Where is "the front line" in the struggle against racims?

rc-am rcollins at netlink.com.au
Sat Feb 12 21:45:56 PST 2000


Can someone tell me whether anything Haider has proposed amounts to something qualitatively different to this (below)?

If not, then why succumb to the illusion created largely by people such as Albright et al that Haider is indeed "the front line in the struggle against racism"?

Angela


>From Openeurope:

Hello,

The EU southern front of the migrants war produces some news every fucking day. Let's start with the bad news:

ANOTHER SHIP DISAPPEARED IN THE STRAITS OF OTRANTO?

According to the Milan's antagonist radio "Radio Onda d'Urto", a small Albanian ship which left the Vlore area in the evening of February 9 with at least 15 people onboard has disappeared in the Straits of Otranto. The new was indirectly confirmed by the searches with helicopters and boats which started yesterday, Feb 11. No newspaper reported the new, nor yesterday, nor today. All is silent on the press front: no official confirmation, nothing. As on January 1st, we can only wait till some fishermen finds a corpse in his fishernet. I'll mail more news as soon as I hear something.

This, however, has nothing to do with the message I posted on the list two days ago, with the name of 4 people disappeared in the Straits of Otranto. There are still no news about them -- but it can't be the same boat.

HEAD OF FLORENCE POLICE REMOVED BECAUSE IT WAS TOO "TENDER" WITH MIGRANTS

The head of Florence police, mr. Barbera, was forced to resign yesterday by the Ministry of Home Affairs because he was too "tender" with migrants. In fact, all what mr. Barbera did was to allow the Rumenian migrants now occupying a church in Lucca to lead the Florence demo on January 29 without identifying/ terrorizing them.

Much "better" behaviour from the head of police in Milan, which started a serie of "operations" -- already in mid-january, when there were 6 - 12 degrees celsius below zero -- in the public sleeping places downtown. The police raided in particular the public sleeping place of Fratel Ettore, a friar helping since years the poors and homeless of Milan -- migrants included. More than 30 migrants were taken to via Corelli. The "operation", clearly aimed to terrorize the migrants population in Milan, is still going on. Migrants are warned: they have to sleep in the open.

LAGERS: ROME

4 PEOPLE INTOXICATED BY THE FOOD IN THE ROME LAGER "PONTE GALERIA"


>From "Il Manifesto", February 12:

It had a terrible smell, even more, if you looked at it, it was even covered by a layer of "condensate". That's the description made by a Red Cross operator about the food which sent last friday 4 people to the hospital.

The distribution of the pre-cooked food had just started. Some women could immediately see that the food was not edible, but 4 of the men had already started eating. The pain was almost immediate. After medical treatment, two of them were taken back to the prison camp, while two had to stay at the hospital.

Yesterday, operators of the ASL Rome (Public health) entered the prison camp to investigate the sanitary conditions, with the permission of the Rome prefect, mr. Enzo Mosino. Yesterday, also two MP (mr. Paolo Cento (Greens) and mr. De Cesaris (Refounded Communist Party visited the camp, which keeps on being "off limits" for press and Tvs. The MP wanted to check the conditions of the prison camps after the mass rebellions in January. "4 sections have been closed and many migrants have been taken to other prison camps, although they did not tell us where. Actually, there are 98 migrants in Ponte Galeria -- a number amazingly small for normal standards."

Last year, Ponte Galeria "hosted" more than 3.000 migrants. A good 40% was kept there for longer periods than the 30 days legally allowed.

(sorry but I don't have the newspaper knip of this one -- the "Manifesto" sells a lot in this period, yesterday I partied quite a lot and this afternoon it was finished all around my block. I got the article from the newspaper's website).

.... AND MILAN

Via Corelli is not closing yet, and today was the deadline set by the Minister immediately after the Jan 29 demonstration ("2 weeks and we'll close via Corelli" -- politician's promise). Meanwhile, one data came out from the usually locked up mouths of the police: last year, more than 1.400 people were deported ONLY from Via Corelli.

The lager is not closing, thus, although some sign show that they have intention to close it. One for all: the number of migrants taken to jail -- and not to the camps -- in these last days has raised considerably. According to a reliable source, which can't be undisclosed, last Tuesday more than 40 migrants were taken to jail for no crime or for offences which do not imply any detention, but only fines.

