Appeal hearing: abatement of action!

DIY or dieAachen, July 01, 2016 – The case against Basti has been set today after several hours of hearing. He renounced compensation for having served innocently a custody of about a month and is now free without conditions.
Numerous supportive listeners were present, however, the involvement of the police and state security in the court was far more numerous. Two security gates together with identity checks caused delays in the start of the trial. There were no incidents.
The hearing took place similar to the first day of the first trial. There were two invited witnesses, both then working for RWE as security agents. Both witnesses had seen something, but could not confirm whether it in fact was Basti who struck the security guard, which led to the first instance sentencing. Both pretended that they heard this from the other one. Ultimately, the second witness testified to have seen that a stick had been raised. He later learned that his colleague allegedly was beaten and then guessed, that was what he claims to have seen. “A knallzeuge”, the judge, prosecutor and defender evaluated unanimously in the final talk. In legal terminology a knallzeuge (bang witness) is somebody who e.g. only heard the bang and then believes to be an eye witness.
The first witness (who had stated to have been injured) had seen Basti with a stick in front of him. However, he then got (from the other side) pepper spray in his eyes, after which he had to close them for several minutes. In this time he got the blow, he testified. The inquiring prosecutor noticed, that he impossibly could make any observation whatsoever.
There were numerous other inconsistencies that were more than clear already on the first day. It probably will remain a secret of that judge, why the trial at first instance ended in a conviction. Final word of the second witness: “In fact nothing happened at all, nobody was hurt, except for the pepper spray I do not understand why they made such a big thing out of it.” Almost nothing more is to to add. With his incident, however, started a long series of repressions against activists of the Hambach Forest. For Basti 20 months of repression in this matter are over now.

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Call for Solidarity from Norway

We received this mail from Norway!

E. from the Band Cistem Failure is sitting since last weekend in Norway in jail, accused of an attack on democracy (ie a cake in the face of the minister for gender equality) The court hearing will be on Thursday

If you like to, please write to:
E, c/o Oslo ABC, E, Postbox 6689, 0129 Oslo, Norway
Then they will forward it to E.
More: ABC Rhineland

Last weekend, E from Cistem Failure got arrested during the gay pride in Oslo.

Unexpectedly, the cops are making a big deal out of the whole thing. E was held in the police station over the weekend before being brought to court today. The judge decided today not to release E, so they are currently being held on remand in custody until their hearing, which must happen in the next 28 days.

At the hearing it will be decided if they are guilty or not and what their possible sentence will be (their lawyer expects between 20 and 40 days in prison). However, the time they spend in prison on remand will be subtracted from their final sentence. So if for example they wait 20 days until their hearing, and then get a sentence of 20 days, then they will have already served their time.

They have been charged under Straffenloven § 128, for hindering a state official from carrying out their work. They are accused of throwing a pie in the face of Solveig Horne, an asshole, sexist, racist politician from the right-wing Progress Party, who had the cheek to march in the front row of the Pride parade. She is the Norwegian Minister for Equality, Children and Social Inclusion. She is known for her victim blaming, and has in the past said has made homophobic remarks such as “Is it okay that kindergartens read gay fairy-tales for young children?”. The Progress Party are a known racist party that gives zero fucks about refugees.

Anyway, we think it is strange that in general politicians are leading Pride, have they forgotten about Stonewall? People can have Pride as long as it means assimilating into capitalism and shit. I mean, why be homophobic when queers also have voting rights and have money to buy things with? The gay pride in Oslo gave the equality price this year to the police…

Anyway. They are gonna be in jail for a bit and it would be cool if peeps would send letters, talk about the case, play our music, do a soliparty, write a song. If you want to know more or get updated, or do something or just have chat you can email this address.

You can send letters (until we have a better address) here:

Oslo ABC,
Postboks 6689 St.Olavs plass
0129 Oslo
Norway

Until then, none are free until all are free.

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Reportback From Human Rights Festival

We received this mail:

This weekend on June 25, the Human Rights Festival in Cologne took place, organized by the Allerweltshaus. The all day event featured not only many workshops, films and a variety of groups and struggles having their presence there but also an exhibit of photos featuring the Hambach Forest Occupation taken over the years by 3 separate photographers from the cologne area, a collection of prisoner support art and poetry and a table with Hambach Forest material with the Price of Coal Mosaic hanging in the background. The rainy conditions resulted in smaller turnout which had the positive effect of activists themselves being able to connect together and consider different forms of cross-sectional mutual support. The Groups included Stop Watching Us Cologne, Antimilitarist Groups, Foodsharing, Interventionistische Linke an many others. The presence of Hambach Forest activists centered on expanding the definition and focus of Human Rights onto Rights of Nature, and on the equality and oneness of Eco-Justice Struggle being in effect Social-Justice Struggle as all the laws and rights remain promissory concepts for as long as the ecosystems are exploited and destroyed and water and air progressively deteriorates. That expansion is a sheer necessity as Climate Chaos victims and the ecosystems under attack are hard if not impossible to frame solely in terms of human rights without their expansion to include other species and habitats and critically looking at the dynamic of capitalist extractionism. (Extractionism: the massive exploitation of natural resources and their global distribution)

The event was followed by sharing the left-over food from the event and from the food sharing stall with the Meadow Occupation where it had to be taken by 3 different vehicles. Thanks Allerwelthaus and Cologne Foodsharing!

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New Forest Occupation in France

The forest walk against the atomic deforestation in Mandres-en-Barrois near Bure (Lorraine, department Meuse) on June 19, 2016 ended with the reoccupation of the forest. Although until now the repository project does not have a building permit, the ANDRA, National Agency for the disposal of radioactive nuclear waste, started on May 6, 2016 the clear-cutting on behalf of the atomic repository project named CIGÉO and erected barbed wire fences and a platform for the coordination of forestry work. CIGÉO has to become the French industrial deep repository for high-level radioactive waste. However, it is rumoured that behind the scenes, nuclear industry and their spoils system of politicians, are dreaming of an international repository for highly radioactive nuclear waste – ideally located near the border, to impede resistance.
With some walks, residents and nuclear opponents procured an overview of the extent of the damage and called for a large forest walk with picnic on June 19. Then 250 people met in the forest. The fences were torn down, the platform of ANDRA destroyed and a resistance hut was built. This was followed by the statement that the forest is now occupied. The occupiers are grateful for any support, e.g. by on-site visits, decentralized actions or statements of solidarity. Under the keywords #ETEDURGENCE and #OCCUPYLAMEUSE, they announce a summer of resistance in Bure

Read more in German

We wish them good luck and send our greetings of solidarity!!

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