http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lord-tebbit-jostled-by-a-chinese-dragon-1907710.html

…that the 29th National Congress of the Communist Party of Australia decided that the CPA should cease functioning as a political party. This event occurred in the midst of the regime changes which were sweeping Eastern Europe at the time, ranging from the orderly reforming of communism out of existence in Hungary and Slovenia to the forcible overthrow of the ultra-Stalinist Ceaucescu dictatorship in Romania. Writing in Australian Left Review about the CPA’s historic decision, Mike Ticher noted that…

Lenin is always alive,
Lenin is always with you!
In sorrow, hope and joy,
Lenin is with you in your spring!
In every happy day,
Lenin is within you and within me!

So Lumpen, is there not a debate to be had about organisation in the class or is it not sad that what is possibly the most prominent anarchist web presence in Australia presents a not very funny list of a few zombie-Marxist groups in lieu of presenting the actually very rich insights anarchism has about questions of organisation, struggle and class?

Pretty much what Andy said.

Your argument seems to be either/or. Yes, there is a debate to be had about organisation in the class. I don’t find anything sad about this post in particular or this series. It’s possible that it appeals directly to my prejudices and sense of humour. The Sparts calling the SEP “an organization of dubious political bandits” is really funny to me, especially the way it was constructed.

The leap you make is when you say “in lieu of”. I can’t see why he shouldn’t indulge his interests in a forum that he has constructed even if you assume that the anarchist insights have not been presented elsewhere. In other words, I think it’s possible to don the red anorak to do some trainspotting, as well as debate about “organisation in the class.” Now, I’m not really certain what you mean by that exactly, but it seems possible that both could be done.

There have been attempts at constructing online forums for these debates, btw. They didn’t really work out. (I’m thinking of AABB.) Maybe I’ll share my thoughts on this later.

Australia – November/December 2009

Living and traveling in the South Pacific from 1997 to 2000, I visited Australia on several occasions. I returned again in 2003. Recently, I had the opportunity to visit for the first time in six years. It was encouraging to see an ongoing radical presence in the country; next to catching up with old friends and comrades, I got to meet a whole new generation of activists…

I seem to remember Chekov Feeney writing a similar account some years back, but buggered if I can find it now. In the meantime:

MAY DAY MADNESS
Ireland on Sunday
February 8, 2004

WE INFILTRATE THE ANARCHIST GROUPS WHICH HAVE ALREADY BROUGHT TWO CITIES TO THEIR KNEES AND ARE NOW DETERMINED TO SPOIL EU ACCESSION DAY

ON THE face of it, it looks like just another of the thousands of pompous but otherwise’ harmless messages that circulate among left-wing agitators and other disaffected groups on the world wide web every day of the year. But, looking closely at this e-mail, you find that what appears to be a call for peaceful protests in Dublin on May Day is, in fact, an alarming advertisement that has been placed on Internet links around the world.

The e-mail calling for a ‘European day of action in Dublin on Saturday, May 1st’ has been translated into at least 13 languages and has appeared on anarchist websites and internet links connected to terrorists in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, America and Britain.

The plan is as simple as it is frightening… to hijack the highpoint of Ireland’s six-month EU presidency, when hundreds of dignataries and thousands of visitors will be in Dublin to mark the accession of 10 new countries to the EU.

On May 1, people from all over Ireland and Europe are expected to pour into the capital for a day of festivities that has been dubbed the ‘Day of Welcomes’ and will be launched with an elaborate fireworks extravaganza. It is this very carnival-type atmosphere that campaigners from across Europe, some with links to extremist groups, are intent on hijacking to bring the capital to its knees to highlight their objections to EU policies – knowing that the eyes of the world will be focused on Dublin.

The anarchists have even drawn up contingency plans, to use violence if the Gardai adopt heavy-handed tactics similar to those used to curtail angry protesters at the G8 summit in the Italian city of Genoa in July 2001.

And Ireland on Sunday can reveal there has been no shortage of willing volunteers prepared to jump on this particular bandwagon in their pursuit of adrenaline-fuelled violence.

