Globalise Not!

G8 Women's Summit Opens in Rome

A Group of Eight conference on violence against women opened in Rome Wednesday with keynote speaker, Equal Opportunities Minister Mara Carfagna, calling it a crime against humanity.

This crime, she said, was sometimes condoned for tribal or religious reasons, or ''accepted as part of human nature''.

''We do not accept this indifference...we want the whole world to speak out, be outraged, and act,'' she told women's representatives from 25 countries, calling for ''new laws, mass movements,'' and action to raise public awareness.

''We must free our sisters from fear. If a woman is free, if she can love and marry whom she wants, if she studies, if she can work, if she can choose when and if to become a mother, to dress as she thinks, speak out and smile, the whole of society will bloom''. Some 140,000 women worldwide are the victims of physical, psychological and sexual abuse and 50,000 are killed by close relatives each year, Carfagna observed.

In other opening remarks, Italian President Giorgio Napolitano said ''chilling episodes of group violence against women of all ethnic groups, from the very young to the less young'' were happening worldwide, even in rich countries like Italy where rights are constitutionally protected''.

Foreign Minister Franco Frattini called for a United Nations ban on female genital cutting and said Italy would gather ''many countries'' to debate the issue on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly later this month.

Until Thursday afternoon, women politicians from around the world including an Afghan delegation will meet with representatives from charities, activist groups and international organizations to discuss the causes of violence and look at ways to avert the threat to women.

Rape, sexual abuse, domestic violence, workplace intimidation, abuse during armed conflict and violence against girls are all subjects under discussion. The event, which Italy has organized in its capacity as this year's Group of Eight president, will produce a final document to be submitted to a G8 foreign ministers conference in New York on September 25.

During the course of the conference, the Italian Equal Opportunities Ministry is encouraging politicians and supporters to wear white in order to raise awareness about the conference and issues under discussion. Over 20,000 bracelets emblazoned with the conference's slogan, ''Respect women, respect the world'', will also be distributed at various points around Milan, Naples and Rome.

But a number of activists attending the conference expressed doubts about the event's effectiveness. Opposition MP Marina Sereni, House deputy whip for the Democratic Party, said words were not enough.

''There is a massive need for funds to build structures and to set up prevention and welcome programmes, be they public or private initiatives,'' she said. The Afghan women's coordinator for the international ActionAid agency, Nasima Rahmani, praised the idea of the conference but said it needed more concrete support. ''The next step must be getting the [G8] world leaders to put women's rights on their agenda,'' she said. ''So far, no date has been set for confirming the resources that G8 countries and international organizations are ready to provide in order to fight violence against women''. And the president of a top Italian women's development charity, AIDOS, dismissed the entire initiative as ''futile''.

''Not a single concrete proposal has been put forward,'' said Daniela Colombo. ''You don't fight violence against women by distributing bracelets but through real projects and programs''.

She also implied the Italian government was being hypocritical, noting it had donated ''barely 500,000 euros to UN women's agencies this year ...compared to 50 million euros from Spain''.

Finally, Colombo questioned the Italian foreign minister's call for a UN ban on female genital cutting, suggesting it was a waste of resources that could be spent on more critical issues. The procedure should be ''a private matter for individuals'', she added. Speakers at the conference include UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha Rose Migiro of Tanzania, the founder of an association for trafficking victims in Italy, Isoke Aikpitanyi, the US-based Iranian activist Manda Zand Ervins and Burkina Faso's First Lady, Chantal Compaore.

Labels: G8, Italy, Rome

posted by they lied @ 11:56 PM Comments: 0

European court raps Italy over G8 Genoa protests

It took the European Court of Human Rights 9 years to investigate into police brutality that took place during the G8 summit at Genoa in 2001. Again, senior officers got off. This only mean that police brutality will never ever be eradicated.



The European Court of Human Rights condemned Italy on Tuesday for failing to carry out a thorough investigation into the death of a protestor who was shot by police at a G8 summit in Genoa in 2001.

The court awarded 40,000 euros ($57,160) compensation to the protestor's family. But it decided unanimously that the police officer had not used disproportionate force when he fired during an attack by demonstrators on his vehicle.

The Genoa Group of Eight has gone down as one of the most violent summits of the club of rich nations, which frequently faces protests by anti-globalization groups.

As well as the death of the Italian, Carlo Giuliani, more than 231 protestors, many visiting from other countries, were injured and over 280 arrested. Many complained of police brutality.

In November 2008 an Italian court found 13 police officers guilty of beating protesters at the summit, but acquitted 16 others, including the most senior police officials.

The European Court, which looked into the incident at the request of Giuliani's family, found that the Italian official investigating his death had allowed his body to be cremated before a proper analysis and that the investigation was too narrow.

"Italy had therefore not complied with its procedural obligations in connection with the death," it said.

