antifa notes (september 14, 2009)

In the Czech Republic, neo-Nazis David Vaculík and Tomáš Vassiov have been busy (allegedly) attempting to murder Roma and assaulting punks: “Vaculík and Tomáš Vassiov, a neo-Nazi from Opava who had a criminal record at the time, are suspected of last year’s incident at the Erna club in Rýmařov. A group of masked assailants threw smoke bombs into the club during a rock concert and then physically assaulted concertgoers as they fled the building. “The assailants were armed with sticks and other weapons,” Bruntál police spokesperson Pavla Tušková said at the time. An 18-year-old male was hospitalized as a result” (Vítkov arson suspect and [Workers’ Party (Dělnická strana)] sponsor allegedly part of brutal attack in Rýmařov, ROMEA, September 13, 2009). According to Czech Television, the Workers’ Party is heavily implicated in neo-Nazism: “CT said that it had photographs at its disposals [that] show that DS candidates Jiri Svehlik, Milan Hroch and Patrik Vondrak support neo-Nazism. Svehlik features in the photographs in a t-shirt of the Nazi Skrewdriver band, along with guitarist of the neo-Nazi Hlas Krve (Voice of Blood) band or with a flag in the colours of the German Third Reich. Patrik Vondrak is one of the organisers of a neo-Nazi event in the streets of the former Prague Jewish Quarter two years ago and Milan Hroch features on the photographs giving a Nazi salute together with members of the banned National Resistance group” (Czech Television: Workers’ party’s candidates support neo-Nazism, Prague Daily Monitor, September 9, 2009). Note that the “neo-Nazi event in the streets of the former Prague Jewish Quarter two years ago” — which took place on the anniversary of Kristallnacht — was a less-than-total success for the Czech and German members of the Master Race who attended.

In Germany, a small group of neo-Nazis belonging to the NPD and other, ‘autonomous’ nationalists, numbering approximately 100, enjoyed a day out in Hamburg on the weekend — an expedition kindly made possible by the provision of an honour guard of around 2,000 German police. The police were apparently required in order to protect the fascists from several hundred antifa, part of a larger crowd of thousands who were participating in a left-wing street festival. Having succeeded in allowing the neo-Nazis to spend a (very) short period jackbooting around Hamburg, police were also forced to confront anti-fascist protesters. Media reports claim (at least) 12 police were injured, and dozens arrested in the ensuing confrontation. Some photos of the fascist meatheads the German nanny state were protecting are available here.

In Greece, where the state plays an even more active role in the support of the far right, “The former head of Greece’s secret services Yannis Korantis is to stand for extreme-right party LAOS in next month’s parliamentary elections, the party said on Thursday” (Ex-top spy to stand for Greek far-right party, EJP [AFP], September 11, 2009). In other news, “a short video has just been released showing part of the police raid in Exarcheia on September 4. The video, below, shows policemen of the Delta force kicking and beating two of the four arrested (mostly in the last 30-40 seconds). According to eye-witnesses the arrested were tied to a tree. Leaving the area, the Delta force police were shouting “we took Exarcheia”. Three of the four arrested face felonies. One of them, a 27-year old, was so badly beaten that his lung was punctured and he is currently recovering in the Evangelismos hospital in Athens.” Or to put it another way: the great majority of the Greek police, seemingly ever-patient and self-controlled, have stood for years as kids baited and yelled, shoved and provoked. A handful of officers used well-placed elbows while batons were raised, criminals kicked and punched, and lungs punctured only in response to the blot on Athens that is Exarcheia.

In Russia, 11 teenage boneheads have been found guilty of blowing shit up and the murder of four untermenschen from China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. “Sova, a Moscow-based hate crimes monitor, said 47 people have been killed and 222 wounded in Russia this year in apparent hate attacks. Last year 107 were killed and 468 wounded. Sova’s Galina Kozhevnikova said the drop reflects a “tactical switch” of neo-Nazi groups from targeting non-Slavs to indiscriminate attacks, which are not classed as hate crimes” (Moscow jury: boneheads guilty of killings, Kyiv Post [AP], September 11, 2009).

In Serbia, Amnesty International has drawn attention to the existence of widespread — and government-endorsed — homophobia, with the release of a new report by Sian Jones, Amnesty International’s Balkans expert.

Over the past year women human rights defenders have been attacked in the media including being threatened with lynching. Such attacks are made by parliamentarians, members of ultra-right organisations and members of the security services indicted for war crimes. Other defenders have had their property destroyed, their offices attacked or been beaten by members of neo-Nazi groups.

Physical attacks and threats to the lives and property of human rights activists are seldom promptly and impartially investigated by the authorities. Few perpetrators are brought to justice.

The lack of political will on the part of the authorities to fulfil their obligations to guarantee human rights defenders their right to freedom of expression and assembly creates a climate of impunity which stifles civil society.

The LGBT community is marginalised even within civil society and criminal investigations into assaults on LGBT people, even where the perpetrators have been identified, are rarely resolved.

The Serbian authorities are obliged to protect the rights of all people to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. They must condemn publicly all attacks on and threats to human rights activists, and provide protection and support during the forthcoming Belgrade Pride later this week.

The report comes just a week or so prior to the heap ’em big Belgrade Pride march / party / rally / queer shenanigans. Anarchists and anti-fascists in Belgrade (Serbia) have supported queer struggles in the past, and also been subjected to threats, assaults, and other forms of repression. Most recently, five members of the Serbian group ‘Anarcho-syndicalist Initiative’ have been arrested and accused of ‘international terrorism’ by Serbian authorities. The five are alleged to have sprayed some graffiti and thrown a Molotov cocktail at terh Greek Embassy on August 25. If convicted, the five face up to 15 years in jail.

In 2001, fascist football hooligans — with a nod and a wink from Serbian authorities — attacked the last attempt at a Gay Parade in Belgrade, beating the shit out of the heavily-outnumbered queers. The attacks sparked widespread outrage across the global queer community. Like The Jew, Teh Gheys make a very convenient scapegoat for authorities, and a much easier target for workers’ frustrations than ruling elites. (See also : Homophobia as a weapon of war, Peter Tatchell, Outcast, No.2, October 1999.) The video below shows a d00d at the 2001 Parade armed with a red-and-back flag being attacked — which just goes to show, as Chunga of Melbourne punk band ‘The Worst’ remarked: ‘Anarchy is a fag!’

Tee hee! Tee hee hee!

In Spain, the man accused of murdering a teenage antifa has gone on trial. Josué Estébanez, an enlisted soldier and neo-Nazi, is accused of stabbing 16-year-old Carlos Palomino to death on a Madrid subway in December 2007. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 29 years gaol.

Bonus!

Added Bonus!

No War But The Class War!

About @ndy

I live in Melbourne, Australia. I like anarchy. I don't like nazis. I enjoy eating pizza and drinking beer. I barrack for the greatest football team on Earth: Collingwood Magpies. The 2024 premiership's a cakewalk for the good old Collingwood.
This entry was posted in Anti-fascism, Sex & Sexuality, State / Politics, War on Terror and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.