earthfirst – Page 201

spike social centre eviction in progress – London

12.2.2009 9am
the spike surplus scheme of 39b consort road, peckham, London is being eveicted as we speak. bailiffs, cops, pcsos and “community wardens” are on site.

after a ten year project in the building which has been in community use for 150 years, the property division of soutwark council have decided to end the project. though they promised to give notice to clear the projects equipment before eviction, southwark council gave instructions to get a special court order so as not to give any notice at all.

Jeremy pilgrim of the southwark council lead the police operation, visiting the project for the first time this morning after many previous invites to visit the community centre.

people have been told to liase with bailiffs in order to collect the thousands of pounds worth of equipment still there.

www.spikesurplus.org

www.myspace.com/spikesurplus

Manchester students occupy roof of Royal Bank of Scotland

Around 35 students held a climate change ‘Eviction Demonstration’ outside (and on top of) a Royal Bank of Scotland branch at the University of Manchester Students Union on Wednesday 11th February 2009. The group from People and Planet have submitted a motion to the Union General Meeting proposing that the Union does not renew the lease for RBS’ branch when it expires in January 2010.

The demo began on the steps of the Student Union at noon. RBS had hired in extra security, and the campus cops were sniffing around. So a group went to the front of the RBS and talked loudly of their plans for ‘rapid information dessimination’.

Whilst this distraction ensued, tieing up security, a second group snuck round the back and climbed aboard the roof. From here they dropped banners advertising RBS’ fossil fuel investments and advertising the Union general meeting the following week.

Meanwhile the rapid information dessimination went ahead with everyone racing off to speak to as many people as they could in 20 minutes before returning back to the RBS branch to compare scores.

The Royal Bank of Scotland provided $16 billion for coal companies and exploration projects from May 2006 to April 2008. This has included some of the dirtiest and most dangerous oil and gas projects including the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline in Tiblisi, Georgia which has been criticised by Amnesty, WWF, and Friends of the Earth for its human rights and pollution impacts. The embedded emissions from RBS loans total more than those of the whole of Scotland.

Toby Brett, 19, Physics Student at Manchester University says; “We hope to send a clear message to RBS that if they continue with their irresponsible investments then they will not be welcome to rent branch space from our student union.”

This action was part of a wider national campaign calling for a boycott on RBS in September 2009.

Manchester People and Planet have previously staged a flashmob protest against RBS at a University recruitment event
(http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/21650)

And awarded RBS a spoof greenwash award at their regional headquarters in Deansgate.
(http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/21907)

For more detail on RBS’ climate crimes please visit:
www.peopleandplanet.org/ditchdirtydevelopment
www.oyalbankofscotland.com

squat eviction & resistance in the South West

illegal eviction of squat in Bath
On Monday the 9th February, at 2.15pm, British Transport Police & Bath constabulary conspired to commit an illegal eviction of a new short-lived squat on the edge of Twerton, in Bath.

The former Twerton-on-Avon railway station fell out of use in 1917, and was briefly the site of Andromeda Gardening Services owned by R. Potter. R. Potter was arrested and found guilty of a huge cannibis growing operation in the loft of the building in 2003, and was believed to have been forced to sell the property to pay off the fine. The building was later occupied by European squatters in 2006 & 2007, whom the local residents mistakenly assumed were the cannibis dealers. Contending with that and confusing the issue, Network Rail also claimed squatters’ rights to the building, and their twelve years’ were due to be up in August 2008, except for the intervention of our European friends.

A second generation of squatters moved in on Friday the 6th of February, last week, through a damaged doorway and promptly went about doing up their lovely new 4-storey home, content in the knowledge that they were the new temporary owners.

The authorities had other ideas though, with BTP committing criminal damage destroying one of the padlocks, criminally breaking and entering as they booted their way through the door, and then trespassing as they spread through the building, ignoring the Section 6 notice that the occupier read out to them as they carried on their crime wave. Officer 1306 particularly of British Transport Police take note. They were allegedly acting off knowledge from a nearby property also renting from Network Rail (were they fraudulently pretending to be the owner of that property, too, one wonders?) who reported suspicious squatter-types entering and leaving the building – so police also broke their own rules on revealing witnesses. They then handed over the occupier to Bath Constabulary, who held him for a further 8 hours.

