Today's Topics:
1. France, Alternative Libertaire AL #271 - Al of April (fr,
it, pt) [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
2. wsm.ie: Common Threads #1 - . A City in Common: The Radical
Potential of Ireland's Eco-Transport Struggles
(a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
3. Kate Sharpley Library: Berkman's Prison Memoirs of an
Anarchist reviewed - KSL update (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
4. wsm.ie: A look back at the resistance to unconventional
drilling at Woodburn forest (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
5. France, Alternative Libertaire AL #271 - Edito: a
breathtaking system (fr, it, pt) [machine translation]
(a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
6. wsm.ie: Common Threads #1 - From apathy to rebellion: the
water war in Ireland. (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
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Message: 1
Presidential elections; Territorial discrimination; Noisy-le-Sec; Asslineau; Political
imprisoned; Occupation; Walk of Dignity; Our rights against their privileges; FN; Lyon;
Hocine Bouras; Walk for justice and dignity; Saint-Julien-Molin-Mollette; Ceta; Claudine
Cornil; Ludwig von 88; Zerocalcare; Kanak ---- News ---- Fires: Presidential ----
elections: preparing for resistance now ---- Alternative: Can capitalism be democratic ?
---- Struggles ---- Education: Against territorial discrimination ---- Noisy-le-Sec:
Municipal do not allow themselves to ---- Politics ---- Asselineau, candidate of the UPR:
The trickery in the rough ---- Nanterre: Freedom for the imprisoned political ---- Social
---- Unemployment: Illegal jobs of Pôle emploi ---- Spanish state: Tod @ s at the calle,
all on the street! ---- Campaign: On the Move Against Privileges
Antifascism
Nantes: Fighting against the FN and its ideas
Lyon: Fascist gangrene is progressing
Anti-racism
Police violence: Hocine died for nothing !
Walk for Justice and Equality: After success, keep moving forward
Ecology
Loire: Saint-Julien does not want to make a career
Ceta: A new capitalist shock
Debate
Right to reply to article on The Muslim Factory
Trade unionism
Second part of the interview with Claudine Cornil (CGT): "It is trade unionism to carry
out a work of deconstruction of managerial practices"
Culture
Interview with Karim Berrouka, singer of the group Ludwig von 88: "Supporting causes,
that's done"
Interview with Zerocalcare: "We wanted to popularize the Kurdish cause"
Roman: "The punks club against the zombie apocalypse" By Karim Berrouka, editions actusf
History
100 years ago, the Kanak waged war on war
http://www.alternativelibertaire.org/?-Al-d-avril-est-en-vente-
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Message: 2
Could climate change become a catalysing force for radical social transformation in
Ireland? Recent struggles around public transport in Ireland prompt us to think along
these lines. ---- During the spring of 2016, Luas workers went on strike for decent pay
and for terms and conditions similar to workers in other public transport services[1].
Similarly, in Autumn 2015, Irish Rail workers went on strike, primarily in opposition to
the EU Commission and the Irish government's gradual moves towards privatisation[2].
Previously, in Spring 2015, Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann workers went on strike over plans
by the National Transport Authority to tender out 10% of public routes to private
operators. SIPTU's banner at Liberty Hall outlined why: ‘Say No to Privatisation;
privatisation results in fare increase, reduced services, a threat to free travel, a bad
deal for taxpayers and job cuts'.
SIPTU and NBRU members and strike organisers have emphasised the damage privatisation will
do to society, primarily concentrating on the loss of community services and the race to
the bottom in bus drivers' terms and conditions[3]. The striking workers deserve our
support and their claims should be taken seriously. This is definitely the case when the
regime media adhere to a deeply unimaginative line, loudly declaiming traffic disruption
to an imagined city of angry consumers and silently accepting the hollowing out of public
services[4]. At the same time, however, we also need to think about what's not being said,
about the words that don't make it on to the papers or the banner.
THE MISSING PLANET
In these recent clashes between the defenders of public services and the agents of
privatisation, an articulated concern for the planet's capacity to sustain life is
strangely missing. This is, perhaps, unsurprising. In Ireland, as elsewhere, the crisis of
2007 and ensuing recession have provided governments of both left- and right-wing hues
with a pretext to accelerate fossil fuel extraction in pursuit of ‘growth'. Fighting
austerity, it seems, has swept discussions of climate change to the margins of electoral
and movement-based politics. All the while, capitalism's ‘grow or die' imperative
continues to take a toll on a finite planet. The same week as the Dublin bus strike,
scientists observed record carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations in the atmosphere. This
400ppm (parts per million) record is a milestone for global warming and comes nearly three
decades after what is considered the ‘safe' level of 350ppm was passed[5]. Public
transport clearly plays a crucial role here: each full standard bus can take more than 50
cars off the road while a full train can eliminate over 600[6]. In these circumstances,
failing to link public transport with environmental sustainability is not just strange
oversight but suicidal blindness.
Part of not seeing the problem involves seeing phantom solutions. As Prole.info puts it,
whenever the need for a real critique of the capitalist system is strongly felt,
distorted, self-defeating, pseudo-critiques multiply[7]. The climate crisis will not be
resolved in such a way as to sustain a life-supporting ecosystem by corporate
philanthropy, by miraculous scientific fixes or by individuals greening their consumption
habits or lifestyles. Similarly, the profit margins that might attract private capital
into green production or sustainable transport are not there[8]. A good example of this
occurred in March 2014 when air pollution in French cities reached dangerously high
levels. Officials in Paris decided to discourage car use by making public transit free for
three days. Private transport operators would strenuously resist such measures, and yet
these are precisely the kinds of actions that need to occur to battle increasing levels of
atmospheric carbon. "Rather than allowing bus fares to rise while service erodes, we need
to be lowering prices and expanding services - regardless of the costs'[8].
