This article is also available in Portuguese.

Indymedia was founded in Germany in 2001 as de.indymedia.org; a second version appeared in 2008 as linksunten.indymedia.org. The latter was founded to focus on radical politics in southern Germany, but it soon became the most widely used webpage for German-speaking activists. As the original German Indymedia page became technically outdated and swamped by trolling, more and more people switched to linksunten.indymedia.org. In 2013, de.indymedia.org was almost shut down because there weren’t enough people involved.

In the last couple of years, more and more attention has accumulated around linksunten, which offers a space for people to post anonymously. For example, in 2011, a communiqué appearedon the platform claiming responsibility for politically motivated sabotage on the subway infrastructure in Berlin. The site was also used to release information about fascists and Neo-Nazis. In 2016, an article on linksunten presented the complete data of every participant at the convention of the far-right nationalist party Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland, or AfD), a total of 3000 names. This further attracted hostile attention from far-right advocates of state repression.

Before the 2017 G20 summit took place in Hamburg, the corporate media was already focusing on linksunten, declaring it to be the coordination page of militant anti-G20 protestors. The AfD started a campaign against the platform, pushing inquiries about Indymedia in Federal parliament and trying to force local governments to ban the platform and other forms of radical infrastructure.

All this built up to the current situation in which the Minister of Internal Affairs Thomas de Maizière banned the site on August 25, immediately before the election. The state raided three places, including a social center, in Freiburg, making the whole city into a police state for this day. During the raids, they allegedly found some slingshots and sticks, which they are now using as further justification for their propaganda about terrorism.

In fact, Thomas de Maizière is carrying out the agenda of the German far right and fascists, as well as the repressive goals of AfD.

Of course, those who maintain the website have not themselves written anything that could offer legal grounds for this attack. Even corporate media platforms offer space for people to speak anonymously—for example, when members of the State Department speak to the press on the condition of anonymity. The excuse that the state is using to justify this attack is to declare that those who maintain linksunten comprise an official organization aimed at destroying the German Constitution. This is a legal trick. If it succeeds, it could easily be used against other platforms, magazines, and projects, so that everyone spreading radical literature and ideas and documenting activism and social movements will become targets for this kind of repression and state violence. That is the message they want to send, in order to bully the entire population into accepting that the current political order in Germany will persist until the end of time.

This heavy-handed approach shows how afraid the authorities are that radical ideas are spreading and becoming contagious following the successful demonstrations against the G20 summit in July. Thomas de Maizière made it clear enough in his press conference that this assault on Indymedia is a form of revenge for the embarrassment the state suffered during the summit. This also shows how dishonest far-right and statist rhetoric is about free speech—in fact, these hypocrites only use that discourse to position themselves to suppress others’ speech. The solution to fascist organizing is not to empower the state to control speech, but to mobilize the general population both against fascists and against the state infrastructure that the far right intends to take over.

In Germany and all around the world, we need radical theory and practice; we need spaces where people can communicate anonymously, so as not to be intimidated by the twin threats of state repression and grassroots fascist violence. In order to understand social movements and struggles, so our sense of history is not swept away in a torrent of ephemera, we need databases that preserve accounts and communiqués. As an author once put it, the struggle of humanity against authoritarian power is the struggle of memory against forgetting. To fight back against this authoritarian crackdown, it is now more important than ever to spread revolutionary material and ideas everywhere and to brainstorm alternative ways to communicate with each other and the general public in times of intensifying state censorship and control. The more that each of us takes on a personal role in this task, the more decentralized and resilient our networks will be.

The post German Government Shuts Down Indymedia- What It Means and What to Do appeared first on Void Network.

This shows that, even with the very latest technologies, no amount of police violence can control a population that is determined to refuse to be dominated. This is good news for partisans of freedom everywhere around the world.

As we compose these lines, the police are storming Schanze with the utmost of brute force, recklessly pointing machine guns at reporters and everyone else, seeking to avenge themselves on those who remain on the streets after most participants have gone home to rest. The special forces units of Hamburg and five other cities are deployed on the streets, as well as Austrian special forces. But no amount of violence and oppression can conceal the fact that they lost control—and more importantly, that they never deserved control in the first place.

