Monday, November 22, 2010

Letter from Council of Europe Paliamentary Assembly Member on Excessive use of force against Belgian Demonstrators

Parliamentary Assembly Assemblee parlementaire

http://assembly.coe.int

Council of Europe * Counseil de L'Europe

Doc. 12433
5 November 2010

Excessive use of force against Belgian demonstrators

Written question no 590 to the Committee of Ministers
presented by Mr Lindblad

According to the Human Rights League and Amnesty International, among others, the Belgian police used excessive force and illegal methods against peaceful demonstrators representing the No Border Camp movement on their way to an authorised demonstration on 1 October 2010. Reportedly, at least 500 mostly ‘preventive’ arrests took place, and 14 people were seriously injured.

Whereas the alleged vandalism that some members of the No Border Camp movement had used against the offices of Frontex, IOM and a number of police precincts on previous days is to be condemned, there is serious reason for concern for the curtailment of the right to assembly and the right to free speech as well as for the violence that the Belgian law enforcement authorities allegedly resorted to against peaceful demonstrators.

The Story Continues to Spread Virally...

Pluto Press: The unimaginable: My night of violence at the hands of the Belgian police

http://plutopress.wordpress.com/2010/10/22/the-unimaginable-my-night-of-violence-at-the-hands-of-the-belgian-police/

Pluto author arrested and tortured in Belgium

http://plutopress.wordpress.com/2010/10/07/pluto-author-arrested-and-tortured-in-belgium/

Iindymedia.us The Unimaginable: My Night of Violence at the Hands of the Belgian Police
Marianne Maeckelbergh, assistant professor at Leiden University went through .... Marianne Maeckelbergh is anthropologist, Leiden University, author of The Will of the Many...
http://indymedia.us/en/2010/10/43630.shtml

Donate to Support the Arrestees!

Financial contributions can be given at lokaal Arcata or can be transferred to account number 000 - 3244460-04. The IBAN is BE10000324446004
And the BIC BPOTBEB1 (Bank Van De Post.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

4 Remaining Prisoners Released, Now for Legal Battle

On Friday, October 22nd, the last four prisoners were released. Now we need to focus on raising money to defend the arrestees against criminal charges and to sue the pants off the cops for their abusive and repressive behavior. In the next few days we'll be posting details on where you can contribute funds to support the legal effort and ideas on how you can help fundraise to support this battle against police brutality and the repression of activists and academics.

World Council of Anthropological Associations Protests Maltreatment of Marianne Maekelbergh

The World Council of Anthropological Associations has expressed concern at the maltreatment of Dr. Marianne Maeckelbergh by Belgian police.

Frank de Bakker's Blog: Dangerous research…

Dangerous research…

Posted: 2010/10/14 by frankdebakker in Activism, Research, Social Movements
Tags:activism, anthropology, civil society, No Borders, globalization

Studying activism can be fairly dangerous and not just in rogue states but also in a country such as Belgium. Marianne Maeckelbergh, an assistant professor from Leyden University in the Netherlands focuses on the anthropology of globalization, democracy and social movements. She published a book on the Alterglobalisation movement and aimed to conduct fieldwork in Brussels, studying the last days of the No Borders Camp, a bi-annual meeting of the No Borders Network. As she writes at Mondiaal Nieuws:

Marianne Maeckelbergh - Thanks

October 25, 2010 15:48 | The Editor

in:

Europe

Social activist and writer Marianne Maeckelbergh and her publishers Pluto Press have expressed their thanks to all who responded to their call for action about the horrific actions of the Belgian police during the No Border camp in Brussels last month. A spokesperson for Pluto said that they have "unsurprisingly, yet to hear back from the Belgian ambassador in London." They ask anyone who has received a reply from the Belgian ambassador to their country to let them know. Write to Pluto at this email - alecg@plutobooks.com.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

De Wereld Morgen: Pictures: Demonstrate for the right to demonstrate

http://www.dewereldmorgen.be

Pictures: Demonstrate for the right to demonstrate

by Marian Coppieters
(Original Dutch at http://www.dewereldmorgen.be/artikels/2010/10/17/fotos-betogen-voor-het-recht-op-betogen - Thanks again to Ann Bynens for translation!)

De Wereld Morgen: Demonstration as a result of the police violence during the No Border Camp (Translated)

Demonstration as a result of the police violence during the No Border Camp.

(Original Dutch here - thanks to Ann Bynens for another wonderful translation!)

Today, October 16th 2010 a demonstration was held at the Hallepoort in Brussels as a result of the police violence during the Border Camp.

The demonstration in which about 700 people participated, was peaceful, (read: today the police did not beat up any activists) but with a clear message: the police violence from September 25th until October 2nd is intolerable! Hundreds of arrested people were being mistreated (physically and mentally) and/or sexually intimidated,...

Translated Excerpts of a Statement by No Border Camp Organizers

Thanks to Ann Bynens for translating this!

The terror of the state and its police wants to silence the revolt.

To cry out our solidarity

To demand their liberation

Die Tageszeitung jungeWelt Article --- Now with Improved Translation!

Big thanks to Jennifer Chong for translating this article from German!