Bath Police didn’t care about the fact that Network Rail aren’t the legal owners of the contested building, and neither did they care about the guidlelines set down in PACE where they are obliged to supply inmates with writing materials, or food in sealed packaging, or indeed respond to the suspect’s cries when having a claustrophobia attack, or indeed offer him access to a solicitor of his choice and repeatedly refusing him access to hsi phone call – though, they eventually caved on that.

It also appears that the police flunked their law exam: they were due to release the person with a caution for trespass at 21.30 that night, until one of the embarrassed CPS took their window-licking colleague aside and advised that it’s probably best to do someone for a crime, rather than a civil offense. So, cautuoned for electricity extyraction it was.

Also of note is that at no point was a legal warning given, nor a warrant produced. The offending bad cop screwed up the Section 6 and shoved it in his pocket with a scowl.

Good old Bath police.

But for readers out there, the property is still ownerless and ripe for the taking. And remember: an attack one is an attack on all.

Don’t let ’em rot…

——-

illegal eviction averted in Bristol

February 3, 2009
police soon change their tune…

About 1.30pm this afternoon a squat in easton was a target of illegal eviction attempt.

Police, accompanying the owners threatened to “kick the door down in half an hour” if the occupants didn’t leave. In about 20 minutes, around 20 local residents turned to show their concern to what was going on. The Police soon changed their tune, and before you knew it they had spoken to the owners and things would now proceed through court.

Whaling Opponents Collide at Sea

Sea Shepherd Crew Remain On Guard Behind the Nisshin Maru

Sea Shepherd Operation Musashi
Update from the Ross Sea

February 7th, 2009
0700 Hours (Sydney Time)
1200 Hours (PST) (February 5th)
75 Degrees 57 Minutes South and 164 Degrees 53 Minutes West

Sea Shepherd Crew Remain On Guard Behind the Nisshin Maru

Sea Shepherd Operation Musashi
Update from the Ross Sea

February 7th, 2009
0700 Hours (Sydney Time)
1200 Hours (PST) (February 5th)
75 Degrees 57 Minutes South and 164 Degrees 53 Minutes West
Despite repeated assaults by frustrated and increasingly violent Japanese whalers, the Sea Shepherd ship Steve Irwin continues to stand guard behind the Japanese floating abattoir called the Nisshin Maru. The three Japanese harpoon boats are not in the area but the Sea Shepherd crew is prepared to obstruct them should they return.

The Japanese have been accusing Sea Shepherd of trying to obstruct their props with ropes yet the whalers have been trying to do the same thing to the Sea Shepherd ship Steve Irwin. They are accusing the Sea Shepherd crew of throwing rotten butter (which the Japanese refer to as “acid”) at them yet the whalers are throwing golf balls and chunks of metal at the Steve Irwin crew. In addition, the Japanese are blasting the Sea Shepherd crew with water cannons and Long Range Acoustical weapons – a sonic gun that causes disorientation, nausea and deafness.

“I find it interesting that so called experts and politicians are quick to condemn Sea Shepherd’s tactics for upholding conservation law yet say not a word about the escalating physical violence directed at us by the whalers who are breaking the law,” said Captain Paul Watson. “Their position of siding with the poachers seems to be that if we did not put ourselves in this situation we would not be experiencing such violence. The same could be said for any policeman and Sea Shepherd is not down here to protest whaling, we are down here to obstruct illegal whaling as defined under international conservation law. We are down here to enforce the law, not to break it.”

There is a legal precedent for Sea Shepherd’s intervention and that is the United Nation World Charter for Nature that allows for non-governmental organizations to uphold international conservation law and in Section 21(e) specifically in areas beyond national jurisdictions.

The Japanese whale poachers have the advantage of superior ships, faster, more powerful ships, they have weapons and they have the support of their government that will defend whatever actions they take including the killing of our crew if that should occur.
On February 6th, two incidents occurred where the Steve Irwin collided with harpoon vessels as they forced their way past the Steve Irwin’s blockade in their pursuit of their poaching activities. These collisions were not intentional on the part of Sea Shepherd.

