Belarusian anarchists given prison sentences from 5 to 17 years

Avtonom

On 6 September Minsk City Court pronounced the verdict in the criminal case of the so-called “international criminal group”. There are 14 anarchists and libertarians, four of whom have left Belarus.

The defendants were charged under 10 articles, including the articles on the establishment and participation in a criminal organization (paragraph 1 and paragraph 2 of Article 285 of the Criminal Code) and the establishment of an extremist formation (paragraphs 1 and 3 of Article 361-1 of the Criminal Code). The trial was held behind closed doors.

According to the investigation, from 2005 to 2020 unidentified persons together with anarchist Alexander Frantskevich and human rights activist Martha Rabkova united “a number of organized criminal groups”: “Revolutionary Action”, “National self-defense” and Revolucijna Dia (“Revolutionary Day”). Investigators allege that Frantskevich and Rabkova organized the arson of the Gomel District Tax Inspectorate in March 2017 using “Molotov cocktails.” Read more about the case and its defendants in Russian here.

The 10 convicts were sentenced to exactly the terms requested for them by the prosecution:

– Aleksandr Frantskevich – 17 years (strict regime)
– Akihiro Hanada-Gayevsky – 16 years (medium security)
– Marfa Rabkova: 15 years (minimum security)
– Alexei Golovko – 12 years (maximum security)
– Pavel Shpetny, Nikita Drants, Alexander Kozlyanko, Andrei Chepuk – 6 years for each (maximum security)
– Andrei Marach and Daniil Chul – 5 years each (reinforced regime)

It is also reported that the defendants were fined up to 700 basic units (about $8,900).

After the verdict was pronounced, the law enforcers detained relatives of the defendants and other political prisoners, diplomats who were not allowed into the courtroom, as well as random people who came to other trials.

Address for letters: SIZO-1, 2 Volodarskogo Street, Minsk, 220030 Belarus.

Currently, we work on the recovery of libertarian and anarchist movement in Russia, after a long period of stagnation and repressions and we need your help to improve our site. Join our campaign to raise money on Firefund!

Anarchists convicted in ‘Pramen case’.

Anarchist Black Cross Belarus

On April 22 the verdict was pronounced in the so-called “Pramen case”. Aliaksandr Bialou, Jauhen Rubashka, Artsiom Salavei were sentenced to 5 years in prison, another Artsiom Salavei – to 4.5 years. The gravamen is unknown, since the trial was held in camera.

Aliaksandr and Jauhen were arrested on July 29, 2021 and charged with participation in the 2020 protests. Two activists named Artsiom Salavei (namesakes) were detained a week later. While the investigation was going on, the anarchist media collective Pramen and its website and social networks were recognised as an extremist formation. The guys were accused of promoting extremist activities on behalf of the collective.

In 2020-2021 all of the defendants had already been detained for various protests and arrested for short terms.

PSC Southampton newsletter

ISRAELI POLICE VIOLENCE IN MOSQUE

On 15 April 2022, Israeli forces stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque, a holy place for Muslims, using tear gas shells and sound bombs. Over 150 Palestinians were injured and 400 arrested. Three Israeli police were injured.

The Israeli police’s violence in the Al Aqsa mosque during Ramadan has drawn global attention, but it’s only one part of the apartheid regime Palestinians have to live through every single day.  For more information from Tribute Magazine click here

WALK WITH US FOR PALESTINE

Sunday 8th May 2022 at 9.45 am

Join our annual sponsored Walk for Palestine on Sun 8th May.  It is about seven miles with a break to have a picnic in the middle, and it is a great way to meet other supporters.

For more info and sponsorship form just email pscsoton@gmail.com  We look forward to meeting old and new friends then .

NATIONAL MARCH 
Saturday 14th May at 12 noon

We are organising a trip from Southampton rail station to go to this peaceful march on Sat 14 May. Everyone is very welcome to come and join us and we can all go together.