While there may be debate and discussion about the best way to respond to climate change,
there is absolutely no scenario in which we can avoid large-scale social transformation
while sustaining decent human survival. Wartime mobilisations provide the closest
historical precedent for reducing carbon emissions on the scale that climate scientists
indicate is necessary. During World War Two, for example, as pleasure driving was
virtually eliminated to conserve fuel, the use of public transport increased by 87 per
cent in the US and by 95 per cent in Canada[8]. Today, it is no mystery where the vast
work of ecological transition needs to take place. Much of it needs to happen in ambitious
emission-reducing projects - smart grids, light rail and public transport systems,
citywide composting systems, building retrofits, and urban redesigns to keep us from
spending half our lives in traffic jams[8]. These changes need to be fair, so that those
people already struggling to make ends meet are not asked to make additional sacrifices to
offset the consumption and carbon emissions of the rich[8]. Climate change really does
provide us with compelling reasons not just for the defence of public transport services
but for their radical re-imagination, reconstruction and expansion. So why isn't this
happening?
FROM THE CLIMATE HORRORS TO MASS DIRECT ACTION
The problem at the present historical conjuncture, in Ireland as elsewhere, is that we
have ceded our capacity to shape our societies to capital, to an aggressive, for-profit
logic that runs directly counter to the sustainability of the planet's ecosystems and to
humanity's survival as a species[9]. In Ireland, rampant capitalist development has
ensured we have much work to do to arrive at even decent emission-reduction projects. In a
recent Environmental Protection Agency report, 100% of respondents to a survey of local
authorities felt that local public transport services were inadequate in their local
areas; an estimated 380,000 people living in rural areas do not have access to the
transport services they require[10]. While starving public transport of resources,
boom-time governments encouraged private car ownership and usage. Between 2001 and 2009,
instead of improving national and regional roads, the motorway system grew by 430% in
Ireland. There are now 2.5 times more kilometers of motorway per person in Ireland than in
Britain[11]. Meanwhile, the good people at Transport for Ireland encourage walking as the
most environmentally friendly form of transport. (‘Walking can support local shops and
businesses, as pedestrians have the freedom to ‘pop-in' to pick up goods[12]). Clearly, we
have a lot of work to do. What form might that work take?
Starting from the current struggles, full support for the Luas, bus and train workers is
in all our interests. If workers and unions wanted to circumvent hostile media and win
over public opinion, they could refuse to collect fares[13]. We don't need privatisation -
we do need a free public transport service, operated for passengers and run by the people
with the best knowledge, the transport workers themselves. All of us have a role to play.
In Stockholm and Gothenburg, commuters are taking the initiative in the fight for decent,
free public transportation financed from progressive taxation. The "Planka" encourages
people to ‘free ride' on public transport. If you become a member with a monthly
subscription, the group will then pay your fines if you get caught. Planka free-riding
becomes a clever way to save money and, at the same time, is a political act for free
public transport[14].
In the past, worker direct management of Barcelona's transport system during the
revolution in Spain in the 1930s illustrates the ability and ingenuity of working people
to directly manage the industries where they work. Today, achieving a large-scale, green
transition will necessitate combining direct actions against environmental destruction and
mass mobilisations to pressure states into adopting green policies while supporting the
popular creation and expansion of local, co-operative economies in food and energy[8, 9].
In Ireland, similarly, we need to trace the green links from community opposition to
extractive projects in Mayo, Leitrim and Fermanagh through struggles over inhabiting city
centres to the development of comprehensive programmes that make low-carbon lives possible
for everyone.
Today's striking transport workers are not just defending their livelihoods they are also
fighting for environmentally sustainable cities. An injury to one really is an injury to all.
WORDS: Tom Murray
References
[1]The Luas workers' claims were more than justified. Over the previous six years Luas
increased passenger numbers by 5 million and revenues by 30%, with Transdev paying a
dividend to its parent company of 2.8million in 2013/14. Source: Busworkers Action Group.
See Brian Fagan, 2016, LUAS workers 'spitting on the constitution says right wing nut';
available http://www.wsm.ie/c/luas-workers-spitting-constitution-says-right-wing-nut
[2]Tom Murray, 2015, We defend Public Transport! (Of Irish Rail and EU Privatisation)
Available http://www.wsm.ie/c/defend-public-transport-irish-rail-eu-privatisation
[3]See Scott Millar, ‘Save Our Bus Service' in Liberty, April, 2015. Available
athttp://www.siptu.ie/media/media_19045_en.pdf
[4]Number of Irish newspaper Nexis results with words 'strikes' and 'chaos' in headline:
288. Number of Irish newspaper Nexis results with words 'privatisation' and 'public
transport' in headline: 3. Via Richard McAleavey, Facebook, 1st May. See
https://hiredknaves.wordpress.com/; see also Tom Murray, ‘Luas Strikes: Rage Against the
Regime Media', February, 2015. Available http://www.wsm.ie/c/luas-strike-regime-media-bias
[5]Adam Vaughan (6.05.2015) ‘Global carbon dioxide levels break 400ppm milestone' in The
Guardian.
Seehttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/may/06/global-carbon-dioxide-levels-break-400ppm-milestone
[6]Department of Transport and Main Roads, Queensland, AU. ‘Benefits of Public Transport'.
Available athttp://translink.com.au/about-translink/what-we-do/benefits-of-public-transport
[7]Prole.info, 2012, The Housing Monster. PM Press.
[8]Naomi Klein, 2014. This Changes Everything: Capitalism versus the Climate. London: Penguin.
[9]See Murray Bookchin, 2005, The Ecology of Freedom. AK Press.
[10]EPA, 2011, ‘Barriers to Sustainable: Transport in Ireland. Available
athttp://www.epa.ie/pubs/reports/research/climate/CCRP%20Report%20Series%20No.%207%20-%20Barriers%20to%20Sustainable%20Transport%20in%20Ireland.pdf
[11]Robert Emmet Hernan, 2011, Transport Policy in Ireland: Real and Imagined. Available
at:http://www.irishenvironment.com/reports/transport-policy-in-ireland/
[12]Transport for Ireland is the "single public transport brand" which the National
Transport Authority has developed to promote and integrate public transport provision in
Ireland. "Good for the Environment and the Economy".