“Earlier we filmed a whale being illegally killed and we watched as that whale endured an agonizing death, thrashing about in its own blood for twenty-five minutes,” said Captain Watson. “We view the killing of that whale as cold blooded murder and we are committed to doing everything we can, short of inflicting injuries ourselves, to protect these defenceless, gentle, intelligent and socially complex sentient beings.”

The harpoon boats have not returned to the Nisshin Maru since the last incident occurred at 1800 Hours on February 6th.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has made it clear to the government of Australia that our interventions which are becoming increasingly more dangerous because of Japanese aggression can be avoided by Peter Garrett and Kevin Rudd simply making good on their pre-election promise to take the Japanese whalers to court.

“Because Garrett and Rudd have reneged on their promises to us, the people of Australia, we have been forced to defend these whales as Australian citizens in these hostile and remote waters simply because someone has to,” said Andrew Perry of Hobart, Tasmania.

—–

Steve Irwin Suffers Second Collision with the Japanese Fleet

Operation Musashi
Update from the Ross Sea

February 6th, 2009, 1830 Hours (Sydney Time)
2330 Hours (PST) (February 5th)
75 Degrees 52 Minutes South and 165 Degrees 18 Minutes West

At 1800 Hours the harpoon vessels Yushin Maru No. 1 and the Yushin Maru No.3 decided to run the Sea Shepherd blockade to transfer two dead whales to the flensing deck of the Nisshin Maru. The Sea Shepherd ship Steve Irwin was blocking the slipway to prevent the transfer in order to shut down the illegal Japanese whaling operations.

As the Nisshin Maru attempted to hook onto the dead whale, the Steve Irwin and the Yushin Maru No.3 collided with the forward starboard side of the Steve Irwin and the port stern side of the harpoon vessel coming together.

“We told them to not continue their illegal whaling operations and that we would be blocking the stern slipway of the factory ship,” said Captain Paul Watson. “They decided to test our resolve and apparently expected us to retreat when they charged in ahead of us to make the transfer.”

Captain Watson said that the Steve Irwin became difficult to control under a barrage of metal objects, blasts from the water cannons, and the disorientation caused by the LRAD acoustic weapons that the whalers were using on the conservationists.

“I was dazed by the sonic blasts being used on us at close range.” said Captain Watson. “I have to admit it was difficult to concentrate with that devise being focused on us.”

“I’ve never felt anything quite like it,” said Emily Hunter from Toronto, Canada. “It penetrates the body and you can feel your muscles vibrating. It made me dizzy and left me somewhat dazed.”

The Steve Irwin suffered no noticeable damage from the collision and no one was seriously injured. A few of the Sea Shepherd crew were struck by golf balls and pieces of metal. The crew of the Steve Irwin were unable to determine if there was any damage done to the harpoon hunter killer boat.

The two whales were transferred after the Steve Irwin shut down the operations of the fleet for twelve hours.

“We are trying to make this as difficult as possible for them to continue their illegal activities, “said Molly Kendall from Adelaide, South Australia. “It is difficult to see them murdering these whales and we are determined to do everything we possibly can to stop this horrific slaughter.”

The Steve Irwin remains on the tail of the Nisshin Maru to attempt to obstruct any further transfers in an effort to stop the unlawful poaching of the whales by the Japanese whaling fleet.

“I wish we did not have to be down here in this dangerous situation,” said Captain Watson. “I’ve said repeatedly that if Australia or New Zealand would agree to take Japan to the international court on this than we would back off. Because international law is not being enforced, we have no choice but to do what we can with the resources available to us to defend these endangered whales in this established international whale sanctuary.”

—–

Update from the Ross Sea
Sea Shepherd’s Operation Musashi

February 6th, 2009
0800 Hours (Sydney Time)
1300 Hours (PST) (February 5th)
75 Degrees 44 Minutes South and 165 Degrees 39 Minutes West
The Sea Shepherd ship Steve Irwin collided with the Yushin Maru #2 this morning as the harpoon vessel moved in to block the Steve Irwin’s attempt to prevent the transfer of a dead whale up the slipway of the Nisshin Maru.

“We were in the process of blocking the transfer from the Yushin Maru #2 when the Yushin Maru #1 moved directly in front of the bow to block us,” said Captain Watson. “I could not turn to starboard without hitting the Yushin Maru #1. I tried to back down but the movement of the Yushin Maru #2 made the collision unavoidable.”