If you would like to come or find out more, please just email us at pscsoton@gmail.com or phone Parveen on 07577 412334.  We will then arrange a time to meet at Southampton Station or in London and let you know.

Organised by: Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Coalition, Palestinian Forum in Britain, Friends of Al- Aqsa, Muslim Association of Britain,  Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

PSC AT NATIONAL EDUCATION UNION CONFERENCE

Monday 11 April 2022

We were very pleased to support National PSC at the NEU Conference in Bournemouth.  Over 130 teachers attended a talk by NEU and PSC, including speakers in Palestine over zoom, talking about problems they had with schools being demolished and children being intimidated on their way to school.

If you are a member,  NEU offer support for some places for members to go and visit Palestine to see for yourself what is happening. Contact them for more details.

IRISH MP ON UKRAINE AND PALESTINE

While, of course, we fully support the people of Ukraine, the contrast between all the support the West offers to the people of Ukraine, compared to its total lack of support for the Palestinians, is horrendous.

Watch this short clip by Irish MP Richard Boyd Barrett contrasting the two. He is passionate about Palestine and always worth watching.

“It took five days for sanctions against Putin and his thugs but imposing sanctions for 70 years of oppression of the Palestinians would not be ‘helpful’.”

Irish MP Richard Boyd Barrett compares and contrasting the West’s attitude to Ukraine and Palestine.

UK FAILS TO SUPPORT RESOLUTIONS UPHOLDING PALESTINIAN RIGHTS AT UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

On 31 March and 1 April 2022, the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) voted to adopt three resolutions supporting Palestinians’ rights and an end to violations of international law in the occupied Palestinian territory.

But the UK Govt failed to support these resolutions upholding Palestinian rights by abstaining or even voting against them. Disgusting.  More information about this can be found on the Medical Aid for Palestine website by clicking here

LOWKEY – LONG LIVE PALESTINE

UK Rapper and activist Lowkey, who actively supports and articulately speaks about Palestine, is under attack for this.

A powerful Pro-Israeli lobby group is trying to get Spotify to remove some of his music and get his gigs at Universities cancelled

So here is a link to one of his songs, complete with text.  If you like it, or think people have the right to speak out about Palestine, please join the 25,000 people so far, including Noam Chomsky, Jewish Professor Ilan Pappé, and many more who have signed this petition to Spotify to stop them removing him. https://chng.it/nWcygKs7Mz

Krystsina Charankova | Kristina Cherenkova

Anarchist Black Cross Belarus

Kristina is an anti-fascist from Mozyr. Detained on March 23, 2022, she is accused of inciting social hatred against police officers (Art. 130.1 of the Criminal Code) by publishing offensive comments on Instagram.

Kristina’s Instagram support page https://instagram.com/free.kitaanalena

Cherenkova Kristina Aleksandrovna
SIZO-3, ul. Knizhnaya 1A, Gomel, 246003
Birthday – April 23

Red and Black Telly roundup.

Red and Black Telly roundup.

Red and Black Telly roundup.

Kevan Thakrar transferred to HMP Belmarsh

Justice for Kevan

Kev has been moved to Belmarsh and is currently in the seg.

Write to him: Kevan Thakrar A4907AE, HMP Belmarsh, Western Way, London SE28 0EB.

As he does not yet have his property, please include a stamped envelope with letters if you can!

If you email with Kev, you will also need to change the location under the “recipients” tab on the email a prisoner site.

He is still receiving some post sent to HMP Full Sutton but it is taking longer to get to him.

Death in the English Channel – ACG (GB) and UCL (France) statement

The Anarchist Communist Group.

The following is a statement agreed by the ACG and the Union Communiste Libertaire (UCL) in France.

The recent twenty-seven deaths of refugees in the English Channel follow another ten deaths this year of desperate refugees attempting to cross to the UK. There does not appear to be official figures for the number of deaths in similar circumstances over the last twenty years, but last October a figure of 296 was given of those attempting to cross by boat or tunnel. These latest figures raise the number of deaths to over 330, to say nothing of the thousands who have met their deaths in the Mediterranean. Our thoughts are with the relatives and friends of those who have died.