The European court also looked into whether planning for the meeting had minimized the risk of lethal force being used. "There were a number of shortcomings in the organization of the operation," the court said.

Labels: 2001, Carlo Giuliani, European Court of Human Rights, G8, Genoa, Italy

posted by they lied @ 1:17 AM Comments: 0

Italy's minimalist G8 summit

From: BBC

Switching the venue of this year's G8 summit to an active earthquake zone sounded like a hostage to fortune.

Why invite the world's most powerful leaders to perch on the same precarious spot of the Earth's crust which in April killed 300 people and left 60,000 others homeless?

Just think what global chaos would ensue if - mid session - the ground opened up and swallowed them all.

When the town of L'Aquila was rocked by a new - though less powerful - set of tremors last Friday, the summit's prospects began to look decidedly dicey.


In the town centre many buildings were already cracked and cordoned off. On every corner caved-in roofs and ripped-out walls hinted at the prospect of new collapses to come. It felt as though at any minute it could all start to shake again.

I had visions of us journalists stuck, incommunicado and cowering under tables in the so-called media village. Reporters turned refugees, caught in a new disaster zone, while summit leaders were airlifted out to Rome.

But in the event, nothing happened. Not a tremble.

To my surprise earthquake survivors living in local tent camps thought the summit an excellent idea.

What better way to draw attention to the fact their lives had been reduced to rubble, than to pull in the likes of George Clooney and other celebrity hangers-on who tend to pitch up at major summits.

At one formal function, the eyes of a weary Barack Obama glazed over and his shoulders slumped. Not just us hacks, it seems, were getting by on hard mattresses with very little sleep

"My home won't get repaired for another three or four years. The entire tower block fell on top of it. Any publicity is welcome," said one woman, Anna, sitting with her neighbours under a sun parasol outside her blue canvas home.

The pathway between the tents was lined with drying washing and children's bicycles. A hand-painted notice, decorated in big childish crayon, announced it was Butterfly Row.

There was also Cat Alley, and Moon Street, all clearly marked. An air of semi-permanence had set in.

Roughing it?

In keeping with the earthquake tragedy, the summit itself had an air of austerity. So different from the usual lavish attempts to promote a country at its best.

President Putin revamped an entire 18th Century palace in St Petersburg. Tony Blair took over one of Scotland's grandest hotels.

But Italy's Silvio Berlusconi commandeered the local barracks of the Finance Police and required world leaders and their delegations to sleep in dormitories on site.

"How is the accommodation for VIPs?" I asked one UN official.

He sighed and replied wearily: "It's not quite what we're used to."

He was lucky. Some of the journalists unable to find places to stay locally were reduced to begging space among the tents of the earthquake refugees. Our BBC team drove back nightly over the mountains to a village two hours away.

Also minimalist and unpredictable were the communications facilities. It was almost impossible to find out schedules or contact numbers for delegations. The only truly reliable information was the time of the prime minister's late afternoon press conference.

That you could not avoid. On large screens, beaming down at you would be the unmistakable jovial grin of Mr Berlusconi.

And if you did miss it, never mind. It was played over and over again.

Press conferences by those with critical views, like the so-called G5 group of emerging countries (India, Brazil, China, South Africa and Mexico)seemed to occur with almost no prior warning or publicity.

It was almost as though these Asian and Latin American giants were G8 dissidents, deliberately kept to the fringe.

The same world

One morning we arrived at the media centre to find the broadband connection we were using had been cut off. Local Italian technicians claimed it was on the orders of the Italian authorities.

A few hours later it was restored. But in situations like this, you soon start to get paranoid. Was this an attempt to control our output to what could be monitored?

Probably not, but - instead of the usual eagerness for media coverage - it felt distinctly odd to be prevented from telling the world what was going on.

In some ways this new "bare bones" G8 style suits the mood of the moment.

For a change the journalists were not kept 50 miles away from the leaders, or worse - as has happened - sequestered on a separate island.

The summiteers were a short walk away. It felt as though we could keep them under our gaze.

At one formal function, the eyes of a weary Barack Obama glazed over and his shoulders slumped. Not just us hacks, it seems, were getting by on hard mattresses with very little sleep.

This year, in L'Aquila, we were all part of the same world.

Labels: G8, Italy, L'Aquila

posted by they lied @ 11:57 PM Comments: 0

G8 2009 in Abruzzo, Italy

Video: Fight capitalism

Our leaders are traditionally going to hold another G8 summit. We are traditionally going to block it and organize alternative, Anti-G8 meeting. Main events will take place on 7-10 July. The preparations are already advanced in both sites of conflict. Meanwhile, here you can find an unofficial invitation to the protests. Spread it.

See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ade1NsG64Q4

Luxury liner drops its anchor in earthquake area

The news about moving the G8 meeting to the earthquake region of Abruzzo puts National Security Agency under pressure.

