Solidarity with imprisoned Belarusian Prisoners: 22nd-23rd September

Picture from Freedom, click for more info

From International of Anarchist Federations:

It has been a long time since the last call for solidarity with the Belarusian anarchists appeared. Today we have to admit that the new wave of solidarity is needed urgently to help them out from the prison.

That’s why we call you to participate in days of action in solidarity with Belarusian political prisoners on 22nd-23rd of September (parliament election day is 23rd) .

From our comrades at Bristol Afed:

Belarusian anti-authoritarian activists; Ihar Alinevich, Mikalai Dziadok, Artsiom Prakapenka, Pavel Syramolatau, Aliaksandr Frantskievich, Jauhen Vas’kovich were sentenced to 3 to 8 years in prison for a series of attacks on state and capital symbols, and are finishing their second year inside.  In October 2011 they were acknowledged as ‘political prisoners’ by rights-watch organisations. This improved their chances to be freed, as the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, faces pressure from the European Union to free all political prisoners. He has already pardoned more than 30 of them, but none of our anarchist comrades were granted freedom.

There are currently 15 people listed as ‘political prisoners’ in Belarus, Lukashenko has stated that he will freeonly those who write a petition for pardon, admitting their guilt and asking him personally for mercy.  Five of the inprisoned activists have refused to sign, whilst Artsiom Prakapenka signed it under pressure but remains in prison. All the remaining ‘political prisoners’ are under pressure from the prison authorities to sign the petitions. Methods to attempt to force them to do soinclude; transfers to other penal institutions, preventing food supplies coming in, preventing and limiting visits from relatives, denying phone calls, delays and gaps in the receipt of letters, solitary confinement, transfer to a penal facility with a ‘special regime’, etc.

The anarchists federations that met together at the IAF Congress in St. Imier, Switzerland strongly oppose the fact that our comrades are now being traded for benefits from the EU and condemn the pressure that they have been experiencing. We call on everybody to protest on the 22nd and the 23rd of September [the day of the Belarusian elections] against these tortures and demand the immediate liberation of all political prisoners of Belarus, including anarchists and democracy campaigners. (includes excerts from statement by the International of Anarchist Federations).

A demo in London has already been announced, and we hope to have some more actions around the UK, including in Bristol.

London Demo in Solidarity with Anarchist Political Prisoners in Belarus

From London ABC, see also call for action and link to ABC Belarus:

Demonstrate with us at the Belarusian Embassy from 12pm on the 2nd of July!

6 Kensington Court
London W8 5DL.
Tel: 020 7937 3288 – Fax: 020 7361 0005
Nearest Tube: High Street Kensington

June 30th to July 2nd are days of action in solidarity with Belarusian anarchist and political prisoners, so please join London ABC for a demonstration outside the Belarusian Embassy from 12pm. We plan to have a banner and some noise, but we hope others will come down with their own ideas too!

There are now officially 13 explicitly political prisoners in Belarus, some of them inside for attacks against the state and other symbols of capital and oppression. Three of them, Alinevich, Dziadok and Frantskievich, received sentences between 3 and 8 years of ‘hard regime’ in May, despite the fact that evidence of their guilt was lacking at the trial. All of them have been subjected to psychological intimidation and abuse whilst in state custody.

Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko is under pressure from the European Union to free all political prisoners before Belarus can be accepted into the EU ‘community’. However, rather than back down and release the prisoners, Lukashenko is demanding that each one petition him individually, admit their guilt and ask for ‘mercy’. Those currently inside deny their guilt and have not co-operated with the state by giving testimony against others.

ABC Belarus and other supporters of those imprisoned are calling for as many solidarity actions as possible to put pressure on the Belarusian regime; both during the days of action and beyond! We stand in solidarity with imprisoned comrades in Belarus whilst also recognising the many political prisoners in EU countries and the hypocrisy of the EU demand.

Prisoners to write to:

Mikalaj Dziadok, SIZO-1, ul. Volodarskogo 2, 220050 Minsk, Belarus

Aliaksandr Frantskevich, k. 46 SIZO-1, ul. Volodarskogo 2, 220050 Minsk, Belarus

Ihar Alinevich, P.O. Box 8, Glavpochtampt, 220050 Minsk, Belarus
(Unfortunately Ihar is only allowed correspondence in Belarusian and Russian language, but you may send postcards and such)

Freedom for the imprisoned anarchists in Istanbul! International day of solidarity – June 12th, 2012

On May 14th 60 people who participated in the Mayday parade in Istanbul were arrested and their homes searched. They are accused of “damaging public property in the name of a terrorist organization”, because during the parade a couple of banks were damaged. Nine of them are still kept in prison. One of them (who identifies as LGBT -lesbian bisexual gay transgender) was the target of hate speech.