Conspiracy theory nuts will allege that the G20 was intentionally placed in Hamburg to provoke the population in order to justify further crackdowns on civil liberties. This is half true: in putting the G20 immediately beside one of the most radical neighborhoods in Germany, the authorities were testing the population to see how much people will put up with. Hamburg is being treated as an experimental laboratory of repression, with police officers brought in from several other nations in the European Union to study repressive techniques.

But if we can make it impossible for the police to control us despite more than one out of every twelve officers in all of Germany being concentrated in a single city, then surely we can defend our freedom from the state as a whole. The point here is that we cannot be cowardly, clinging to the illusion that the state will permit us our freedoms if only we are submissive enough. No people has ever achieved or retained freedom that way.

Things have reached a point of no return: the future will be revolutionary liberation, or it will be a police state. The supposed middle ground, in which limited freedoms are watched over by a state restrained by the will of the people, has always been a myth, an illusion that is harder and harder to maintain.

Let’s look closer at the breakdown of police control. In 1987, the German police began to shift to their current model for crowd control, in order to correct for the ways that crowds had outmaneuvered and defeated them—especially on May Day of that year. The subsequent model of German policing, in which long lines of riot police are supplemented with highly mobile snatch squads that maintain close contact with the crowd, has more or less served to control urban unrest until now. (For a more thorough overview of the recent history of German police tactics, consult this helpful article.)

In 2017, exactly thirty years after the origins of this model, the crowds of Hamburg succeeded in once more outmaneuvering and defeating the police. This time, they did so by spreading the action over a vast area of the city, moving swiftly and focusing on decentralized actions. Whenever the police established a control line, people gathered on the other side of it—not only demonstrators, but also supportive spectators. Small, highly organized and mobile groups of demonstrators were able to identify exit routes and carry out swift attacks, while larger crowds stretched the police one direction, then another. The more territory the police had to control, the more they antagonized the population, and the more demonstrators they had to deal with as their lines became more and more thinly stretched. Finally, they lost control of the most unruly regions and were forced to retreat entirely.

In addition to tactical concerns, however, the most important blow to the police has been that, by going to far in seeking to control the population by brute force, they lost legitimacy in the public eye. Their absurd and unprovoked attack on yesterday’s Welcome to Hell demonstration turned the entire city against them. No wonder they have lost control.

They will surely regain it, probably at the cost of a great deal of suffering inflicted at random on those who remain on the streets. But we should be heartened by the fact that they were beaten, that they could not control the population—and we should be inspired by the tremendous courage that people have shown in Hamburg, standing up to such a powerful adversary and refusing to back down.

Schanze district has been liberated for several hours, with protesters actively defending it at barricades. Within the area are many looted shops, barricades on fire, and people ready to fight. As we write, special police forces are preparing to enter the rebellious zone in huge numbers, armed with water cannons and heavy equipment. As the cops try to remove the barricades, the people of Schanze are fighting back.

Special forces are carrying automatic weapons as they stand on the rooftops across the districts of Schanze. Cops have aimed guns at the press, as well. Weapons with live ammunition are confirmed.

As the night descends on Hamburg, we can see the full moon through the smoke. People are playing volleyball in the street, celebrating their victory over the forces of the G20 and attempted police occupations of their streets. There are even bigger reasons to celebrate as we anticipate a long and rebellious night ahead.

Despite numerous attempts by the police, the state, and mainstream media to divide protesters by framing them as either “violent” or “non-violent,” Hamburg’s message remains clear: solidarity without compromise. When police attack demonstrations with brutal force, without provocation, the people turn against them. The police, working hand in hand with the media, attempted to spread fear by describing hordes of wild, autonomous radicals streaming into Hamburg from across the world, bringing pandemonium. Yet at the end of the day, Hamburg’s own people defended it from police aggression, refusing to give in or give up any of their comrades in black fighting fiercely alongside them for their streets.

As we see how intense and widespread the clashes have been in Hamburg over the last 48 hours, as we witness people’s determination to regather every time the police push them back, and particularly the joy with which they resist when told to stay away, it is clear that this struggle in Hamburg is more than just a struggle against G20.

The post THE POLICE LOST IN HAMBURG: WHY THEY COULDN’T KEEP CONTROL – Πώς το Αμβούργο νίκησε την αστυνομία appeared first on Void Network.