The latest announcement of Berlusconi, to locate this years G8 meeting, under the responsibility of the Italian presidency, in the earthquake region of Abruzzo instead of hosting it on the Sardinian island of La Maddalena (1) puts great pressure on the National Security Agency.

After 8 months of preparation work for La Maddalena (2) Berlusconi ditched it. The decision has the support of the Italian cabinet. To argue his case Berlusconi said (3) that with the relocation huge costs would be saved and demonstrators would be held away: “I don’t believe that anti-globalisation demonstrators will have the nerve to organize violent demonstrations in this region so hard hit by the earthquakes”.

The new meeting place will be in the customs and tax police “Fiamme Gialle” (Yellow flame) academy “Maresciallo Vincenzo Giudice” in Coppito at the west side of L’Aquila. Coppito is the biggest police academy of Italy.

At a 48 hectare area with 1500 video camera guarded parking places and with modern accommodations and buildings (4) . This facility has a lecture hall for 1500 people, a cantine for 3500 people and a conference hall for 450 people. There are 2.300 sleeping spaces in rooms of 4 beds, 300 single bedrooms and single apartments on top of that.

All types of helicopters can land on the facility. As can fighter jets with short runway take off and landing capacity. A high ranking person, Colonel Paolo Carretta is quoted to say that the US army is impressed by the complex: ”When the marines came here to be educated by the mountain infantry for the war in Afghanistan they told us: ‘if we only had a barracks like this one!’”.

The Coppito complex is regarded to be the only remaining accessible construction after the earthquake. The 50.000 square meter concrete-steel-construction is completely intact after the quake. The central element of the fort is an extended mirror image of the building, build underneath it. In bunkers, accessible by cars, the state keeps its reserves of money. The facility that also holds “combat support reserves” is a main operation centre in case of an attack on Rome, including cyber attacks.

At this stage Guido Bertolaso, chef of civil defence, is located in the barrack along side hundreds of his co-workers, including volunteers as well as 1.300 members of the finance-police. Because of the collapse of a large number of buildings, in which officials were stationed here resides also Prefect Franco Gabrielli and all officials that don’t have offices any more in L’Aquila. An information office has set up camp to document minister and state secretary journeys. “By July the seismic activity should have reduced” said Franco Barberi professor for geo-chemistry and vulcanology at Romes university Tre.

For the G8 meeting that takes place in July in L’Aquila 3.000 delegates, 3.000 accredited journalists and 16.000 police staff are expected. Chief of civil defence, Bertolaso, is convinced that the capacity of the casern in Coppito will be enough.

Nevertheless thought is being given in Italy to accommodating delegates in Rome, amongst other places in the embassy quarter: “We have begun to concern ourselves with that” said a high ranking executive from the department of public safety (5).

The representatives of the G8 would travel the 100 km from Rome to L’Aquila in 20 minutes with a helicopter. However delegates as well as accompanying vehicles, security forces and interpretors will have to travel by road. The roads in question are the A24 and A25, which connect L’Aquila with Rome and Pescara (6).

The cruising liner “MSC Fantasia” which fits 4.000 passengers, equipped with 99 luxury suites, which was supposed to be moored at La Maddalena, will possibly be stationed at the regional capital Pescara, 70 km. away from L’Aquila. The shipping company gives no information out about that.

Re-location of G8 meeting should restore its popularity

On the 23. of April The newspaper Repubblica reported (7), that the decision to relocate the G8 meeting was taken by Berlusconi, government leader Gianni Letta and chief of civil defence Guido Bertolaso when they met on La Maddalena, already one week before it was made public.

Although it is uncertain on who’s initiative this decision was made. At this point the minister of internal affairs, chief of police, the president of the Abbruzzo region, the president of the province, the mayor, the leader of the local government and the commandant of “yellow flame” got informed (8). The Sardinian counterparts were however not informed.

The minister of internal affairs, Maroni, stated that security could be guaranteed. Nine days before the visit to La Maddalena, Berlusconi put the decision for debate in the cabinet, where it was surprisingly well received, despite comments from foreign minister Frattini, just a week before, that re-locating the meeting was simply impossible.

Alteo Matteoli, minister of infrastructure in Berlusconis fourth cabinet vetoed any surprise decision and said: “Re-locating the G8 meeting is not plausible”. Shortly later he was forced to admit through gritted teeth that this had been a political statement.

The ministers of defence and internal affairs immediately began to inspect the region and the re-location of the G8 office also began immediately. The fact that the city centre of L’Aquila has been blocked since the earthquake has proved useful for security planing because the barracks are only accessible from one side.

Sardinian politicians have criticised the governments decision. Rome has assured them that after the 500 million Euro re-construction of La Maddalena, the region will possess a centre for summits and conferences in the Mediterranean which will be unequalled. In an interview with La Repubblica (9), chief of civil defence Bertolaso said that the greatest projects in the area of rejuvenation and tourist improvement will take place on Sardinia.