Using the threat of 15-20 years of prison, some of these nine were pressured during the first days (which they spent isolated from their families, friends and lawyers) and confessed to being leaders of a terrorist organization. This accusation seems absurd if one looks at the different parts of the anarchist movements they were active in – from animal rights to human rights, ecological movement and LGBT. It is the first time that activists from the anarchist spectrum, the animal rights and ecological movement are accused of being a terrorist organization. The same method of repression has a long and sad tradition against kurdish and other left groups and individuals.

It is therefore even more necessary to show the agencies of repression that the imprisoned activists are not isolated, but that they have a broad, international movement standing behind them, which values the defense of lives and the dignity of humans and animals more than a few (broken) windows. In an open letter the nine prisoners speak for the first them and the organization Yeryüzüne Özgürlük Derneği (Freedom to Earth Association) calls for international solidarity.

On June 12th people in many countries all over the world will demonstrate in front of Turkish embassies to show their solidarity with the prisoners and to demand their release. Organize actions in your own city!
Do not leave the prisoners alone!

Support the turkish activists and demand their immediate release!

Prisoner List June 2012 (Updated) & Upcoming Events / Calls for Solidarity

PrisonerListJune2012 – from Bristol ABC

Monday 11th June
Day of Action in Support of John Bowden
Imprisoned since 1980, (and in fact for most of his life before that), John Bowden has been a thorn in the side of the English and Scottish prison systems for three decades.

Monday 11th June @ Kebele Social Centre – 6:30pm
International day of solidarity with long-term anarchist prisoners
Infonight/benefit evening featuring: Vegan food, discussion on Eric McDavid and Marie Mason’s case, and screening of the documentary “The Jeff Luers Story” (running time: 40 minutes).

Tuesday 12th June
International day of solidarity with anarchists in Instanbul

June 30th – 2nd July
Call for common actions in solidarity with Belarusian anarchists

Wednesday 11th July @ The Croft – 8pm
Benefit for Bristol Anarchist Black Cross
Vestiges (US) + Downfall of Gaia (GER) + Warprayer. £5 adv, £6 otd.

June 30th – July 2nd: Call for common actions in solidarity with Belarusian anarchists

From Belarus ABC:

It has been a long time since the last call for solidarity with the Belarusian anarchists appeared. Today we have to admit that the new wave of solidarity is needed urgently to help them out from the prison. That’s why we call you to participate in days of action in solidarity with Belarusian political prisoners from June 30 to July 2.

The activists Ihar Alinevich, Mikalai Dziadok, Artsiom Prakapenka, Pavel Syramolatau, Aliaksandr Frantskievich, Jauhen Vas’kovich that were detained in autumn 2010 and winter 2011 and then sentenced to 3 to 8 years of prison in May 2011 for a series of attacks on state and capital symbols are finishing their second year in jail. During this time their comrades and relatives did their best to help them feel comfortable in custody and set them free. In October 2011 they were acknowledged political prisoners by right-watch organizations. This fact gave them bigger chances to be freed as soon as possible, because at the moment the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, faces pressure from the European Union with the demands to set free all the political prisoners and decriminalize them. From August 2011 he has already pardoned more than 30 of them, but none of our comrades was granted freedom. Lukashenko said publicly, that he will pardon only those, who will write the petition for pardon, thus admitting their guilt and asking him personally for mercy. All the rest will remain in prison, he stated. In fact two comrades, Mikalai Dziadok and Alexandr Frantskevich were already asked if they want to sign the petition in August 2011, both refuses to do it. Now there are 13 political prisoners left in Belarus, among them are 5 our comrades and 1 more, imprisoned for the action of solidarity with them. We are sure that none of them will ask for mercy, because it would a shame for an anarchist or any honest person to do so. All the prisoners are experiencing different kinds of pressure from the administration of the prisons they are held in*, because Lukashenko wants to be a winner in this situation and make it as if it is not the EU that forces him to set free the political prisoners in fear of more political and economic sanctions, but as if it is his good will to pardon them, again only if they ask for it. We strongly oppose the fact that our comrades are now traded for benefits form the EU and condemn the pressure that they experience*. We call everybody to protest against this tortures and demand the immediate liberation of the political prisoners of Belarus, including anarchists.

We welcome solidarity actions of ANY kind starting from now on to accumulate amount of it on days of solidarity, we also ask you to make solidarity actions at least once a month if you find it possible even after the days of solidarity. We need constant pressure on the regime and the EU politicians in this situation. Let it be a non-stopping roll of action all over the world, until our comrades are free!

*The cases of pressure on the prisoners include: transfers to another penal institutions, deprivation of food supply from the outside, deprivation and cuts on the dates with relatives, deprivation of phone calls, delays and gaps in letters’ supply, placing to the solitary cell, transfers to a penal facility with special regime, etc.