Seehttps://www.transportforireland.ie/wp_super_faq/good-for-the-environment-and-the-economy-2/
[13]NBRU and SIPTU workers refused to collect fares when on strike in July, 2003. See
Workers Solidarity, No. 76 published in August 2003.
[14]See http://planka.nu/
http://www.wsm.ie/c/city-ireland-eco-transport-struggle
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Message: 3
We liked the new edition of Berkman's Prison Memoirs ---- Earlier this year AK Press and
the Kate Sharpley Library co-published an annotated edition of Alexander Berkman's Prison
memoirs of an Anarchist. ---- Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist is a classic for good reason:
the drama of the story drives it along. Berkman's mission to assassinate Frick is
interspersed with effective flashbacks showing his development to that point. In the
prison there's plenty of conflict which makes you wonder: how can he survive 22 years? Can
the prisoners expose their mistreatment and the scams of the management? Will the escape
plan work? I loved the cover: a piano with a pick and shovel leaning against it as a nod
the outside comrades who dug a tunnel for him, covered by Vella Kinsella ‘tinkling the
ivories'. There's also the odd bit of unintentional comedy, like Berkman's puzzlement when
he first comes across prison slang: ‘I should "keep my lamps lit." What lamps? There are
none in the cell; where am I to get them? And what "screws" must I watch? And the
"stools,"-I have only a chair here. Why should I watch it? Perhaps it's to be used as a
weapon.'[p112]
You can read the rest of the review at http://www.katesharpleylibrary.net/t76k1f
Copyright © 2017 Kate Sharpley Library, All rights reserved.
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Message: 4
This is an analysis of events at Woodburn forest (Carrickfergus, County Antrim) during the
exploratory drilling operation being carried out by the company Infrastrata in the spring
and summer of 2016. It is intended as a reflection on the successes and failures of the
campaign to resist a poisonous and violent extraction of resources from the land, and
indeed the lease and seizure of some of that land in an aggressive manner. It draws on
personal testimonies; both my own and other activists' experiences of specific direct
actions, set within a broader political analysis of the context within which this sort of
struggle is taking place, locally and worldwide. ---- Patsy Caoróg, a small, rebellious
berry, watches with indignation from between the leaves of the trees as the marvellous
velvety green carpet of the forest is destroyed by the boots and jaws of the forces of
extraction, and decides enough is enough!
Too much journalism is presented as ‘unbiased', it is in fact never neutral; the
structures of power, such as government and private interest control the parameters for
debate. These words hope to open a small window to the experience of involvement in acts
of resistance, and is in fact an open call to such resistance and indeed disobedience; one
story among many in the global fightback against the fossil fuel industry.
The words protector, defender, activist and protestor are used interchangeably to refer to
the brave, ordinary people involved.
Paisley Road, Woodburn forest; the site
The demonstrations and protest activity at Woodburn forest ranged widely in character;
from 60 odd protestors blocking lorries and causing something of a state of emergency for
the police on the ground, to less than 5 people, sometimes only 1 or 2, manning the camp,
welcoming visitors and monitoring the arrival of new equipment for the site, or indeed
what local companies were working for Infrastrata. There were the Sunday rambles, with
people coming from far afield to join the locals in a demonstration of anger against the
oil companies takeover and occupation of a public right of way - the initial agreement
between Infrastrata and NI water had stated that the public path would not be altered and
access would not be denied. This turned out to be completely ignored by the oil company,
who put up harris fencing and later installed more permanent metal fencing dug into the
ground. This was then topped by barbed wire at points, security cameras were installed
that monitored the protest camp across the road 24/7. Starting with 3 or 4 but eventually
up to 10 security personnel complete with trained attack dogs were constantly patrolling
the small perimeter of the site. Occasionally defenders succeeded in occupying these
spaces for fixed periods of time, with and without difficulty during various
confrontations with police, on a few occasions ending in the arrest of the peaceful
activists. Thankfully almost all charges have now been dropped.
Pictures and videos taken by defenders of the takeover of this part of forest by the
company (Infrastrata) supplied evidence of the aggressive attitude of the oil company and
its disregard for the law. The company knew they had nothing to fear from the police
however, as there was a police presence 24/7 outside the site, sometimes as many as 7-10
cars, with 2 or 3 police in each. Doing nothing but ensuring the locals didn't try
anything funny. On certain days of action the police presence was enormous, upward of 80
personnel; we shall have a look in detail at one such day later on.
For such an important site of struggle there were not nearly enough people on the ground
showing opposition, and a main cause of this I believe was lack of reporting. This did
improve slightly towards the end of the campaign; however the ‘impartial' view of the
mainstream press took the oil company's spin for fact. This, despite the mounting evidence
from across the globe that unconventional drilling for oil and gas is dangerous in any
context, never mind less than 400 metres from one of the main reservoirs which supplies
thousands of homes from Larne to Belfast with their drinking water. The scientific fact of
the matter is that it was a huge risk.
Who decided to take this risk? Mid and East Antrim Borough Council; this was a decision
taken on a small scale, but representing larger, institutional lack of concern for the
environment and disregard for safety of society, locally but also further afield. There
was a lack of proper public consultation, and Infrastrata were granted the right to
explore under Permitted Development Rights (PDR), not with full Planning Permission. To
put that in perspective; they were allowed to cut down a huge swathe of the forest, erect
fences and maintain a small private army to intimidate locals, perform dangerous drilling
operations, all with the full backing of the police, without having to fill in as many
forms as you would if you wanted to put an extension on your house.