The Yushin Maru #2 was transferring a 2nd whale killed this morning.

“The whalers have decided to test our resolve,” said 1st Officer Peter Hammarstedt. “They have escalated this battle to see just how determined we are to protect these whales. We’re shepherds and we will do what we can to protect our flock from these murderous poachers.”

The Yushin Maru #3 has also killed a whale but is unable to approach the factory ship because the Steve Irwin is now guarding the slipway.

The Sea Shepherd crew intend to hold this position to prevent the transfer.

Earth First! tree planting weekend in Pennines Fri 13th-Sun 15th March

The annual and occasionally hedonistic opportunity to plant thousands of native trees on a ecologically degraded hillside is happening in March. Organised by Earth First!

The annual and occasionally hedonistic opportunity to plant thousands of native trees on a ecologically degraded hillside is happening in March. Organised by Earth First! activists in collaboration with Calderdale community group Treesponsibility we will be based in Hebden Bridge in Calderdale. If you fancy a weekend of hard but satisfying work planting native woodland combined with good food and socialising put the weekend of the 13-15th March in your diary.

Earth First! tree planting weekend…

Date: Friday 13th – Sunday 15th March

Venue: We will be staying in a camping barn with comfy beds and heating. Bring a sleeping bag.

Transport: Get yourself to Hebden Bridge train station for a pick up at 6pm or 8pm on the 13th. Pickups are available by arrangement at other times if you e-mail in advance.

Food: All food will be cooked collectively and will be vegan.

Cost: £25 for the weekend. This includes all food and accomodation. You’ll have to supply you own beer. We will be visiting the famous Blue Pig public house on the Saturday night.

Need more info? Contact: treesponsibility@yahoo.co.uk or call 07983743894

Communique released from ELF action at university

“Complete communique of the action of January 29:

In the early morning of January 29, the submissive firefighters in Mexico City (D.F.) quelled a fire within the premises of the College of Sciences and Humanities south campus (CCH Sur) of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). There a machine which destroys the Earth was left forever unusable, and the administration offices of the campus were burned.

The Frente de Liberación de la Tierra (ELF) claimed this attack through a contact; we were informed that the university had been destroying a large part of the ecological reserve where a so-called ‘education’ center is being built, several varieties of trees and diverse plants were cut down, considered to be in the way of their ability to expand their facilities, and their mastery over nature; the progress and education that they extol in their classrooms is always based on domination and anthropocentrism. In this act by the UNAM, it is more than clear that not only do they wish to dominate and mold the minds of students, they also seek to expand the same control over the land and the animals that inhabit her. That’s why the destructive machine was burned, and why we also decided to set a fire on campus, now an indisputable part of the ecocide that education implements, which only wants to produce people who are submissive to authority and power; they create beings who are unable to think and act for themselves and are only educated to produce and consume.

The mass media of miscommunication, which hid the machine which had been burned, only now announced that part of the administrative offices had been burned, and that this had been caused by Porro (shock groups) [groups organized to discredit student movements]; we want to make clear that the ELF/FLT is not composed of such people, who are sent by their bosses to do absurd and meaningless things; our reasons are clear, as we struggle for total liberation (animal, land and human), and if anything blocks us we will face it until its complete destruction and elimination.

We know that the estimated damage of this action was thousands of pesos, but still we are not satisfied with that, and we will continue making war on all that oppresses us and will not allow us all to be happy– us, animals and the land.

This was just a little message, for those who profit at the expense of the destruction and domination of the ecosystem.

ELF/FLT México”

anonymous communique (translation) from http://directaction.info

National Squat Meetup. 14/15 March. Bristol Area

NOW IS A PERFECT TIME TO SQUAT
Now is a perfect time to come together to share our collective creativity, rage, and pride in our cultural identity; to come together for ourselves and look to our future with solidarity and passion. Let’s meet and empower ourselves in our common struggle!

CRACKS ARE APPEARING…

CRACKS ARE APPEARING…
We feel it necessary to meet at a time when those at the top are losing their grip to discuss ways we can work together to change our world from the bottom up. New spaces and opportunities are opening all around us and there is a growing potential for more widespread recognition of the need for autonomous housing action. The threat of eviction and homelessness hangs over more people every day. There are over a billion squatters in the world. Now is the time to build a stronger network of resistance.