To know more about the attacks, visit http://abc-belarus.org/?p=6&lang=en

To know more about the sentences, visit http://abc-belarus.org/?p=326&lang=en

Anarchist Black Cross Belarus

Friends and Relatives of the arrested

Check other call translations (German, Polish, Spanish, Italian, Greek)

Day of Action in Support of John Bowden MON 11th JUNE 2012

Day of Action in Support of John Bowden

Monday 11th June

Imprisoned since 1980, (and in fact for most of his life before that), John Bowden has been a thorn in the side of the English and Scottish prison systems for three decades. John has paid a heavy price for being a staunch defender of prisoners’ rights and a committed opponent of injustice, spending years in the most brutal conditions, and suffering numerous physical assaults and treatment that has frequently amounted to torture.

Over the past decade though, John’s captors have been using a new tactic to keep him behind bars – the lies of prison social workers and quack ‘psychologists’. First, a few years ago, Matthew Stillman alleged that the Anarchist Black Cross were a ‘terrorist organisation’ and that John was therefore a ‘terrorist’ by implication. Brendan Barnett has now made even more ludicrous allegations against John, but such is the corruption within Edinburgh ‘Criminal Justice Services’ that John’s complaints have led to his victimisation, rather than the disciplining of Brendan ‘Pinocchio’ Barnett.

June 11th: Solidarity with long-term anarchist prisoners @ Kebele

As part of the international day of solidarity on June 11th:
Bristol ABC presents an infonight/benefit evening  for long-term U.S. anarchist prisoners Eric McDavid & Marie Mason. We will be sharing food, discussing the latest on Eric & Marie’s case and watching a short documentary on Jeff “Free” Luers.

6:30pm: Vegan food served (Suggested donation: £3)
7:30pm: Discussion on Eric & Marie’s case
8:00pm: Film screening of ‘The Jeff Luers Story‘ (40 mins).

Marie Mason is a long-time environmental and social justice activist and loving mother of two. In March 2008, she was arrested on charges related to Earth Liberation Front actions that occurred in Michigan in 1999 and 2000; no one was injured in the actions. On February 5, 2009, Marie received an outrageous 262 month sentence (a little under 22 years). The sentence was higher than even that asked for by federal prosecutors. Marie’s sentence is the longest given to any “Green Scare” defendant to date.

 In September 2007, Eric McDavid was found guilty of conspiracy to sabotage federal facilities in the name of the environment. The government’s case was based on the word of an FBI informant who was paid over $75,000 to fabricate a crime. Both of Eric’s co-defendants testified against Eric in return for a lesser charge. On May 8, 2008, Eric was sentenced to an outrageous 19 years and 7 months in prison for a crime that was never committed. Eric is appealing his conviction

London: Noise Demo at HMP Brixton – 5th June

From London ABC:

Her Majesty’s Pleasure*? Stuff that!

A noise demo to show solidarity with prisoners at HMP Brixton, because frankly we don’t feel like celebrating 60 years of having a queen, especially a queen who takes pleasure from imprisoning our mates, comrades, and other fellow human beings. What kind of a sick mind takes pleasure from locking people up in prison? Prisons destroy people. They destroy familes, friendships, and communities too. Putting somebody in prison is an act of violence which contributes nothing real or positive and only brutalises those who are already struggling.

We don’t believe that prison is the answer to any question we have ever asked.

We want to show the people inside HMP Brixton that they are not alone, that they are not forgotten, that queen liz and her government have not succeeding in hiding them away from us, that we support them and give a shit about them. That we think prison is a crime.

So, please join us on 5th June, part of the so-called “jubilee weekend” for a noisy and spirited demo at HMP Brixton. We’ll meet outside Brixton underground station at 3pm to walk up to the prison together. Please bring things to make noise with, your mates, and your righteous rage.

Organised by London ABC, who can be contacted c/o Freedom Bookshop, Angel Alley, 84b Whitechapel High Street, London E17QZ or via our website at http://network23.org/londonabc

(* her majesty’s pleasure is the phrase used when someone is sentenced to prison, eg. you will serve 20 years at her majesty’s pleasure. Prisons in the UK are formally known as Her Majesty’s Prisons (HMP).)

Kilnaboy + Private Gain + The Migraines @ The Plough: for two people arrested and fined after the illegal eviction of a squat in Easton

The Bastard Squad Collective presents a benefit for two people arrested after the illegal eviction of a squat in Easton, last year. All money raised will go towards paying court costs. Any money left over will go towards squatting and legal defence groups.KILNABOY South Wales’ own rowdy rebel folk punk! PRIVATE GAIN Bristol’s knees-up, beat down skacore! THE MIGRAINES Fresh-faced hardcore upstarts from Bristol! SATURDAY 12TH MAY THE PLOUGH, EASTON £4 | 8PM www.bastardsquadcollective.wordpress.com

Happy (Belated) Birthday Badger!

From Bristol Indymedia:

On Tuesday 16th April we visited the offices of The Evening Post in Bristol to wish a happy birthday to our Comrade Huw ‘Badger’ Norfolk who is currently on the run due to crimes relating to the building. We held a banner which read: “BRISTOL ABC: Every Prisoner Is A Political Prisoner” and wore badger masks to show our solidarity with him.

Happy Birthday Badger! Wherever you are!

Other photos: 1, 2