There is a proposed change to legislation at Stormont, brought forward by Chris Hazzard
(Sinn Fein), then Minister for Infrastructure, to prevent this from happening again. This
is a positive move however had there been real opposition to this from the second largest
party (Sinn Fein) in Northern Ireland they could have created more resistance or indeed
stopped the project. It is this author's view that at that time it did not suit SF to
confront DUP about one of their projects, (DUP have a comfortable majority in this council
area) as it was not widely known about and thus was not worth fighting for in their
opinion. DUP's Sammy Wilson MP admitted on air on local radio that there was a risk
involved, ‘As with any business venture'; despite Infrastrata's claims it was a
‘spill-proof site' (this was discredited quickly with evidence of polluting spills in very
early stages of the project obtained by protectors). This certainly highlights his party's
attitude to the environment and indeed the citizens they claim to represent; the risk of
contaminating our water is, in his mind, a worthwhile risk to take to attract a small
amount of foreign investment to allow the shareholders of an oil company to further line
their already bulging pockets. He then refused to promise to step down as MP for the area
if the project had gone awry and the water was contaminated. Ah well, he was just watching
his back you know....
Another reason given for lack of numbers at the protests was the isolated location of the
site, and this is a difficult obstacle for those without transportation, cars etc.
However, the days buses were organised there was a great injection of energy into the
activity at the camp, as well as generating a sense of solidarity with the locals, who
were always so grateful people had taken the time to come up. Ensuring regular trips such
as those organised by Friends of the Earth, People Before Profit, Green Party and other
anti-fracking groups would be essential at a future site similar to Woodburn to support
locals and demonstrate opposition more forcefully. The next site on the front line will no
doubt be similarly isolated; this is an important lesson to draw from the experience at
Woodburn.
The day the drill arrived
We didn't know exactly when the drill would arrive, nor did we know exactly what we were
going to do when it did. There was a long weekend from Thursday to Sunday, everyone was on
edge at the camp, and indeed further afield with those who couldn't make it being kept
abreast of events online or by phone. There were reportings of sightings of expected
convoy of lorries arriving at Larne, then Belfast, in the middle of the night then 1st
thing each morning. How many would come? What day? What will we do? There were various
incidents of resistance including an occupation of the path. Eventually they arrived early
Monday morning, there was only about 8 people at the bottom of Paisley Road holding a
banner to try and stop the convoy coming up the road with a slow-walk. The inspector
informed us he had closed the road under special powers act (which we found out throughout
the day meant ‘the police make up the rules as they go along act'') We told the PSNI
Inspector (Ruddy) we intended to slow-walk the convoy up the road, to which he agreed,
however when he saw how slowly we intended to walk they started reading us the
‘obstruction of business/traffic' legislation and threatened to forcibly remove us. We
argued that we were not obstructing but peacefully protesting, then some of the lorries
clutches started to burn out and the cops got more agitated and aggressive, they called
reinforcements and started counting us down ‘3 minutes left before you are lifted' etc.
At this stage however some more locals had turned up and were walking up and down the
length of the convoy, talking to drivers and inspecting equipment, taking pictures. This
split the police attention away from the front, we also switched places with our own
reinforcements so that the people who had been warned were no longer ‘obstructing'. This
was quite effective in allowing us to continue our peaceful protest, as the police had
been on the verge of throwing their little temper tantrum and violently removing everyone
involved. This sort of disproportionate response was typical of police activity at
Woodburn. (At other times protestors were maced by security while police looked on, and
defenders were arrested off the path, a public right of way, when no work was even occurring.)
I was literally running in circles around one of the trucks with a policeman chasing me as
he seemed to think I was up to something, when one of our number managed to climb up onto
the drill rig! It was a fantastic chance, well taken, and this then held up the convoy for
several hours, as well as managing to actually get the press to arrive. It is unfortunate
that it takes this sort of sensationalist activity to actually attract some media
attention on such an important issue, but it was lucky it happened as it led to a double
page spread in the Belfast Telegraph (amongst other newspaper and television coverage) the
next day, where otherwise there would have been probably only a few lines. This is
journalism typical of our society; it's main purpose being that of a profit making
enterprise, rather than for real scrutiny of events in public life, it is essentially
useless unless drastic action is taken. As this brave man said when he was on the rig ‘I
am committing this small crime to prevent a much larger one'.
After several hours of negotiations between the hero of the hour and the forces of the
law, with acts of a spiteful nature such as refusing the protestor water by police, and
acts of great solidarity by the other defenders (constant encouragement, cheering,
chanting, and even music-making), the activist on the lorry was convinced that if he came
down without having to get cut off (by this stage he had secured a D-lock around his neck
to the top of the lorry) he could talk to the press and was granted ‘street bail' (let to
walk free having to report to police station at later date). He chose to forgo
imprisonment, and achieved a great deal in those hours, through press attention and
inspiring other protestors. This choice was respected by all present as this one man had
already done so much.
After this we attempted to continue the slow walk, however at this point the police
outnumbered us by at least 2 to 1, and forcibly pushed us along the road (at this point
they were very aggressive, screaming at mothers who had young children and even pushing an
elderly lady, in tears, to the ground, despite her protesting about her hip problem). The
police used the special powers act to then order everyone off the road outside the site
entrance, or be threatened with immediate arrest, by this stage no vehicles or people were
allowed on or off the road effectively trapping everyone and curtailing their freedom of
movement. The locals and other citizens were forced to watch from across the road and from
the trees as the convoy made its way up into the site.
Solidarity during highs and lows
Watching the trucks go up the path was disheartening, after a hectic day of activity at
the end of an intense weekend. By this stage there could have been as many as 60
protestors present around the site and on the road, however they were outnumbered
massively with somewhere in the region of 100 police involved throughout the day. Pressure
had mounted as the time grew closer to the drill arriving, the actual physical and also
symbolic manifestation of what was happening to the land. Some defenders seemed to be
exhausted emotionally and physically. Again if there had been larger numbers and better
planning, more direct action could have been taken that day to delay the arrival of the
drill, by occupying the road or path as one example. However, even at this low point, the
same sense of camaraderie was palpable as on the other occasions when locals gathered to
show their opposition regularly.
