Barcelona Camp being evicted now so Barca Football club can celebrate

by iosaf Fri May 27, 2011 12:29 barcelona catalonia

I cut my working day short so I could see how once again Barcelona applies its cosmetics. The building drop banner which proclaimed Spanish Revolution has now been replaced with one celebrating Barca's soccer glory even before they beat Manchester United. Oh yes. The banner went up to cover up the graffiti on that former bank building when it was occupied in the last few months (or was it last year?).

The police presence is enormous. 2,500 agents assigned to police this weekend. The equipment is new. well relatively. They are using accurate smaller plastic bullet guns which don't bounce which they premiered on Mayday. The helicopter tactic is new. I have never seen a chopper buzz a public space in the ten years I've witnessed protests and clashes in this state. It is hovering at approx 100 metres which is quite close enough to see the chap with the rubber bullet gun pointing it at indignant youngsters below.

Understandably many of them do scream, holler, yell, and squeeling make for the nearest shop entrances. I found myself with some stunned tourists and such screming hollering yelling squelers cramming into a department store whilst its security guards tried to drop the shutters on their heads.

& it still isn't over.

Latest media feed rather than twitter feed suggests the police are pulling off site.
100+ injured so far in this pacific resistance to an eviction ostensbily ordered so that there be no clashes between football fans and indignant types this weekend.

olé!

"the beautiful game"

by keolo Fri May 27, 2011 14:52

Short video of the police reaction to the peaceful protests against the clearing of the plaza this morning. There was no provocation from the protesters before or after police actions. This is just one example.

Caption: Video Id: Geg_6Xoy04s Type: Youtube Video
Police reaction to peaceful protests

by iosaf Fri May 27, 2011 15:08 barcelona catalonia

What began so extraordinarily this morning is by no means over yet. Just as after the first camp in Madrid was evicted by police protesters immediately returned - so now at hour 10+ the indignant are thronging again on Plaça Catalunya. I suppose even the vegetable patch may be put right. But judging by mainstream opinion on radio & commercial press feeds; the passive support of the Catalan majority ( for none shall intefere with their footie team identity fetish ) for the "notion of an eviction to secure public order & reduce plausible clashes" this morning has now turned to consternation at the astounding scenes of violence meted out on clearly passive restisters and the extraordinarily intimidating use of the helicopter and plastic bullets which I described earlier. Indeed the scenes I saw at hour 7 seemed to have been the turning point..... for the moment....
I suspect their next eviction clearance will come with the city hall cleaning brigade (who are traditionally guarded by barcelona's city police and their old fashioned plastic bullets rather than these high tech catalan cops) tonight.... without chopper & without much public attention.

"I have long observed that the most interesting stage of any temporary autonomous zone is the conjunt of its beginning & its end"

this was the garden that Irish Dunk & likeminded friends planted at its first trampling.

by #acampadaBCN Fri May 27, 2011 15:21

WE DO NOT HAVE FEAR, WE WILL CONTINUE TO EVERY SQUARE! IN THE WORLD! ALL TO THE STREETS!!!

CALL from #acampadaBCN: Protests with pots and pans (loads of noise) in front of all Spanish embassies of hte world tonight at 21h...

Friends in Barcelona... come in solidarity, all (women and men)... 17h protest from the statue of Colombus, 19h concentration in Placa Catalunya + open assembly, 21h cassolada (pots and pans (loads of noise)

NO TENEMOS MIEDO, SEQUIREMOS EN CADA PLAZA!
EN EL MUNDO! TOD@S A LA CALLE!!!

Llamada de #acampadaBCN: Manifestaciones con cassolada enfrente todos los embajadas Españoles del mundo estsa noche a las 21h...

Compañer@s en Barcelona... ven en solidaridad, todas y todos... 17h mani a colom, 19 h concentracio placa catalunya + assemblea, 21h cassolada

_____________________________________________

acampadabcn (the barcelona occupation)
BLOG - http://acampadabcn.wordpress.com/
FACEBOOK - http://www.facebook.com/Acampadabcn

infos: Police break up Barcelona protest
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0527/....html

spanish media: Los Mossos se retiran y los acampados vuelven a la plaza Catalunya
http://www.elperiodico.com/es/noticias/sociedad/2011052...shtml

#SpanishRevolution comes to Greece: #M25Gr = #GreekRevolution
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/99876

Instaling Democracy 2.0 █████░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ 10%
http://itsafunnyoldworld.wordpress.com/2011/05/25/democ...-2-0/

Tahrir > Spain > World
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/99859

Tahrir comes to Spain
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/99816

democracia real ya
http://www.democraciarealya.es/

AVAAZ CALLL OUT: URGENTE: ¡Defendamos el Derecho de Reunión!
http://www.avaaz.org/es/spain_protests_c/?cl=1087866094...=9238

VID OF eviction (on irish times website) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqXHOe7FrL8

desalojo barcelona - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qu_u9Zif78c

Solidarity from Ireland: Rubber Bullets & Truncheons : how to silence people who seek political reform, social justice, accountability and a true democracy. Solidarity with those in Placa Catalunya and across Spain.