THIS IS A CALLOUT
This is a callout for all those involved in securing and maintaining squats and autonomous spaces across the UK, and beyond, to meet and discuss issues that affect us all as a community. Following on from the hugely successful national meeting in Leeds last year, and many smaller local gatherings, that have happened throughout the year, this year’s meet up will be in the Bristol area. Please bring your positive energy, enthusiasm and thoughts to share skills and engage in open dialogue.

WE CAN CONSTRUCT A POSITIVE VISION OF THE WORLD
We hope to discuss ways of strengthening our network in defence of autonomous spaces, share success stories from last year’s day of action and formulate future plans and schemes for creative chaos! The agenda will be decided between us all on Friday evening. Please arrive early if possible to help us create the space. Any comments/ suggestions/ mad ideas please contact squatmeetup@googlemail.com

Climate Camp hits the City of London on April Fools Day, the eve of the G20 leaders’ London Summit. Join us!

Climate camp 2009 /// Stopping carbon markets /// Because nature doesn’t do bailouts.

First the city traders speculated with our homes, jobs and money – with disastrous results. Now they are speculating with our climate and the very future of life on earth – and once again our governments are cheering them on.

By creating a brain-bending system of carbon pollution licenses, fossil fuel companies and trading firms have found a way to keep on churning out global warming gases and to reap huge windfall profits at the same time.
Meanwhile, the UK government is justifying a third runway at Heathrow and a coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth by saying that these new “carbon trading” schemes will magically make all their emissions vanish.

They are handing control of our climate over to the same people and systems that caused the financial collapse. All the workable and fair alternatives aren’t getting a look-in

We need to stop this foolishness.

We’ve camped against the Heathrow runway, we’ve camped against the Kingsnorth coal power station. Now its time to camp against the over-arching problem: absolute faith in unfettered markets and endless economic growth. On April 1st the G20 leaders arrive in London. At a time of climate crisis their response to the market meltdown is emergency loans to car manufacturers, increased spending to encourage consumption, and bailouts for the very people who got us into this mess – just the thing that will make the climate crisis worse.

Don’t let them get away with it: join our camp in the Square Mile! Gather at noon, April 1st, at the European Climate Exchange, Hasilwood House, 62 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4AW. Bring a pop-up tent, sleeping bag, wind turbine, mobile cinema, action plans and ideas…let’s imagine another world.

Don’t let the financial and fossil fools make the rules!

for updates, details on back-up plans, and moreinformation, visit us again at http://www.climatecamp.org.uk/g20

To get involved, come to our planning meeting on Saturday February 14th in London (arrive at the library houuse, 52 Knatchbull, at 1 pm for a 1:30 start) or come to the gathering on March the 6th/7th in Nottingham.

Email g20 [@] climatecamp.org.uk for more information.

Join the announcements list, the facebook page and event.

Please post this link, paste this text, and otherwise spread the word!

Help celebrate Fossil Fools Day and Financial Fools Day

Group out in force for the final days of the shooting season + arrest report.

4.02.2009
A quick report from Gloucestershire and Cotswold hunt sabs from the fields on the last Saturday before the end of the Pheasant shooting season.

On our last walking expedition through the beautiful Cotswold two weeks ago our small group of four came into some trouble with some of the security from the Brimpsfield park estate our small group of four were pushed around and shoved until we left the public footpath which was clearly marked on the map. Apparently it is fine to assault those who use a public right of way in the countryside if shooters are having a fun day’s massacre. The attitude of those who provide security for the Brimpsfield Park shooting is far from legal, they openly admit on camera they know where we live and will be paying us a visit, the shooters have ON camera refused to break gun, leaving activists with temporary deafness as chambers are emptied within inches of the heads of the sabs.

Saturday 31st Jan saw two land rovers packed with sabs stop five shooters during a rough shoot in the Cotswolds, after deciding to move onto a driven shoot in the area our land rovers were stopped by around 10 police vehicles and the while the drivers were being questioned by police all sabs went for a nice walk along the footpaths for a stroll. Unfortunately although the drivers and vehicles were released by police they were followed by the yokels who pulled in front of the vehicles and called the police where two activists were arrested for an apparent Aggravated trespass and Section 5 Public order for causing someone to be harassed alarmed and distressed.

