing such elements. Here Gandhi remained resolute. It is always morally superior, he insisted, to oppose injustice through non-violent means than through violent means. However, to oppose injustice through violent means is still morally superior to not doing anything to oppose injustice at all.

"And Gandhi was talking about people who were blowing up trains, or assassinating government officials. Not damaging windows or spray-painting rude things about the police."

State scare tactics in G8 run-up

SCARE tactics and propaganda are being deployed by the British state in the run-up to the G8 summit in June.

There is talk of special cells being readied for protesters at an army camp, of  police-state style  security measures and of overworked and stressed-out cops.

The pressure has also been increased by the discovery of a mortar bomb which a dissident republican group says was intended for the G8 summit venue.

The authorities are facing big protests in three locations - in London for a week of action including the J11 Carnival Against Capitalism, in Dublin just before the summit and around the actual venue at Lough Erne, County Fermanagh (pictured above).

"The police and prison services in Northern Ireland have begun arranging for hundreds of extra holding cells in anticipation of protests at this summer's G8 summit turning ugly," reports The Belfast Telegraph.

Work is apparently under way to make available extra cell capacity inside Maghaberry high security prison in Co Antrim, as well as at Magilligan prison in Co Londonderry and Hydebank Wood young offenders' centre and women's prison in Belfast.

The authorities claim a "ring of steel" will be in place around the summit venue at the Lough Erne resort. With the lakes of Fermanagh providing an additional natural barrier between the hotel and outside world, they say it is unlikely that protesters will get anywhere near the complex.

The demonstrators' focus may therefore shift to the town of Enniskillen, five miles away, or further afield in Northern Ireland, says the Belfast Telegraph. It adds: "Indeed London may witness the largest protests" - referring to the actions lined up by anti-capitalists Stop G8 on and around Tuesday June 11.

Police in Northern Ireland told the BBC: "People travelling on 16, 17 and 18 June 2013 will be advised to leave extra time for their journey.

"Previous G8 conferences have also attracted a number of protest groups. Police will be planning for this eventuality and this may again result in some disruption to the transport network.

"As a result there will be a highly visible police presence across parts of the Antrim Borough throughout the duration of the G8 conference."

The police said that there would be a large security presence on all routes around the airport.

There will also be a "larger than normal police and security presence" within Belfast International Airport itself in the days leading up to the arrival of the delegates.

The Impartial Reporter focuses on the pressure on police for what it is being billed  as a bigger challenge than the "troubles". 

It says: "With just 11 weeks to go until eight world leaders including US President Barack Obama visit Enniskillen, police officers on G8 duties in Fermanagh are complaining of being "over-worked" as they patrol the county around the clock. 

"In what will likely be the biggest security operation in the history of Northern Ireland, a considerable number of police officers here have been tasked with ensuring nothing goes wrong in the run-up to the global event. But some of the officers, according to the chairman of the Police Federation of Northern Ireland, feel under pressure by the workload."

The bomb found abandoned  in Fermanagh was claimed by republican  group Oglaigh Na hEireann, which said it was to be detonated at the hotel hosting the G8 summit.

In a coded statement to The Guardian, the anti-ceasefire dissident organisation also admitted responsibility for an attempted mortar bomb attack on the heavily fortified New Barnsley police station in west Belfast two weeks ago.

ONH also provided two photographs of a mortar launching device alongside a printed note stating: "MK1 10KG Mortar, Range 300 Metres."

The group's statement said: "Car bomb defused in County Fermanagh on Sat 23rd March. Target was hotel hosting G8 summit in June."

Bomb targets Greek capitalist

A BOMB has gone off outside the home of a leading Greek capitalist and banker.

Says From The Greek Streets: "At approximately 8.30 pm on Wednesday, a bomb exploded outside the house of ship-owner Nikos Tsakos in central Athens, near the Acropolis. A yet unnamed group called a newspaper to warn about the bomb, but has yet to issue a communique."

Until recently, Tsakos served on the board of directors of the Bank of Cyprus, where the population is the latest victim of the neoliberal system.

A comment on the YouTube video of the blast declares: "This is the start of the world revolution." 

#J11 - Carnival Against Capitalism in London

A CARNIVAL Against Capitalism has been called for London on June 11 2013, in the build-up to the G8 summit being hosted by the UK government.