THIS IS HELL – HAMBURG 6-9 JULY 2017 against G20

The residents of Hamburg woke up this morning to the news that a large number of Porsches had been burned in the outskirts last night, giving an indication of the ungovernable energy with which Hamburg would resist this intrusion. Despite the police controlling busses and trains full of activists at the border, they simply could not stop the crowds that gathered in the city center for the Welcome to Hell demonstration. The crowds they had to fear were not a few radical activists listed in the files of the secret police, but the population of Hamburg itself, which came together in opposition to the militarized policing that the G20 forced on the city.

The German police had brought together approximately 20,000 officers, including troops from other EU countries, with the intention of utterly quashing resistance. They brutally raided the camp that activists set up to accommodate protesters, then attacked people who gathered to enjoy themselves in the streets on July 4 and 5. They did everything they could to spread fear, in hopes of intimidating people out of showing up to the demonstrations to express their feelings about capitalism and the state.

It didn’t work. The Welcome to Hell demonstration attracted multigenerational crowds prepared to participate in blocs, black and otherwise. Thousands of people came together with joy, courage, and determination. In response, the police attacked a permitted demonstration without any justification—creating panic, severely injuring many people, and making more than 50 arrests in the first wave of repressive violence.
Yet this only served to foment more outrage against the authorities, which spread all around the city in the form of burning cars, barricades, and multiple simultaneous clashes and demonstrations of thousands. The strategy of terrorizing and kettling people with tremendous numbers of officers using brand-new militarized police equipment and brutal force simply failed. There were too many people on the streets and the police lost control. They report that 76 officers were injuredin Hamburg tonight.

There was a lot at stake today. The German state and the world leaders wanted to show that they are in control, that their reign is popular—or, failing that, that they can successfully dominate the population. They wanted the world to see that they can freely harass, intimidate, and oppress people without consequences. They wanted to flaunt their power by bringing the G20 to a center of resistance. Instead, they demonstrated their weakness.

Tonight, with the help of courageous people from around the world, Hamburg stood up and said Enough. We are humbled and inspired. We will continue tomorrow.

for more info about the riots against G20 in Hamburg:
https://cominsitu.wordpress.com/2017/07/07/welcome-to-hell-g20-hamburg/
https://crimethinc.com/2017/07/05/announcing-continuous-live-coverage-of-the-g20-in-hamburg-with-an-update-from-the-clashes-of-july-4

see also: The Police Lost in Hamburg: Why They Couldn’t keep control 

ΚΑΛΩΣ ΗΡΘΑΤΕ ΣΤΗΝ ΚΟΛΑΣΗ Αμβούργο 6-9 Ιουλίου 2017  Eνάντια στους G20

Οι κάτοικοι του Αμβούργου ξύπνησαν σήμερα το πρωί ακούγοντας στις ειδήσεις ότι ένας μεγάλος αριθμός Porsche είχε καεί στα περίχωρα της πόλης τους χθες το βράδυ, δίνοντας μια ένδειξη για την ανεξέλεγκτη ενέργεια με την οποία το Αμβούργο θα αντισταθεί στην εισβολή των G20. Παρά την απόφαση της αστυνομίας να ελέγχει λεωφορεία και τρένα γεμάτα ακτιβιστές στα σύνορα, απλά δεν μπορούσαν να σταματήσουν τα πλήθη που συγκεντρώθηκαν στο κέντρο της πόλης για την διαδήλωση «Καλώς Ήρθατε στην Κόλαση. Τα πλήθη που φοβόντουσαν δεν ήταν απλά μερικοί ριζοσπάστες ακτιβιστές που απαριθμούνται στους φακέλους της μυστικής αστυνομίας, αλλά ο πληθυσμός του ίδιου του Αμβούργου, ο οποίος συναντήθηκε σε αντιπαράθεση με την στρατιωτική βία της αστυνομίας που εξαπέλυσαν οι G20 στην πόλη.