This sense of solidarity was easily felt by all gathered. Those involved in demonstrating
opposition felt acutely the huge injustice of what was being perpetrated. Even certain
members of police, security and engineers seemed to sense they were acting wrongly against
such sincere and tireless locals and activists. When confronted with the facts of what was
happening from protectors; for example the use of carcinogenic poisons near a drinking
water reservoir, the doubt and fear could be seen in the eyes of some security forces and
police personnel. However ultimately this did not stop them enforcing the commencement of
this dangerous drill. There is a great deal of work to be done until a movement of direct
resistance is more widespread, and the idea accepted that we all have a duty not to follow
orders that risk the health and future of ordinary people. I believe it is important to be
able to imagine the sort of society we wish to see develop; to believe in people acting
responsibly towards each other, whilst also being aware that naively wishing for it to
happen will not bring about the change we hope for.
The feeling of solidarity between members of the community that was growing in opposition
to the drill was manifested in the food, lifts, stories, jokes and even money shared
amongst the people involved (amongst a thousand other acts, large and small, of friendship
and support). For example when cars were impounded (alleged by police to have been
blocking access for large lorry-like vehicles to the small road by parking in awkward
places!) everyone present chipped in for the cost of the release from the privately owned
compound. People spontaneously worked together in a non-violent way doing the only things
they could; embodying their opposition, simply being present, arguing, against the odds,
with aggressive men and women; security officers and police.
Never to receive a satisfactory response as to why an unlawfully occupied piece of land
was being protected by police instead of being investigated by them. Never to hear an
answer to the question of why it was more important that an oil company be allowed to
embark on a highly dangerous project of an untested nature, similar to fracking, right
beside a water reservoir, than it was to protect that water and its surrounding ecosystem.
Woodburn was a perfect example of reckless extraction; possibly the only time an
organisation (NI Water in this case) existing to supposedly safeguard our water leased the
land to a fossil fuel corporation.
All the while the people asking these questions and building a movement of opposition were
being demonised, fined, arrested and even attacked by security and police. These ordinary
folk were only exercising their right to peacefully object to great injustice. This
behaviour although for now on hold in NI, continues and indeed is intensifying in UK,
notably Lancashire at time of writing, as a Tory government bent on ignoring climate
responsibility pushes through powers to overrule local councils decisions against
fracking. Democracy subverted to push the profit agenda yet again.
Police behaviours
The biased nature of the police, and indeed institutions when dealing with the protestors
as compared to when handling Infrastrata and Securitas was experienced by everyone at
Woodburn protest camp. This, combined with the burn-out felt by all, culminated in the
afternoon of that day with an atmosphere of despair in the air, as equipment, workers and
huge convoy of lorries and cars travelled up into the forest, with locals and defenders
peering through the fences from between the trunks. They watched as what was a huge swathe
of beautiful trees but now a grey wasteland filled with the host that was there to begin
pumping chemicals into the ground. Some sharp language was used, emotions ranged from
distraught, through stunned, to furious at the sheer unfairness, stupidity and brutality
of what was happening. The councillors and other politicians of various stripes and
parties - although special mention must be made of the climate-change denial of DUP - were
nowhere to be seen near this scene of disastrous social violence that they had created.
Their hypocritical veil of Christian values and righteousness were easily seen through
after experiencing the front line of the corporate takeover of land and resources, that
should belong to no one group, but to all.
Propagating climate change denial when thousands are experiencing drought, famine and
increasing hazardous weather, combined with supporting dubiously formed private companies
from the fossil fuel industry and their right to make money, no matter what the risk to
our most important resource, water, is profoundly short-sighted, selfish and dangerous
behaviour. Typical it should be noted of the neoliberal/neoconservative model of
government; that locks us into a cycle of privatisation and government debt as a result of
bailing out the financial institutions to a tune of billions. These larger background
facts are often forgotten or ignored in mainstream coverage, a perfect example of how the
terms of the debate are limited.
Despite all of these obstacles, even when the drill was being set up and begun, the
protectors kept their hope alive. They did not give up, the Sunday rambles continued, some
councillors and MLAs from progressive parties attended; Green Party, PBP, Cross-Community
labour to name but a few, whilst Friends of the Earth visited with international activists
to document and show solidarity alongside local activists, many of whom travelled far
themselves every day, took time off work, family and social commitments to ensure a
presence of objection. Demonstrations and awareness raising events (e.g. a critical mass
bike ride, large group of activists and friends taking over a road and handing out
leaflets around the city) took place in Carrickfergus, Belfast and other towns. Protesters
from anti-fracking groups in Sligo and Fermanagh arrived at huge numbers at the camp and
other events, such as demonstrations at the Stormont Assembly buildings. People with
experience of such actions by companies elsewhere, such as Lancashire and Rossport, also
visited and offered advice and support. A large gathering was planned for one weekend,
expecting to up the numbers at the camp from its small dedicated crew, with visitors, to
hundreds of people. It was to be a family-friendly, information day, with a fundraising
aspect and lots of activities, a space for people to share ideas on the situation. In the
event this went ahead slightly differently as it occurred after an interesting outcome to
the drill...
The shaky nature of Infrastrata as a company, them being more of a hollow front for
investors (no one ever answered on the initial and only contact number on Infrastrata's
website for months, police also apparently couldn't contact them) meant they needed a
successful drill to continue operations, as without a quick return these profiteers would
put their money into something more lucrative.