One of the beaters made a statement saying that the two (one male, one female) had already been told to leave the land for three months by the police back in November, and that they had caused him to feel alarmed, harassed or distressed. They probably can’t decide which of those three things they are as they are still looking in the “word meanins book” (dictionary) so they can check the definitions.

Needless to say, we will be back for the new season and will continue to fight these animal abusers in our area until every last gun is silenced. Whilst preparing for the new season we will be out with our other local fox hunts helping to protect our wildlife.

More info check our new website below!

Gloucestershire and Cotswold Hunt Sabs
warn@riseup.net
http://huntsabs.wordpress.com

Call out for solidarity anti-nuke actions on 26th April (Chernobyl Day)

A call out for common actions against the construction of a new nuclear power station

Present-day Belarus is a post soviet country, on which territory a regime, police state in form and neoliberal in essence, fortified its position. For already 14 years the country is run by one and the same person Alexander Lukashenko, a populist at the beginning of his governing and openly pursuing antisocial reforms now. The freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly is not about our country. These basic values as well as the political opposition are suppressed. Peaceful gatherings dispersions, political trials, preventive detentions all this has become a norm of political practice in Belarus.

A few years ago the ruling top started to consider another venturesome project the construction of a nuclear power station (NPS). Lukashenko took a decision regardless of the public wishes and common sense. The decision was made with the active support of the international nuclear lobby. The construction is to be undertaken by a Russian corporation Rosatom. It is to be held in a seismically active zone, in a dozen kilometers away from Lake Naroch the largest lake in Belarus, which is ecologically unique for our country and is a tourists and holiday-makers attraction. On the construction will be spent $4 billion, which otherwise could be outlaid for alternative energy means development.

But the above-listed points pale before the fact that Belarus shared 70% of radioactive contamination after Chernobyl nuclear accident. But the government and the president are absolutely not concerned about that. They want to create a delayed-action bomb in the country, where one third of the territory is unfit for farming and berries/mushrooms gathering.

We, Antinuclear resistance, an anarchy group, come out against nuclear power engineering on the whole and against the NPS construction specifically in Belarus. A part of political forces in Belarus, including opposition, supported the NPS construction. Unlike them we do not believe in NPS safety irrespective of the political regime, within which it is functioning and being constructed. Our activity is based upon non-authoritarian principles, we do not cooperate with any political parties on a regular base, but with ecological organizations and grassroots initiatives.

On 26 April, the anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear accident, an annual demonstration Charnobylski Shlah (The Chernobyl Path) takes place in commemoration of the accident and the people who fell the immediate and lingering victims of it. Starting with the year of 1996 anarchists take part in the demo with ecological and antinuclear slogans. But nowadays the demonstration, instead of just mourning and commemorative event, is
gaining a protest mood: in the country, where dozens of thousands people have died as a result of the nuclear accident aftermaths and hundreds of thousands have acquired accident-caused illnesses or become handicapped, a new NPS is to be constructed! And that is done according to the common regulations of an authoritarian police state not asking the peoples opinion, but just confronting them with the fact.

On 26 April we will again take a most active part in the Charnobylski Shlah (The Chernobyl Path), well try to pass along to everyone our clear antinuclear position, will inform as many people as possible of the approaching danger. But now it is not enough! As an instrument of struggle against the state lawlessness we rely on the international support. We urge anarchists, environmentalists, antiauthoritarians of the world to carry out solidarity actions on 26 April 2009. We call for a decentralized day of action of any form, which could help people learn something about our problem and stop the impudent authority and their sponsors from IAEA.

If you already take actions on 26 April on your local problems concerning nuclear power engineering, please put on your list the demand for abolition of the NSP construction in Belarus. You are also welcome to participate in The Chernobyl Path in Minsk and other actions in Belarus.

Together we will be able to stand up for the right for life on a clean and ecologically safe planet!

If you have any intention to make solidarity actions with the Belarussian antinuclear movement or participate in the demonstration in Belarus please contact us:

antiatombel@riseup.net

Spread out the call out through any accessible for you information channels

belarus anarchists
http://belarus.avtonom.org