Η γερμανική αστυνομία είχε συγκεντρώσει περίπου 20.000 αξιωματικούς, συμπεριλαμβανομένων μονάδων από άλλες χώρες της ΕΕ, με σκοπό την πλήρη εξάλειψη της αντίστασης. Εκκένωσαν βίαια τον καταυλισμό που οι ακτιβιστές έστησαν για να φιλοξενήσουν διαδηλωτές και έπειτα επιτέθηκαν σε ανθρώπους που συγκεντρώθηκαν για να απολαύσουν τους δρόμους στις 4 και 5 Ιουλίου. Έκαναν ό, τι μπορούσαν για να εξαπλώσουν τον τρόμο, ελπίζοντας να εκφοβίσουν τους ανθρώπους ώστε να μην εμφανιστούν στους δρόμους και να μην συμμετάσχουν στις διαδηλώσεις. Τις διαδηλώσεις που οργανώθηκαν για να εκφράσουμε όλοι μας τα συναισθήματά μας ενάντια στον καπιταλισμό και το κράτος.

Ο εκφοβισμός δεν λειτούργησε. Η διαδήλωση «Καλώς Ήρθατε  στην Κόλαση» προσέλκυσε μεγάλα πλήθη πολλών διαφορετικών γενεών προετοιμασμένα να συμμετάσχουν σε μπλοκ, μαύρα ή και αλλιώς. Χιλιάδες άνθρωποι συναντήθηκαν με χαρά, θάρρος και αποφασιστικότητα. Απαντώντας, η αστυνομία επιτέθηκε σε μια αδειοδοτημένη διαδήλωση χωρίς δικαιολογίες για να δημιουργήσει πανικό, τραυματίζοντας σοβαρά πολλούς ανθρώπους και κάνοντας πάνω από 50 συλλήψεις στο πρώτο κύμα καταπιεστικής βίας.

Ωστόσο, το γεγονός αυτό απλώς προκάλεσε περισσότερη οργή εναντίον των αρχών. Οι ταραχές εξαπλώθηκαν σε όλη την πόλη με τη μορφή καύσης αυτοκινήτων, ξηλώματος οδοστρωμάτων και πολλαπλών ταυτόχρονων συγκρούσεων και διαδηλώσεων χιλιάδων ανθρώπων. Η στρατηγική της τρομοκράτησης των ανθρώπων από την αστυνοία με στην χρήση τεράστιου αριθμού αξιωματικών που χρησιμοποιούν ολοκαίνουργιο στρατιωτικό εξοπλισμό και η βίαιη επίθεση της αστυνομίας απλά απέτυχε. Υπήρχαν πάρα πολλοί άνθρωποι στους δρόμους και η αστυνομία έχασε τον έλεγχο. Αναφέρουν ότι 76 αστυνομικοί τραυματίστηκαν στο Αμβούργο απόψε.

Υπήρξαν πολλά που διακυβεύονται σήμερα. Το γερμανικό κράτος και οι ηγέτες του κόσμου ήθελαν να δείξουν ότι έχουν τον έλεγχο, ότι η βασιλεία τους είναι δημοφιλής – ή, αν όχι, ότι μπορούν να κυριαρχήσουν με επιτυχία στον πληθυσμό. Ήθελαν να δείξουν στον κόσμο ότι μπορούν ελεύθερα να παρενοχλούν, να εκφοβίζουν και να καταπιέζουν τους ανθρώπους χωρίς συνέπειες. Ήθελαν να καμαρώνουν την εξουσία τους φέρνοντας το G20 σε κέντρο μιας πόλης αντίστασης. Αντ ‘αυτού, απέδειξαν την αδυναμία τους.

Απόψε, με τη βοήθεια θαρραλέων ανθρώπων από όλο τον κόσμο, το Αμβούργο ξεσηκώθηκε και είπε ΑΡΚΕΤΑ. Είμαστε ταπεινοί και εμπνευσμένοι. Θα συνεχίσουμε ξανά από αύριο.

περισσότερες πληροφορίες για τις συγκρούσεις ενάντια στους G20 στο Αμβούργο:
https://cominsitu.wordpress.com/2017/07/07/welcome-to-hell-g20-hamburg/
https://crimethinc.com/2017/07/05/announcing-continuous-live-coverage-of-the-g20-in-hamburg-with-an-update-from-the-clashes-of-july-4

δείτε επίσης: ΠΩΣ ΤΟ ΑΜΒΟΥΡΓΟ ΝΙΚΗΣΕ ΤΗΝ ΑΣΤΥΝΟΜΙΑ https://voidnetwork.gr/2017/07/10

The post WELCOME TO HELL – G20 in Hamburg 2017 – video archives of a social revolt appeared first on Void Network.