This ‘hollow' company sub contracted all the work to English drilling and engineering
companies, whilst the only stable jobs ‘created' in the local area were security, some of
whom actually told protectors they would refuse future work in Woodburn because they
didn't agree with how Infrastrata and the police were behaving. Infrastrata also had only
a limited window for drilling as part of their permit, a matter of some weeks. During this
time public and governmental (e.g. Belfast City Council) pressure on Infrastrata mounted,
receiving support from the trade unions and high-profile media figures.
A lucky if somewhat anti-climactic result of a dry drill, after months of struggle was a
welcome change in favour of the protector's hopes towards stopping the operation. It was
later discovered that certain investors wished to continue drilling on the Paisley Road
site and other sites, however others withdrew support, citing amongst other reasons the
‘difficulty' faced at Woodburn as one reason. The pressure exerted by the StopTheDrill
campaign group (run almost entirely by a few Belfast-based women, making FOI requests,
building media contacts, attending council and other governmental open meetings, supported
in general by all the defenders and volunteers who took time to object at Woodburn),
combined with on-the-ground direct action from a mixture of local and visiting activists,
kept the issue alive and in the public eye. It cannot be underestimated the extent to
which the various aspects of the campaign combined brought about the end of exploratory
drilling after just the first attempt.
Reflections on organisation of resistance
There were some flaws in the organisation of resistance in this case; it was a credit to
the activists they achieved so much, but the 24-hour police presence at the camp meant
that direct action was rarely if ever pre-planned. People had to be careful of what they
said as the camp was in earshot of police on the road. This meant that nearly all actions
such as road blockages and path occupations, were spur of the moment. It is crucial to be
able to take chances as they come during a protest, especially one of such importance,
however there has been more effective civil disobedience by groups in Mayo and Lancashire,
possibly because of the more radical nature of protest in UK and ROI as compared to NI.
The idea has been floated that people in NI are less likely to be comfortable with civil
disobedience and direct action as they are afraid to be branded ‘troublemakers'; having
some sort of paramilitary/sectarian connotations in our newly well behaved society. It
will be interesting to see how the community of environmentalist and anti-fracking
activists develops in NI with that in mind.
Conclusions
A year on from the beginnings of operations in Woodburn forest, when trees were cleared
and Infrastrata craftily arranged its cheap land grab, and we have reasons to be thankful
and fearful. Through huge reserves of hard work and commitment, this last episode in the
fight between greedy poisoning oil companies ended well in this part of the world. These
last-ditch efforts by the fossil fuel industry to utilise ever-more polluting means of
extraction were thwarted this time. A significant part of our water supply was not
poisoned, and the forest is being restored, as meanwhile in the ROI our brothers and
sisters have defeated an attempt to privatise the sale of water, through some of the
largest protests in Irish history.
However, here, as elsewhere in the world, the government has shown itself willing to
gamble with our environment and the safety of future generations in order to allow small
groups of wealthy investors to profit under the guise of economic growth. Next time we
must be ready. Infrastrata have a 50-year lease with NI Water, and the pro-fossil fuels
environmental policies of the UK Tory government, dutifully followed by Stormont will no
doubt encourage them to try again. We must create more awareness, more on the ground
presence at front-line points of opposition, and more planned resistance. Civil
disobedience must be used intelligently, in conjunction with a good media campaign, to
protect our shared resources and the commons. Much like the takeover of public space in
cities by private interests, irresponsible private housing and advertising being prime
examples, the privatisation of the commons by extraction industries is a real threat to us
all. Examples abound worldwide of severe damage economically and environmentally due to
reckless extraction, (fracking in USA, mining in most South American countries, the Shell
to Sea in Rossport, County Mayo) after promises of safety and quick response by companies
they flounder in an emergency (e.g. BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill) taking away their profits
and leaving behind a poisonous legacy.
Let us stand in solidarity, build ties and relationships with other defenders across the
globe. Although at times protest may be intense and depending on your involvement in an
action, exhilarating or scary, an important thing to remember is the patience it takes to
become involved in a community of opposition. Time must be spent, often a first visit can
lead an impatient mind to despair as there is no immediate fix in most cases. It is very
much a long race not a sprint.
Many people have been convinced to put economic growth first, that it is more important
than a healthy population and environment, however through various personal experiences I
have witnessed that becoming involved in this type of protest, or movement, is an
awakening. An awakening to the reality of what is important; of where injustice is clear,
especially when claimed to be in the name of progress. Unpaid, passionate activists
holding the line against corporations which have the full backing of the private and state
security apparatus. These organisations act with impunity, which is frightening, however
it is vital that all who oppose this greed and recklessness have the courage and patience
to show support, to give some time, to get involved in awareness raising or simply being
present at the frontline building a movement of opposition; or to borrow a phrase from a
fantastic Ms. Klein; Blockadia. More bodies on the barricades folks.
The local people at Woodburn were amazing in their defiance. People with no experience of
disobedience against official authority, working tirelessly, often in fear, standing up to
‘the law' and creating a vibrant and open community into which people were easily welcomed
from close and far afield with that unitary purpose; to stop the drill, and protect our
water. The locals were defending their home, but they, as did other activists, shouldered
the burden of defending us all. This is in dedication to all those folk who dared to care.
Coming down from the branches into the struggle opened up new ways of thinking for Patsy
Caoróg, and the wee berry comes to the realisation there is much work to do. His heart
races as he tries to imagine the immensity of his task; he becomes fearful as he realises
there may be no quickly achievable end in sight. However to be aware of this but not
overwhelmed into inaction is an act of bravery itself. Where there is courage, there is hope.
Words: Patsy Caoróg
http://www.wsm.ie/c/resistance-fracking-woodburn-forest-ireland
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Message: 5
The presidential campaign condenses all the elements of a system on the end: business is
accumulating every day and the jackets are turned over by the opinion of the polls. ----
The Grand Guignol continues and it is not surprising anyone anymore: we already know the
warm play of these old actors. We know their simulated empathies, their false convictions
and the little game of agreed debates. The novelty, this time, is that the party will
undoubtedly play the legislative, with political recompositions that will sound the death
knell of bipartism in France. Disintegration is now ! ---- If one moves away from the
nuclei of irreducible fans who, here and there, excite themselves, one will notice that a
curious indifference prevails. It is true that the political orientations of the next
government are already known, for in any case, the capitalists will still hold the reins.