The Minister of Home Affairs takes us for idiots? Did he think that we forgot to check the jails, after his "promise"? Jesus Christ, what a Minister!

And now the good news:

FEBRUARY 26: NEW ACTION DAY AGAINST EU/ ITALIAN MIGRATION POLICY AND FOR THE CLOSURE OF ALL CAMPS

Yes, we double up. This time, the demo will most likely take place in Rome. Discussion is still going on. More info about it next week.

And now, read this:

DISGUISED JOURNALIST HELD IN VIA CORELLI FOR 2 DAYS REPORTS AMAZING VIOLATIONS TO BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS

Fabrizio Gatti, a journalist of the Corriere della Sera, disguised himself as a Rumenian migrant and went pebbling around in the streets of Lodi (a city 20 km south Milan). In his article you can read:

"The first contact with the police made my head turn. Worthless to stop, worthless to raise your hands: the policeman raised his arm and gave me a full force slap. That was the beginning -- on January 17 -- of the road leading to via Corelli (...). That was the first check -- five in 18 days: 3 characterized by abuses, 2 respecting the rules. (...) January 17, in front of a school in via San Francesco in Lodi, 12.30 AM: a dark car stops near me, disguised as a beggar. No police signs. A young man gets off and starts walking toward me. I react as anybody would when you feel threatened: I turn and start walking the opposite side. The young man starts running, the car jumps in front of me. Nobody is dressed as a policeman. I turn and raise my hands. It's not enough. The huge slap makes my head buzz for many seconds. "Why you running away?" says the young man. And I threw myself on the ground to avoid another slap."

"I'm forced into the car (...). When we arrive to the police station, finally I see a men dressed as a policeman. Only at this point a foreigner would realize that it's a police check. (...). "Get naked" the officer orders. The search reveals some money, a ticket with the address of a police station in Bergamo, (...) and a paper released by the police with my picture and a fake name: Roman Ladu. (...) I had it to check if the defence rights are respected: to possess such a paper, infact, is no offence. "What is this?" yells the policeman waving my legal paper. And I get another full force slap! Other policemen enter the room. Passing near me, one of them burps in my face."

OK, the article is too long to translate it now. However, if you think that's all, read this: after Roman Ladu is identified (fingerprints and pictures), he has to sign the arrestation report.

"Ladu, sign the arrestation report" orders the officer. "I can't read Italian, I'm not signing" I say. "Sign, it's better for you" says another officer. "Other way, you are in trouble. It only tells about your missing document" he tries to convince me. It's a lie: the report says that I'm arrested and that I renounce to the right of calling a lawier."

INCREDIBLE, UHU? And all this went on the most important Italian newspaper on February 8, Tuesday. But the worst has still to come:

"Without the lawier, I get sued as if I presented a fake passport. But in the evening they release me, of course with the order to leave the Italian territory within 15 days. Nobody tells me that I have 5 days to file a claim against it. My future is doomed: at this point, I'll never get a stamp for any EU country for the rest of my life."

"The next evening, another police check. This time by the Carabinieri (Note: a sort of military police). Two of them, by foot, stop me at 11.30 PM in via Lippi, in Milan. I stand still, with my hands raised. Apparently there's no tension, but in a moment, without nothing going on, one of the Carabinieri gets out his revolver, loads it and points it against me, in the middle of my legs. "If you move, I shoot your balls away"...

My comment: and these brainless ramboes are the people in charge of public order...

The rest goes over Via Corelli. If you think it could be useful, I'll translate the whole article in a few days.

THE SAME SHOW WITH THE SWISS BORDER POLICE

One more note on this journalist, Fabrizio Gatti: two or three years ago, he produced the same show with the Swiss. He disguised himself as Albanian migrant and crossed the border Italy/ Switzerland in Chiasso. He revealed that the Refugee Center lays 2 km from Chiasso, and in those 2 km everything can happen. He was cought by the Swiss border police and was beaten like hell. The police beat also the women and childrens that were with him, themselves real Albanians. He reported seeing the police kicking the children in their stomach. Then he revealed his real identity... and the Swiss first beat him again, then sued him (but he came out clean from the process). Maybe our Swiss camarades could find out the ensuing press articles again? I'll see if I can find that article in Italy. It should be from 1997...

February 26. Maybe not as in Milan on January 29, but they'll try again a bit of civil resistance. Roman Ladu, we'll avenge you!

Giuliano



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list