COPS violently evict @acampadabcn, the occupation of pl-cat in barcelona

peaceful resistance

cops use much violence, rubber bullets and battons, people in hospital

cops use much violence, rubber bullets and battons, people in hospital

#acampadaBCN: eviction with police violence; square is "cleaned"; petitions, computers, sleeping bags, food, water...

Caption: Video Id: WqXHOe7FrL8 Type: Youtube Video
VID OF eviction (on irish times website)

Caption: Video Id: qu_u9Zif78c Type: Youtube Video
desalojo barcelona

by iosaf .:. Fri May 27, 2011 20:09 barcelona catalonia

**The fresh "indignants" know full well that this movement is emergent and reflects the arab spring and supports and brings it home & most naturally & readily is to be shared & spread. It's a Friday balmy night and many of these indignants have no intention of being pushed off the square for long enough for it to be occupied by others.

**One of the 124 pacifist resisters who was injured in the last 14 hours is currently hospitalised with a perforated lung as has just been announced at the Terrasa city camp (Catalonia's 3rd largest city). That camp opened last night.

** at present there are various cacerolada walking noise protests (of banging pots and tins) circulating through the central city of Barcelona & my pakistani teenager neighbours with whom I play street cricket and my morrocan neighbours with whom I share so much fun - stop to bang our pots too................................. we all know where this is going

.....((( I've been scouting round the rapid access perimeter of the square in both the old city (where I live) and the grid city on the mountain side. There is remarkable amount of Catalan police cars and 4wheel drives with registration plates which one normally never sees in Barcelona city. All Catalan police vehicles bear a registration beginning with "CME" because that was the year when Catalonia took over complete control of its policiing affairs and bought the fleet. But the higher numbers belong out in the styx. Oh yes. this a plod of whom it is useless to ask directions.)))

http://twitter.com/#%21/search?q=%23laplazaresiste

*** cartoon from anarcho-umbrella site "Kaos en la Red"
http://www.kaosenlared.net/noticia/seguimiento-barcelon...alojo

naught like fresh blood to clean the streets of dirty dangerous ideas b4 soccer &triumph : stop dad it's me!***

you push a few indignants off & then bam - more come back. all pacifists..... how do you beat that???

by Dunk Sat May 28, 2011 10:20

Wow, Wow, Wow. Such violence from the cops, such brutality, such pain for some... I think they tried to provoke a response, a violent response, which would have justified their actions and allowed them and more to brutally attack this M-15 / DRY (DEMOCRACIA REAL YA) movement, BUT, the people held their ground, they took many blows, and eventually the Mossos (Catalan police) just left. With that thousands flooded back into the square... The Glorious re-taking of the square. Last night the streets around the square were off limits to cars, the movement is growing and growing and growing, last night there was a very joyful atmosphere in the air, the idea that "We are winning" has suddenly become all the more realer and definately achievable. Real Democracy Now, Ya!!!

Another aspect of all this is whats going on in the world, last night vague calls went out for all people everywhere appalled at yesterdays violence to protest outside Spanish embassies, and if theres people and INDIGNATION, camp out, build the movement locally from there. Im still not sure how many places had actions outside embsssies or are carrying on with acampadas in their locality, but heres 2 very important ones; Athens and London

vid of M27- The Glorious re-taking of the square: 3.000 'indignados' recuperan plaza Cataluña
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_QsnWfctRQ

For ideas, tools, general info to TAKE THE SQUARE near you, check this super resourse: http://takethesquare.net/

Protests set to continue outside Spanish embassy
http://london.indymedia.org/articles/9124

The protest and camp outside London's Spanish embasy that started almost a week ago grew in strenght during the weekend [report] On Friday night around 30 people set up camp, and on Saturday more people joined in to spend the night on the pavement opposite to the embassy. But it was during the day when the protest grew to several hundred, specially on Saturday when around 700 people joined in throughout the afternoon till well into the night.