The word is out that Ireland is the place to be on May 1 and a series of meetings have already been held in Dublin and more are scheduled to take place in London at the end of the month.

IoS has penetrated the inner sanctums of some of these groups and our investigations have discovered that anarchists in Ireland have been in contact with a notorious London-based group called the Wombles who have a history of violence that has been used at a series of major summits.

Their innocent sounding name, which conjures up images of the fictional characters who lived in Wimbledon Common, is a million miles away from the radical ideology of the Wombles, a vicious British anarchist group with links to listed terror organisations.

History of violence at major summits

The Wombles is headed by London-based Alessio Lunghi, a 25 year old university dropout, who is just one of thousands of people who responded to the internet invite for a ‘mobilisation to Dublin for May 1st against the EU bosses’ posted in the Urban 75 electronic bulletin board and forum.

Lunghi (well known to London’s Metropolitan Police) and his group are holding a meeting on February 28 in Kentish Town, London, to discuss their game plan.

The Wombles have a chilling track record of violence and vandalism. They are dedicated hard-core anarchists who earned their stripes dodging tear gas and plastic bullets in Seattle at the World Trade Organisation summit in 1999. The resulting chaos saw a state of emergency imposed on the city.

In 2000, the Wombles were said to be responsible for the chaos which paralysed London. About 95 people were arrested and nine police officers were injured. The Cenotaph, a World War I memorial and a statue of Winston Churchill were defaced with graffiti and a fast-food restaurant was ransacked.

But the IMF and World Bank meeting in Prague in 2000 was the turning point for the radical group.

It’s here that Lunghi, who has fluent Italian thanks to his wine-importing father, hooked up with Ya Basta, a group of Italian anarchists with links to South American rebel groups and the PKK, Turkish, Kurd communists who have been placed on the EU’s list of International terror organisations.

Amid the water cannons and police marksmen, Lunghi formed the alliance. It was a meeting of minds and tactics: violent disorder, targeted action, anarchy. Lunghi took what he learned to London. In 2001, rioters went on the rampage as the protest escalated into violence. As darkness fell, a group of hard-core demonstrators turned their attention to the busy and unguarded Tottenham Court Road area. Militant anarchists intent on violence broke away from peaceful demonstrators and left a trail of destruction.

More than 20 shopfront windows were smashed with rocks including those of several banks, Coffee Republic and Habitat. The rioters also attempted to set fire to a Tesco store.

And the man coordinating the Irish operation – Chekov Feeney – has confirmed he has been in contact with the Wombles.

His group, the Workers Solidarity Movement, may be trying to muster support to protest against ‘all that is wrong with the EU as it currently stands: militarism, neo-liberalism, fortress Europe and the EU police state’. But the Wombles will have an altogether more sinister strategy.

Chekov told IoS: “There will be a significant number of international activists. And I can confirm that we have been in contact with the Wombles. We don’t support violence but there are a small number of people already in Dublin who would be that way inclined.”

The 27-year-old has put the ball in the Gardai’s court and warns that the mood of the day will be dictated by their reaction.

“How the day turns out will depend on the Gardai. It’s becoming more and more clear that the police often instigate the violence in the first place,” he said.

A South American activist and a colleague of Chekov Feeney who attended the strategy meeting in a Dublin city centre bar on Thursday night, which IoS penetrated, said: “If the cops hit you, of course you have a right to hit back. If they attack, you just can’t stand there.”

The meeting, sometimes heated, which was attended by up to 30 activists, was called to discuss the use of ‘black bloc tactics’, adopted for protests in Genoa, Geneva and Seattle, where campaigners wear a mask to conceal their identity and form blockades.

Gardai have conceded that thousands of demonstrators will descend on Dublin and although publically they claim they are ready for any eventuality, secretly there are concerns that with their already overstretched resources, they will struggle to cope. One source said: “Not only do we have all the normal duties to deal with but we have to provide the security for 25 heads of state, cope with the tens of thousands of people who will be in Dublin for the celebrations plus the additional headache of protestors, some who will be hell-bent on causing trouble.

“If violence erupts as it tends to do at these events, things could get hairy. We do not have the experience of other forces, such as the PSNI, in dealing with riots and, although we have received thorough training, there is a big difference between theory and practice.”