Original German at http://www.jungewelt.de/2010/10-13/032.php

Die Tageszeitung jungeWelt

10/13/2010 / Anti-fascism / Page 15

Police harrass protesters against racism in Belgium

Four activists still imprisoned a week after the end of the Brussels “No Border” camps

Letter from Mission Free Iran Coordinator to Secretariat of Belgian Ambassador in the UK

Ann Willems
Katja Wauters
Ambassador's Secretariat
H.E. Ambassador Johan Verbeke

Dear Ms. Willems and Ms. Wauters,

It has come to my attention that Marianne Maeckelbergh (US citizen and professor at the University of Leiden, Netherlands) was arrested for taking pictures while police were making violent arrests in Brussels, Belgium during last a protest Friday. Not only was she arrested, but she reports that "she was violently dragged by her hair, chained to a radiator, hit, kicked, spat upon, called a whore, and threatened with sexual assault by the police. She also witnessed the torture of another prisoner also chained to a radiator."

Letter from Head of School of Law at University of Leicester to UK Belgian Ambassador

Professor Minkkinen informs us that he has not to date received a reply from the embassy.

H.E. Ambassador Johan Verbeke
Belgian Ambassador to London,
Grosvenor Crescent, 17
SW1X 7EE London
United Kingdom

Sir,

I am shocked about news concerning the treatment of fellow academic Prof Marianne Maeckelbergh at the No Border Camp in Brussels on 1st October and about the police brutality that she has witnessed. I would expect no less of the government of Belgium than to release immediately all those who remain in custody and to conduct an immediate and thorough investigation of what has happened to see to it that those responsible will be brought to justice.

Statewatch.org: Belgium: Policing of 'noborder camp' in Brussels violates basic civil rights

Source: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2010/oct/01brussels-noborder.htm

From 25 September to 3 October, a noborder camp (http://www.noborderbxl.eu.org/?lang=en) is taking place in and around Brussels, with demonstrations, public lectures and actions for freedom of movement of people and against repressive migration control. By now a regular feature of the European political landscape, noborder camps are organised to intervene in the migration control regime inland (detention centres) and across borders (border control) and link different struggles and share information in autonomous spaces.

Letter to the Liason Officer for Police Affairs at the Belgian Embassy in Washington D.C

Patrick Stevens
Police Attaché
Belgium Federal Police
Embassy of Belgium
3330 Garfield Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20008

Dear Mr. Stevens,

Today I was shocked to read an emailing detailing the terrible treatment of my friend Marianne Maeckelbergh and others at the hands of the Belgian police. Not only was I confounded as to why Marianne, who is a well-respected academic and scholar as well as a gentle human being and dear friend, would ever be targeted by the police; I was appalled at how the Belgian police have responded to the incident, a horror I would feel regardless of the fact that my personal friend has been involved.

Source: http://london.indymedia.org.uk/other_medias/5646

Published: Friday 08 October 2010 15:36 by salv. |

Tagged as: brussels brxl camp free_spaces migration noborders redpepper repression

Against the mass arrest + torture of No Boborders activists during the Bxl Camp
Last week in Brussels, the No Border camp was marked by widespread arbitrary arrests and police violence, including scenes of torture and sexual abuses in the police stations. These violences started from Sunday 26 and took a great extent from Wednesday 29 and continued until the end of the camp. There were over 500 arrests and dozens of people injured.

Iltalehti.fi : Police beat up demonstrators in Belgium

Original Finnish at http://blogit.iltalehti.fi/dan-koivulaakso/2010/10/12/poliisi-pahoinpiteli-mielenosoittajia-belgiassa/

Here's a VERY rough Google translation --- any Finnish speakers out there who can provide a real translation?

Iltalehti.fi

Police beat up demonstrators in Belgium
Written by Dan Koivulaakso

Photo: Indymedia BXL

Data:recollective: Against the crossborder criminalisation of political activists!

Source: http://datarecollective.net/node/20'

Available in French and German at http://datarecollective.net/node/22

Against the crossborder criminalisation of political activists!

For the abandonment of the police database society!

“We preventively arrested 148 protesters [...]. 96 anarchists were arrested, as they wanted to participate in the demonstration”
Brussels police spokesperson Christiqn De Coninck justifies the mass-arrests on the 29th of September

PRESS RELEASE (Brussels No Border camp): Activists file complaint against illegal preventative arrests

Source: http://london.noborders.org.uk/node/408

Note: Later estimates pegged total arrestes at over 500.

1 October, 2010 - 16:24 — London NoBorders

30/09/10, for immediate release

On Wednesday 29th September, an international demonstration took place in Brussels against the new European directives on economic austerity. According to our estimates 300 participants of the No Border Camp, which is taking place throughout the week in Brussels, were arrested preventatively at different locations in the city, on their way to the demonstration. A group of Brussels lawyers have prepared a complaint which is being delivered on Friday, demanding that free expression of opinion must be respected as a democratic right.

Marianne / Belgium Prisoners is Top Story at Wetlands-Preserve.org

http://wetlands-preserve.org

Direct link to the Belgium Solidarity campaign page at

http://wetlands-preserve.org/?page=BelgiumIndex