Still no political consensus on Greek austerity
http://www.euronews.net/2011/05/27/still-no-political-c...rity/

Thousands of Greeks have been protesting outside the Parliament building, angry that their living standards are falling while the politicians who got them into this mess go unpunished.

Also, the spanish in london did a very well orchastrated turn around and poster show infront of the cameras...
Democracia real londres en el directo de TVE1
http://realdemocracylondon.blogspot.com/2011/05/hack-de....html

Democracia Real Ya Londres (facebook)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Democracia-Real-Ya-Londre...63581

http://dry.hispanosenlondres.com/

15M London Spain TVE1 news
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SUqcJkMcsI

imc.uk feature: SchNEWS 773: No Spain No Gain
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2011/05/480119.html

Message from Barcelona (imc.uk)
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2011/05/479916.html

some reports on the violence:

Spanish protesters clash with police over clean-up
Violence breaks out around Barcelona's Plaça de Catalunya, the first trouble after 12 days of protests
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/27/spanish-pro...olice

Anti-riot police clear Cataluna square
http://www.euronews.net/2011/05/27/anti-riot-police-cle...uare/

Spanish media:

Una acción policial fallida dispara la indignación en la plaza de Catalunya
- La violencia policial causa que miles de personas se sumen a la protesta en el centro de Barcelona
- Los mossos y la urbana desmantelan la acampada en una operación con 120 heridos, 4 de ellos graves
http://www.elperiodico.com/es/noticias/sociedad/una-acc...22555

Los Mossos cargan contra el 15-M
La actuación acaba con 121 heridos y reaviva la acampada de Barcelona - El consejero de Interior justifica la contundencia y la izquierda la ve desproporcionada
http://www.elpais.com/articulo/espana/Mossos/cargan/15-...0/Tes

Riot police charge in to disperse Barcelona square of 15-M protesters (El Pais - English)
Over a hundred people injured in clashes but demonstrators determined to stay on
http://www.elpais.com/articulo/english/Riot/police/char...4/Ten

La carga policial desata la indignación en Barcelona
http://politica.elpais.com/politica/2011/05/27/actualid....html

COPS violently evict @acampadabcn - but it only made us stronger

COPS violently evict @acampadabcn - but it only made us stronger, were now twice the size

world movement is growing; embassies being camped outside, 1000`s on the streets

blood on the streets of barcelona - el pais

mossos "cleaning" the streets of barcelona

Caption: Video Id: D_QsnWfctRQ Type: Youtube Video
M27- The Glorious re-taking of the square

Caption: Video Id: 7SUqcJkMcsI Type: Youtube Video
#spanishrevolution hijack french tv show....

by Mike Sat May 28, 2011 11:05

http://www.yeswecamp.net/

by .:. - (iosaf) Sat May 28, 2011 12:10

If we consider that those who walked through the camp last night did so to express solidarity then the floating turn-out was I think you'll agree quite awesome I don't know about ye squemish types but I prefer M27 to M15. M15 just too like Mi5 to my liking.
& so at eviction +36 hours and after spending last night from 00h00 to 06h00 on site and delighting in the age diversity of the "walk through" as I & my partner in calculation sat at the entry pedestrian entry points to the square.....

I deem the movement even more emergent than before.

Although I do despair at how many people expect the mass to go beyond class consciousness and embrace formal political belief systems or avow other action quite yet....

hee hee.

it's going to take a bit longer.

well done plod - you made a wonderful cartoon & breathed local life into an emergent movement!

by iosaf Sun May 29, 2011 00:49

3 cordons have been put around placa catalunya tonight. the traditional riot confrontation between more feisty barca football club fans normally happening around "las ramblas" the street which leads into the square. The cordons have ostensibly stopped bottles & hot potato chaps entering the square. Nonetheless three small groups have been seen entering the square in the last hour and then masking up. Described varyingly as shaved head boyos or more bluntly of the fascist aesthetic these fellows have caused some unease on the square. Perhaps because they are not reported as having girlfriends and yet don't seem g-a-y enough to be simply out to celebrate the fine beautiful young men of Barca Football team's boringly predictable triumph over girly blouse Manchester United.

=
* there is a sense of insecurity on the camp.
* the static group is sitting down & increasingly fearful that the current police violence against the rowdy soccer types will put the bewrserk blood lust into plod & as we all know only too well - berserk plod on the blood lust aint too discriminate.


Alas, I've been turned away (most politely might I add) at two entry points through the cordon this evening by middle ranking officers of the Catalan police who even tried to look sheepish about it & offered their paws for a shake....