A source in the PSNI, a force with years of riot experience garnered from the sectarian conflict in the North, also doubts the Garda’s ability to cope with the situation.

GARDAI ADMIT THEY WILL STRUGGLE

“I know the PSNI have offered assistance and advice but there is no comparison between an actual riot and a simulated one. You have to think on your feet and be able to hold your nerve – that comes with experience, which the Gardai do not have.”

The handling of the “Reclaim the Streets” May Day protest four years ago was the subject of formal complaints (still unresolved) after videotape showed several members of the public being assaulted by police.

Gardai are liasing with police forces around the world to ensure that known trouble-makers are kept out of Ireland. And the Defence Forces, whose role is to support the Gardai, have confirmed 11,500 soldiers have been placed on standby.

And the winner is… anarchy!

Last year we were presented with a crisis and an opportunity, and we asked for your help. The bank that holds the mortgage for our property called in the loan. They asked us to pay $5,000 immediately and the rest – another $15,000 – as soon as possible.

We are proud to announce that with your help we have raised over $18,000 as of December 2009!

This is living proof of the amazing capacity and commitment of the community that surrounds Jura Books. We all believe that Sydney needs radical change, and Jura is a key part of making that change.

The Save Jura raffle is over and we’re happy to say it was a great success – thanks to you! It was a massive effort over six months, with:
–> 3,000 tickets sold.
–> 900 existing supporters contacted (including 750 via email, 200 via facebook, 200 via sms, 80 by phone call).
–> 200 houses door-knocked in our local area.
–> 5,500 letters hand delivered to people in our local area (these letters talked about what anarchism is, as well as Jura and the raffle).
–> 100s of posters put up across Sydney.
–> Stalls held in Newcastle, Glebe, Redfern, Newtown, Helensburgh and more.

All of this was done by a few dozen volunteers – congratulations to all of you who sold tickets, provided prizes and spread the word. And thank you to everyone who donated (hundreds of you) – every contribution helped. We also received a handful of very generous donations from comrades around Australia, Aotearoa, the US, Europe and other parts of the world. Thank you all! It has been very inspiring to experience this living anarchist solidarity.

Through this effort we raised over $13,000! We’ve also built a stronger community and communicated with literally thousands of people to engage with them about anarchist ideas – many for the first time. When we started the raffle there was $15,000 left on the mortgage and now there is only $2,500! (We had to spend some of what was raised on bills, insurance and interest along the way.) Interest payments are down from almost $200 per month to $91 per month and will soon be even lower. Through collective action, the crisis we faced has been turned into a opportunity and a success for anarchism in Sydney…

Yeah: probably not a bad idea actually.

Otherwise, I have actually made a list — and checked it twice — of anarchist group activity in Australia (and titled it ‘Attack of the Anarchoids from Neptune!’).

I might update it at some point (if I could be arsed).

Otherwise, anarchy.org.au had a guide to anarchist groups in Oceania, although it’s down for the time being. A year ago I cast a weary eye over the absolutely tiny anarchist press.

I provided some footnotes to the history of anarchism in Australia that Bob James wrote for the International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest in May of last year (Anarchism, Australia, Bob James) and have otherwise noted the passing of a number of anarchists of late, including Andrew Giles-Peters and Peter McGregor (with honourable mentions to Pip Starr and Jeff Riley).

Note that “This video contains an audio track that has not been authorised by WMG. The audio has been disabled” — which kinda encapsulates everything that’s wrong with the world I think.

Beyond this, to be most productive/useful, any further disco on the state of contemporary anarchism in Australia requires the participation of other anarchists, and as I’ve already noted, my blog is ignored by the vast majority of my comrades. Well, at least in the sense that there is very little disco on it… which is not necessarily a bad thing, but still.

Otherwise, a new zine is being published in Melbourne called Melbourne Black, the Fantin Reading Group is meeting fortnightly, Barricade is re-opening on February 13, and no doubt there are other things going on of which I’m unaware (or will discuss in upcoming posts).

See also : Moar anarchy in the ‘hood (August 28, 2009).