Stop G8 has announced the J11 date as part of a week of anti-capitalist and anti-militarist action in the British capital.

It says on its call-out page: "London is right at the heart of global capitalism. And the West End of London, including elite areas like Piccadilly, Mayfair and Knightsbridge, is where power and greed are most concentrated."

It says the West End of London will be the focus for J11 because it is home to:

* Corporations. Many of the world’s most brutal and polluting companies,  including oil and mining giants, arms dealers, and the businesses profiting from cuts and privatisation.

* Vulture funds. Global base of the “hedge fund” and “private equity” industries, laundering the world’s blood money to invest in war, food speculation and debt slavery.

* Tyrants. Government offices, embassies, cultural and commercial fronts of  colonial powers and murderous regimes.

* Playground of the mega-rich. Middle Eastern dictators, Russian mafia oligarchs, and home-grown parasites all see London as a “safe” place to hide and spend their loot.

Explaining the carnival theme, Stop G8 says: "Traditionally, carnival is the time where the people take over the streets, the bosses run and hide, and the world gets turned upside down. It is a time to celebrate our resistance and our dreams, to bring music and colour to the streets. And also to show our strength and our anger.

"The powerful feel safe in London so long as they go unchallenged. But the people looting our planet have names and addresses. On #J11 we will party in the streets, point out the hiding places of power, and take back the heart of our city for a day. Our streets. Our world.

"Join us. Like any good carnival, everyone’s invited: this will be an open, inclusive, and lively event. There will be a main route with sound systems and public meeting points. Bring music, costumes, banners, friends, ideas. We also encourage independent actions, and will publish soon a detailed map of the area to help you make your own plans. The Green and Black Cross group will provide experienced medical and legal support."

Direct action newsheet SchNEWS reports that protest plans for the G8 are mushrooming, with separate groups planning action in both Dublin and Fermanagh following the London week.

It says: "The powers-that-be must have been so chuffed with themselves when they came up with their cunning game plan for this year’s G8 summit, hosted by the UK government.

"By holding it near Enniskillen, in County Fermanagh, in the north of Ireland, they thought they would kill two birds with one stone - shrugging off those pesky protesters expected on the mainland and showing off to the world how they had got the six counties nicely pacified and under control.

"But things haven’t exactly gone to plan. First there was the rioting by Union Flag-loving parts of the population, which made many locals wonder if taking on another security headache was the wisest course of action they could have come up with.

"Then there were the reported threats to the summit from dissident republican groups who, unlike us unwashed anti-capitalist hordes over here, tend to be armed.

"And now there has been a flurry of excitement in the run-up to the summit in which it appears that there will now be three centres of protest across an eight-day period and spanning two different states. Hardly the easy ride the G8 were hoping for!"

And anarchist blogger Paul Cudenec has called for fellow anarchists to put aside any theoretical  objections to summit protests as a means of resistance, insisting that "capitalism exists on many different levels and should therefore also be countered on many different levels".

Rural rebel fighters on the move

RURAL rebel fighters in India appear to be moving into new territory, sending authorities into a state of panic.

The Deccan Chronicle reports: "For the first time, Mysore dis­trict is in danger of becoming part of the Red Corridor—a term used to describe the land stretch from Bihar to Karnataka where the left-wing extre­mists have a presence."

And The Times of India says: "The Anti-Naxal Force, the elite commando force fighting Maoists in Karnataka, is extending its area of operation to Mysore district following apprehension that Naxals could extend their base to forested areas in Mysore and Chamarajnagar.

"After sighting of Naxals in Kodagu forests, the ANF on Sunday moved its commandos to rural Mysore, which the senior police officials described as preventive measure. The ANF is opening a temporary camp at Beemanakolli in Heggadadevenakote taluk, one of the most backward taluks in Karnataka.

"Though the combing operations were planned to start on Sunday, it was put off. The ANF commandos are likely to start the groundwork from Monday and scan the forested areas, particularly those pockets that forms border with Kerala.

"The 100-plus force is stationed at Beechanahalli in H D Kote where ANF held a joint meeting with Mysore district police and forest officials. A joint meeting of the cops from Kerala and Tamil Nadu too was held for better coordination. The ANF commandant Vasudeva Murthy has arrived to chalk out strategy. Mysore SP R Dileep visited the area."