But phone contact is constant & by our well honed waxy ears and triangulation techniques have ascertained that the helicopter and thus axis of ruck is currently 500 metres seaward of the camp.


Q : What does this mean?????? ???????????????????????????


Answer :- We are at 01h45 local time - I reckon there are 2.5 more hours of serious grief time to get through. Depending on the ructions the usual suspects of spayed catalan football club fan type can come up with - the "mobile brigade" of the Catalan police will make a decision on "deploying its resources" and the second worse first case scenario is kettling of the camp

"THE WORST CASE SCENARIO :

Alas, with the "mobile brigade" (=riot squad) off doing their shite - we are left with the 2,500 drafted in cops from out of town who quite simply aren't terribly good at cordon community policing & have already let "men of sinister gay appearance who would never felch but enjoyed their xenophobic party getting elected last weekend" into the square & then these chaps will start getting muscular on our beloved and heroic pacifists & then country plod will go apeshite on all and sundry.

I hope that makes sense.

It is late in the night.

by iosaf Sun May 29, 2011 02:15

i am happy to report that we still have an open escape route from the square - should it be needed & those on the camp know how to get out if things go apeshit and they have to deal with the berserk blood lust.

We're talking about the generation who have been weaned on vampire telly series after all..,

Vibe on camp seems to a bit less stressed than an hour ago. But we must Bear in mind that many of these campers, who have so admirably shown themselves to be pacifist in the face of police violence yesterday, are possibly for many social reasons more intimidated & scared of the prospect of non-state sponsored violence. Yep.

herein lies a mystery : the most responsive to indignant class struggle campaigns appear ready to rationalise brutality as long as it comes in a uniform, at the order of minister Felip Puig and clad in Kevlar® and internalise & understand it perhaps by documenting it and knowing it vindicates in many persons' eyes (especially those who elected minister Felip Puig and his party of the "heavy hand")...............yet................. at the prospect of violence of the common & garden urban type (lest I go all intellectual on ye) the pointless wanton rage of the truly marginalised and apolitical mass who instead of enjoying yet another Barça FC victory and page of sporting history simply want to pit themselves against plod.

Oh yes. They should be happy. They most probably were ecstatic a few hours ago seeing 3 goals to 1 and Manchester United humiliated. But now they're drunk & their happiness at bread & circus peels away and beneath we see rage. They have so much in common with certain black block types - but wear different t-shirts...

Anyway...

Our hope for the emergent revolution has not yet passed this .:. test .:.
They feel reassured now that the same police who dragged them by the nostrils across the square yesterday are at this moment kettling threatening others who it appears are not the folk they enjoyed "mingling with" 3 hours ago amidst joyful oh so catalander interviews given to telly about how we are all in this together .

oh yes.

therein lies a mystery.

by Con Carroll Sun May 29, 2011 10:50

Francos allies were the powerful and mighty. as the words of the song viva la Quinta Brigda. Christy Moore

by iosaf Sun May 29, 2011 15:40

You can see photos of the small hours of traditional celebration and a video of the same at this link (article in Catalan) explains how over 100 angry people were arrested, 130 people of mostly angry nature were injured along with uniformed people and even some people who do not neatly fit in to any of the three categories of indignant, angry or uniformed. Perhaps because they were wearing a football t-shirt (uniform) feel pacifist and demand a maximum wage (indignant) but also felt peeved at old-fashioned bouncey indiscriminate plastic bullets (angry).
http://www.vilaweb.cat/noticia/3892384/20110529/lacampa....html

The camp in Madrid is to hold an assembly this evening about whether or not it shall continue camping - same issue is buzzing around Barcelona camp too

person on left hands up (indignant) person middle bleeding (angry) all people t-shirted (uniformed)

uniformed people (in plain clothes) get retractable baton and sadistic on person (possibly angry)

by iosaf Wed Jun 01, 2011 23:49

The popular assembly which was convened for yesterday & then postponed till today to decide whether or not to end the camp has after much deliberation on site and in hinterlands and barris (neighbourhoods) not been able to reach concensus on how best to finalize the pacifist occupation of placa catalunya.

There will be now a assembly vote and discussion every Sunday on this matter. I indulgently quote myself : "Sunday as has long been observed is a non-banking day when the mass do different things." http://www.indymedia.ie/openwire?search_text=the+sunday...0&y=0 )

Meanwhile the state and municipal authority which are now as of one week (for the first time) the same nationalist right wing Catalan party CiU - seem determined to put an end to what they term continued occupation of a public space . I personally favour a wandering circus of occupations of many public squares across the city, thinking that placa catalunya is not really the best place to pitch a tent. But until the assembly reaches concensus..... the assembly hasn't reached concensus.