It is also true that the world does not believe in this spectacle.
Representative democracy is only a word fueled by the
lessening of the civic education of some priests. It represents
little more than the interests of the powerful. On the other hand, the aspiration to
democracy is a reality among the exploited.
A reality that only needs to explode.
Alternative Libertaire, March 29, 2017
http://www.alternativelibertaire.org/?Edito-un-systeme-a-bout-de-souffle
------------------------------
Message: 6
No one saw this coming, not even the veteran activists. Hundreds of thousands resisting
neoliberal economic policies would have been difficult to imagine even at the height of
the Campaign Against Home and Water Charges. Although that campaign, primarily fighting
against the regressive Household Charge and the subsequent Property Tax, was nationwide,
it never quite built the momentum that we've seen with the anti-water charges campaign,
though not for lack of effort on the part of activists. The CAHWT failed in its objective
of defeating the Property Tax, the resistance effort however was not in vain; it prepared
the ground for the current phase of struggle. ---- In grassroots communities across the
country, CAHWT community groups gained confidence and experience in how to organise while
building lasting networks with each other. Importantly, the CAHWT also normalised
political protest; people grew accustomed to seeing protesters and sympathised with them,
however in this instance when it came to the crunch they still paid up when the government
told them to.
So despite some positive outcomes, the CAHWT failed, leaving many campaigners thoroughly
demoralised as they had campaigned hard for over two years only to see the majority of
people pay the new regressive taxes. As 2014 was coming to an end, the government began to
prepare for the implementation of water charges after their success with implementing the
Property Tax and many exhausted CAHWT groups felt there was not much point in fighting it
based on the public reaction to the last government attack.
As Irish Water began its program of water meter installations nationwide, likely targeting
the areas of high compliance with the Property Tax first, they were unexpectedly met with
localised resistance. Water meter contractors would arrive in an area to carry out some
minor excavation works and meter installations to find members of the local community
dismantling their safety barriers, climbing on their equipment, or standing so close to
machinery that it could not safely be operated. These efforts were widely publicised on
social media, particularly Facebook, where they received significant levels of support.
Many of the people involved in this direct action were elderly people or people who had
not been involved in anything like this before.
Anti-water charges campaign groups began to form on their own, in areas where there was no
recent history of resistance. Momentum appeared to be building but still exhausted CAHWT
groups were trying to recover their energy and were not as active as they had previously been.
The Right2Water campaign, composed primarily of trade unions and left wing politicians and
parties, launched in August 2014 with a loose set of criteria for joining: "All you need
to be part of the campaign is to believe that water is a human right and that water
charges should be abolished." The campaign came to serve as an umbrella group for
community groups, left wing parties and trade unions to affiliate with, but did not have a
formal democratic structure and could not direct members to particular courses of action.
Then on October 11th 2014 a large anti-water charges demonstration exploded onto the
scene, with attendance in the tens of thousands and a vibrant energy that further added to
the sense that a new wave of people was indeed ready to stand and fight. Many were new to
political activism but their energy boosted the veteran campaigners whose organising
experience meant this new anti-water charges campaign hit the ground running.
This surge in working class activity has been building for a long time, fostered both by
constant government attacks on our public services and standards of living and also by the
persistent and extraordinary efforts of the ordinary people who fought these attacks.
While this campaign has been extremely popular by any measure, many of its participants
view it in different ways and are hoping for different outcomes.
Political parties normally look at campaigns like these as a way to gain publicity and to
pull in a few more activists with the aim of increasing their share of the vote come
election time. From that perspective, campaigns are just things that you participate in to
strengthen the party, not to strengthen the working class.
Anarchists look at campaigns like this as an opportunity for working class people to build
our own knowledge, confidence, networks, organisational capacities and political
consciousness so that no matter who is in government, we will be able to organise to
defend ourselves.
State power
The world that we want will never and can never be delivered through the state. Though
many engaged in struggles around water charges and housing sincerely believe that the
capture of state power through parliamentary means can be used to end poverty and
homelessness, this is simply not possible. While elections appear to be a shortcut to
political power, in reality they are a trap, designed to undermine, split, roll back and
destroy working class political power and organisations.
When a determined left wing government is elected global capitalism acts to dismantle
this. This is either done through subverting a country's economy which we have recently
seen with Syriza in Greece, or a more violent approach is taken, as was the case with
Chile in 1973 when the left wing government of Salvador Allende was overthrown through as
US backed military coup of the Chilean military.
What we should be aiming for during the current surge in working class activity is not to
build political parties who would act on our behalf but instead to strengthen our existing
campaign groups with a view to maintaining and increasing our own capacity to defend
ourselves. Building a stronger working class movement should be our short term goal, not
building a party up for the next electoral circus. Undermining and destroying a political
party is a lot easier than a militant working class.
Building working class power.
If you have never been involved in political activity before, the anti-water charges
movement has functioned as a way of acting collectively with others to directly confront
Irish Water through protest, marches, blockades, and most vitally, the boycott of payment.
This has also been a campaign in which people's perspectives on how politics is played out
have shifted markedly. In one hand, campaigners hold a placard, and in the other they
might hold a book on Irish economic history, or a document on county council housing
allocation procedures, or a text on abortion rights or the struggle against the occupation
in Palestine. Once people got active, the scope of their understanding of the world
increased, water charges were just the springboard to interest in other struggles, one of
the dots to connect with the many others in the fight for a different world.
Political consciousness.