Both the British and French governments have attempted to place the blame for these deaths on people traffickers. But it wasn’t the traffickers who supplied the arms to vicious authoritarian regimes and who intervened in Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan, with bombings and occupations, destabilising the region, it was the Western powers, and that includes France and Britain. In addition, the French state has carried out a war against the refugees, dismantling their camps and pulling down their tents in the middle of winter, running out rolls of barbed wire around a camp at Lille and along the railway tracks to Calais, rounding up migrants, subjecting them to harassment, gassings, and strip searches. On the day of the tragedy that resulted in the 27 deaths, the sub-prefect of Boulogne-sur-Mer sent the police to stop the survivors being supplied with dry clothes.

There have been 1,281 recorded attempts to cross the Channel since the beginning of the year, involving a total of 33,083 people, according to the French maritime prefecture of the Channel and the North Sea. The British Home Office recognises that 25,792 refugees managed to reach Kent, and the Maritime Prefecture says that it has brought back 8,200 during rescue operations.

The refugees don’t come to the West just to annoy people in Calais and in Kent. They are fleeing mass murders, bombings, oppressive regimes and political and religious persecution. Many are Kurds who have been forced to flee from Iraq, Iran and Syria. They are not coming to the UK to “scrounge” as has been stated by Priti Patel and other Conservative MPs in parliament, but because there are already existing migrant communities who can support them and provide work, often off the record. Indeed, in early November, Patel stated that 70% of refugees were ‘economic migrants’ and she has not substantiated this spurious allegation. Tory MPs like Edward Leigh and Julian Lewis have gloated in Parliament over the deaths, saying that it would act as a lesson for those attempting to cross the Channel into Britain.

Both the French and British governments have expressed hypocritical sympathy for those who have died, Macron saying that he would not let the Channel become a cemetery. His actions say otherwise. Meanwhile Boris Johnson allocated £54 million last summer to stop crossings. Both are cynically using the crossings to exacerbate the tension between the British and French governments.

It is precisely because of the militarised and heavily fortified crossing points, particularly at the entrances to the tunnel at Coquelles, that have forced refugees to take to sea, often on improvised rafts.

Johnson came to power because of Brexit and one of the aims of Brexit was to end the influx of migrants, especially from the Middle East. This is failing significantly, as around 25% of refugees manage to cross to Britain. In France there is the run-up to the presidential elections, and candidates are keen to show how zealous they are to combat migration.

The Johnson government has closed down any legal paths into the UK and ways of setting up safer routes, such as allowing asylum applications at British embassies, which it virulently opposes. The resettlement scheme he promised for those fleeing from the Taliban in Afghanistan three months ago has still not been implemented, forcing many to take dangerous routes to escape. As for Priti Patel, the Home Office minister, she continues to blame the French government and her own legal advisers and officials for a failure to deliver on Brexit promises. She has raised the idea of a “push-back” policy, with the coastguard and the Navy forcing refugees back to France mid-Channel. No seafarer relishes condemning anyone to drowning, and even the staff union of Border Force, the frontiers law enforcement agency, has rejected the “push-back”. Other crazy schemes mooted have been the sub-contracting of processing asylum seekers to distant countries, for example Albania. The Albanian government has dismissed this as “totally fake”.

For us, libertarian communists, the world is not divided between East and West, North and South, but between the classes, between those who rule and exploit and profit, and those who work and produce the wealth, and are used as cannon fodder by the boss class. Solidarity between French and British workers and with the migrants. Don’t let the nasty, sordid aim of restructuring capitalism on a global scale by those who rule and exploit fool you. The workers of the world have no country. It is time to resurrect a class consciousness that does not recognise borders and states. In the meantime, we must fight to stop any further deaths in the Channel.

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