Which gives us quite enough time for the authorities to stir things up again & ensure more indignation & quite a bit of angry too.

Oh yes. Oddly enough the word "indignant" is now being applied to all those who are aghast at the freshly published "Dictionary of Spanish biography", which commissioned under Aznar's foul wings gave space to unavowed fascist apologists to write all the key entries. (c/f Guardian article yesterday : http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/31/spaniards-o...raphy )

just as soon as they're through picking their noses they'll reach concensus

assembly - neighbourhood > (resistance :: can be passive aggresive sulky or volatile angry)

by iosaf .:. ipsiphi Fri Jun 03, 2011 21:32 barcelona catalonia

The Catalan interior minister who ordered the brutal attack on the Barcelona camp a week ago has been quite busy capitalising (in its truest sense) on the rightwing and conservative "security based lobby" trust - which saw his party elected not only to rule Catalonia but in the last fortnight to take Barcelona's muncipal government for the first time in history.

The one element of the Catalan government's budget which is to suffer the least cuts is that of security and policing. Indeed considering the recruitment drive of the last "left" government's period - the budget is now to be invested in pure capitalist style.

Thus as I have repoted already he wants to put cameras on all riot plod's helmets so that his mini-/-pseudo state may counter any images, photos or videos which illustrate wanton brutality and for complex political reasons (such as the wonder of indignation rather than angry) slip past the already established censorship and propaganda filters of commercial media coverage of urban conflict and protest management.

But now he is suggesting a change of very serious consequence for not only Catalonia but by potential precedent all of the EU.

Police in our "liberal democracies" of the EU are required by law to display ID numbers.

This was a hard won regulation by civil rights campaigners and short of cops going on twitter or facebook and confessing & boasting of their violence (as they did & do) the basis for any lawsuit for undue use of force; brutality, bloodlust berserk fascism requires identification of the "bad plod" who do so bismirch the fine community policing of the rank & file.... Neither Catalan nor Spanish police ever seem to obey the law & just before they go into the berserk bloodlust they to a one always seem to peel off their ID numbers which (here at least) are velcro® attached to both their cotton blue shirts and their dinky Kevlar® bloodlust body armour...... Feilp Puig knowing that several law suits have now failed for lack of identification of the miscreant plod has announced that he thinks the law should be scratched..... Yep..... in the last days he has announced that he wants each riot cop to have a camera on their helmet (to further their propaganda and feed the security sector's capitalist profit of police brutality) and now he wants to bring back anomynity to the berserk bloodlust rioting uniformed plod...... though to be honest when they're in their radge & indiscriminately firing their plastic bullets I generally *do* see them as anonymous, faceless and for some bizarre reason never seem to memorise their Id numbers...................oh yes............... we rely on the ticketed registered commercial press to do that for us.........................

I for one, & I am sure I am not alone believe that the recruitment of law enforcement agents in the EU is seriously flawed and wanting for several reasons. I very much doubt (& may if pushed cite expert academic opinion on the matter) that the profile of plod is psychologically suitable for the Kevlar® berserk bloodlust thing & if their group, collective & peer esteem mechanisms are further shrouded in impunity then I really feel it appropriate to use words such as somatén : grises : SA : militia : B specials : &c.,

If everyone of these helmets is not clearly numbered - then we just may lose our bloodlust berserk plod.

by iosaf Sat Jun 04, 2011 16:35

To get an idea of the curve we are on here (in barcelona, catalunya & soon all of the Spanish state) with the new rightwing regime and how these regimes are going to play it out please read my last comment.

Today Felip Puig issued 200 service medals to members of the Catalan police riot squad who were seen dragging pacifist protesters by the nostrils across the square and photographed beating various individuals including one wheelchair bound man.

Puig in his speech before the awarding of the medals spoke of his unconditional support for the Mossos d'esquadra (Catalan national police) for the role play in security of property especially in the convulsive times which may be faced before a new world order .

Seriously I'm not making it up.

Now read my last comment and see how this man & whoever is backing him want to undo one of the key civil rights regulations of the last decades. Don't just think this chap is a Spanish non-entity. Felip Puig is one WTF reminder of what the European right wing are really about & what they want.

200 service medals for catalan bloodlust berserk plod for "guaranteeing security" in "convulsive times".