M31 - European Day of Action Against Capitalism

A EUROPEAN Day of Action Against Capitalism has been called for Saturday March 31 2012.

Said a statement on the M31website: "During an international meeting in December 2011 in Frankfurt am Main, several left wing organisations and grassroots unions from Greece, Spain, Poland, Austria and Germany decided to launch a joint effort against capitalist reforms under the current crisis.

"On March 31st, there will be a 'European Day of Action against Capitalism', with simultaneous demonstrations in those countries, labeled 'M31'.

"Groups from other countries are likely to join in, as networking continues. Protests will be directed against neoliberal and undemocratic impositions by the European Union (EU), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

"The anticapitalist organisations involved want to send a clear signal against further austerity measures, mainly propelled by Germany, and on the backs of workers, the unemployed, students and migrants.

"We protest against nationalist propaganda targeting wageworkers in Southern European countries, and against the EU’s military bulkheading on its borders. Alternatively, organisers of M31 call for transnational solidarity and self-organisation of those affected by further cuts, privatization and capitalist exploitation.

"Up to now, there is no effective transnational solidarity between workers, unions, the unemployed and migrants. If we want this to change, we’ll have to do it ourselves.

"The international day of action in spring preludes a forthcoming European initiative of left wing organisations and grassroots unions, preparing further protests throughout 2012. We invite other emancipatory unions and organisations to join M31.

"Please take note of our Call for Action on www.march31.net. We’ll be happy to answer any request or proposal.

"Let’s get started!"

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Anger grows at Europe's ACTA of deceit

PRESSURE is growing on the European Union to drop its bid to sneak through new legislation which will effectively censor the internet.

On Friday EU official Kader Arif resigned as rapporteur of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).

The French MEP said that negotiations over the controversial anti-piracy agreement "lacked transparency", and claimed that the European parliament was denied its say.

Arif condemned the ACTA deliberation process, saying that he witnessed "never-before-seen manoeuvres from the right wing of this parliament to impose a rushed calendar before public opinion could be alerted".

He also spoke out to "denounce in the strongest possible manner the process that led to the signature of this agreement", stating that there was an "exclusion" of the parliament's demands on numerous occasions, The Parliament reports.

Arif added: "Everyone knows ACTA is problematic, whether it is its impact on civil liberties, the way it makes internet access providers liable, its consequences on generic drugs manufacturing, or how little protection it gives to our geographical indications.

"This agreement may have a major impact on the lives of our citizens, and yet everything is done so that the European parliament has no say. I will not participate in this charade."

Meanwhile, big protests continue in Poland, where the population has woken up to the threat posed to online freedom of speech and is pressuring its government not to ratify the agreement.

Reports RT: "Unlike the week’s massive protests, Friday’s showdown had clear political overtones. While the majority of demonstrators were saying “no” to the treaty, a large crowd was also directing their anger at the government. Experts say, the scale of public dissent has managed to make authorities nervous."

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Anti-Frontex days planned in Poland

A WEEK of activities against the European border agency, Frontex, is being staged in Poland from May 15 to 23.

Says the campaign website: "The agency has their seat in Warsaw, Poland, from where it directs its activities.

"It is a common misconception that Frontex is an actual border police, with a staff in uniform tasked to physically police the borders of the EU.

"Rather, Frontex is a coordinating mechanism of the European Union organizing the cooperation of the border police bodies of the member states of the EU.

"In this respect, Frontex is like a meta border police: it is both above and behind the everyday practices of border guards.

"To this end, Frontex combines a lot of tasks and activities in one body that in the traditional nation state have been kept separate.

"There is an intelligence service component: Frontex actively monitors and pools data about all that is going on at the external borders of the EU, so that predictions to movements of migration can be made.

"Frontex refers to this as risk analysis, a whole department at the headquarters in Warsaw is busy with this and well connected to its national counterparts in Europe.

"There is also a research division, which – in cooperation with military industries and universities – pushes for the high-tech-sci-fi border of the 21st century.

"Current plans include real-time surveillance of the border on all levels, including live satellite imagery, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV aka drones, usually deployed in war zones like Afghanistan and Iraq) for close-ups, and all other tools at the disposal of a border guard: radar, cameras, etc. Another project is the introduction of biometric identity checks at all border crossings.

"The main focus of Frontex, however, is the coordination of cooperation at the actual border, as they refer to it. Since the agency became operational, Frontex has organized so called 'joint operations', in which EU member states invite other EU member states to send border guard personal and equipment for a joint policing of the borders.

"Recently, Frontex has also been more involved in the organization and financing of mass deportations, where a whole plane is chartered and refugees from all over Europe are collectively deported to their assumed countries of origin. In 2009, Frontex did more than 30 such flights, removing more than 1.500 people from European territory."

Anti-capitalist clashes in Poland

PROTESTERS clashed with police in Poznan, Poland on Friday October 23, when almost 4,000 workers from different trade unions took to the streets, backed by anarchist groups.

About 500 people are going to be fired from the Cegielski factory. But while the reason cited was the so-called economic crisis, people in Poland, as elsewhere, are waking up to the fact that this is being used as a convenient excuse to screw the workforce yet further and erode hard-earned rights.

Angry scenes saw chants such as “A worker dismissed, a boss hanged!” and “Capitalism isn't working! Factories under the control of workers!”, reports Polish website rozbrat.org, which also features links to dramatic video footage of the conflict.

The Rhythms of Resistance samba group from Poznan supported the demo with their rhythms. A banner saying “A worker dismissed, a boss hanged” was dropped from one building on the route of the demo.

After the demonstration had finished, the cops on horses surrounded a group of anarchists and activists, as well as people from the Cegielski factory, and took their IDs.

At the same time one of the Workers' Initiative activists interrupted a live TV interview given by the boss of the trade union Solidarnosc and said “The members of our union are being nicked over there, and people from Solidarnosc are doing nothing about it, where is your solidarity?!”.

This event was transmitted live to the public TV news. None of the demonstrators was arrested. Three cops and one unionist were injured and hospitalized.