In many community based anti-water charges groups there are left wing activists who hold
fairly solid understandings of how capitalism works, and the history of working class
struggles around the world. Most of these people will have some experience with pro-choice
campaigning, Palestine solidarity campaigning, LGBT rights campaigning, anti-racism
campaigning etc., so over time their knowledge and perspectives can come to shape those of
other members of the group who may not previously have thought much about those things.
This is a positive development but it can be undermined by the strong dislike that people
have for the manoeuvrings and often self serving actions of political parties.
International solidarity.
The Detroit Water Brigade visited Ireland at the invitation of the Right2Water campaign in
order to stand in solidarity with us and share their own experiences of fighting against
the restriction of access to water.
Greek flags became widespread at demonstrations in Dublin to express Ireland's solidarity
with the people of Greece as they struggled against the Troika's decision to shut down
their economy in response to the election of a left leaning government.
Bolivians attended a recent demo to express their support for our cause as they fought a
similar battle for control of their water resources and infrastructure. Actions such as
these boost the morale of protesters here by highlighting the global significance of their
local actions.
Anti-racism.
Myths about immigrants are widespread among the working class today. They range from
stories about how Polish people can get an additional dole payment in order to ‘socialise'
with Irish people, to how Muslims are somehow the most serious threat to our society.
Fantasies such as these are not just factually wrong, they are extremely dangerous. This
divisive, right wing narrative fosters an atmosphere of hate that facilitates violence
against minority communities and the rise of the far right who ultimately serve the ruling
class.
These fictions about other, more vulnerable sections of the working class are part of a
time honoured practice of divide and rule. If the ruling class can turn us against each
other on the basis of religion, sexuality, race or even employment status, we are easier
to economically exploit. Challenging and countering racist superstitions can only be
effective if socialists, anarchists and other anti-racists are active in class struggle
within our communities.
If you have campaigned alongside someone for two years, put up posters together in the
rain, went door to door for the first time together, leafleted, marched, organised with
them, when the topic of immigration comes up you can have a proper conversation about it
and challenge any factually incorrect assertions or racist myths directly.
Notably, campaigners can argue from a position of credibility against those who are not
politically active who express anti-immigrant or racist views. When some people were
expressing the view that ‘We should take care of our own first', while actually having
shown no interest in Irish homeless people prior to the refugee crisis, the most effective
voices countering this narrative were those engaged in feeding the homeless on a daily
basis. It's very difficult to argue for helping Irish people in need over foreign people
in need when the people helping Irish people are saying that everyone should be helped
without delay or exception. Being active in struggles gives credibility and weight to
anti-racist arguments.
Networks and campaign structure.
Through this campaign, a nationwide network of campaigners, socialists, unions and
academics is in the process of forming. While community groups form the primary
organisational units of the campaign, trade unions (through the Right2Water umbrella
group) have acted as the figurehead of the campaign, funding the major national events and
engaging in media work nationally and internationally in support of the campaign.
R2W does not direct the activities of local groups which are largely autonomous and self
directing. This means the structure of the anti-water charges campaign is totally
different from its predecessor, the Campaign Against Home and Water Charges (CAHWT).
Arguably, the water charges campaign could not have come into being so rapidly if it
wasn't for the CAHWT laying the groundwork for the next phase of struggle.
The CAHWT had a centralised structure set up by left wing political parties and groups
which met regularly to coordinate activity and fundraising for the campaign. The formal
structures of the group were in place early in the campaign which is totally different
from the decentralised campaign that we have built to fight Irish Water.
The current decentralised structure seems to be a lot better for morale as campaigners
don't have to endure the constant attempts by rival left wing parties to manipulate the
formal structures of the CAHWT for their own electoral ends.
Academics can provide context to a struggle by providing information to campaigners about
why water privatisation is being pushed and how transnational capital relates to Irish Water.
Understanding the logic of the market, free trade and neoliberal economic ideology is no
longer something that only political anoraks study, it's now what campaigners talk about
on the bus to Dublin for a demo.
Direct action.
Irish Water contractors being blockaded from installing water meters was one of the first
types of direct action seen in this campaign. This was entirely non-violent and consisted
of local communities organising physical blocking tactics so contractors could not install
meters on their water mains. This led to the police being deployed to screen contractors
from protesters but since we usually came out in large enough numbers, the police were
unable to control us and so, frequently resorted to use of violence.
This aspect of the campaign is significant as it shows quite clearly what happens when
working class people engage in effective actions to defend their interests. Very quickly
police violence is used against us in an attempt to break our resistance.
The media then omits police violence from their reporting and instead implies that the
protesters were actually the violent ones. In this struggle, this tactic has mostly
failed, as virtually everyone has a smartphone, and so when violence occurs it is plain to
see that it is the police, private security and contractors who are the guilty parties.
Through the experience of neoliberal government policy, direct action, police violence and
media lies a significant number of newly politically active people learned rapidly who
their enemies are. In a matter of three years, politics in Ireland is in the process of
transforming from a spectator sport, into a normal community activity.
Where to from here?
The water charges are just one area in which the state and capital are attempting to
squeeze more out of us. Housing is most likely to be one of the major sites of struggle
over the coming years as vulture capitalists continue to speculate on and dominate the
Irish property market. As homelessness figures continue to rise, and rents remain sky
high; we will have to find ways to effectively confront and defeat these forces. As long
as we maintain the momentum we've picked up during the battle against Irish Water, we will
be in a very good position to get started building a housing movement. A great deal of
self education will be needed by our campaign groups if we are to be effective but a
number of groups with campaign experience have already begun the process of transforming
themselves into housing action groups, as part of the Irish Housing Network.
The most developed groups are based in Dublin but they are sharing their experience with
others around the country and are providing advice on how to get set up.
This process will not be complete until Irish Water is defeated but with the boycott
holding strong and more people joining it all the time, we appear to be on course to
defeat Irish Water.
Build the boycott, build working class power!
http://www.wsm.ie/c/water-charge-history-ireland-rebellion
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