Through local demonstrations against the meeting in La Maddalena and its relocation in the earthquake ridden area in the middle of Italy, Italy seems to intend to provide the G8 with renewed popularity. In recent years massive protests were regular at the meetings, repeatedly marked by large and wide participation.

In 2001 the demonstrators defended themselves against massive police attacks in a registered demonstration in Genoa. A short while later the 21 year old Carlo Giuliani was shot by a member of the Carabinieri forces. The opposition of the critical movement against globalisation led to far-reaching compartmentalisation and exclusion from large spaces, not specified as protest zones.

The 2009 meeting is supposed to keep an official image, internally and externally, of being “more simple and serious”. First and foremost they want to reduce the number of delegates. In spite of announced (10) moderation, the conference facilities in Coppito will not suffice for all the delegations’ meetings.

Whether the extensive 1000 strong US delegation will be reduced or not is still uncertain. “220 millions will be saved, which had already been intended for La Maddalena” Berlusconi announced, to explain the relocation to L’Aquila. All in all the undertaking of the G8 meeting in La Maddalena was supposed to cost some 400 million Euro.

It is unclear what will happen with the 180 millions left: will they be used to conclude measures already started in Sardinia, or will they in fact serve the victims of the catastrophe as Berlusconi’s government promised?

“In La Maddalena the security costs proposed were 118 millions, where two ships would have had to be rented to host the 3000 accredited journalists. With the relocation to L’Aquila these numbers will be reduced to an amount which will hardly count. The costs which will fall on us, item by item, are for interpreters, promotion, and the light adjustment constructions of Guidice-casern in Coppito. A contract which could lie between 10 and 30 million Euro”. – Bertolaso, Chief of Civil Defence (11).

Approval from participating governments

The relocation of the meeting surprised many. The location of La Maddalena was imposed by Berlusconi’s predecessor, Prodi. After the April 2008 election Berlusconi, well known for his use of symbolic power behind the scenes, tried to move the meeting into a more attractive place. Naples and Milan were mentioned, as well as Berlusconi’s own surroundings of the Costa Smeralda. All proposals were dismissed by the chief of Civil Defence Bertolaso, on security grounds.

In preparation of a security architecture for a major event, in this case the G8 meeting, involves the norms of those countries participating. Regulations from the US delegation are taken especially seriously, in this respect. At the time when La Maddalena was inspected, in order to decide if the relocation of the meeting should be risked, the question of the US president’s security at the originally intended meeting place, was still open.

It had been demonstrated that the ship which was intended to bring together the representatives and the delegates, could not land at La Maddalena due to insufficient depth of waters. Also, facilities for accommodation of the accredited press were not easily available.

American and the UK are supposed to have agreed (12). Lynn Eccles, Downing Street’s speaker, agreed with support: “The decision to relocate the meeting is paid for by the Italian Government. The UK will support Italy in any way needed.” The EU’s foreign commissar, Ferrero-Waldner, saluted the decision as “solidarity with the people hit by the earthquake”; supposedly Japan have also given a green light.

The German government also had no choice but the accept Berlusconi’s coup (13): “We trust that our Italian partner will take the logistic measures necessary for a successful meeting” (14). The German delegations should stay in the Hotel of Campo Imperatore by the Gran Sasso, where Mussolini was under custody for a few weeks in 1943 before he was freed by German combatants.

Militarised Catastrophe Arrangements in Abruzzo

The extraordinary minister cabinet called together on the occasion of the emergency appointed Franco Gabrielli as prefect of L’Aquila (15). Gabrielli started his career at the political police “Digos” in Imperia and later switched place to the central in Rome. At the end of 2002, the Police coordinated an action against the successor organisation of the Red Brigades, under Gabrielli’s administration, after which the two arrested for the death of Massimo D’Antona and Marco Biagi, were held responsible.

After the operation he was made chief of the internationally operating secret services “Servizio Centrale Antiterrorismo”. For a few years he co-wrote a handbook with the current chief of Police, Antonio Manganelli, about investigation procedures.

However the situation in many towns of the earthquake region is highly critical. State support initiatives came late and did not function properly. On the other hand representatives of the government have declared that the measures provided were highly efficient. A handful of towns, which were portrayed as ideal renovation projects, are frequently visited by the media.

This very strong and media-supported care given to the image of efficiency and capabilities is supposed to be related to Italy’s polished image, internationally. The country is among those states considered in danger of bankruptcy in the current crisis. Those voices are also growing in number which see, in Italy’s development, signs of the destruction of democracy.

This seems to be thus interpreted in government circles: In the last weeks the Italian government urged numerous foreign newspapers (16), among those French and German, to cease labelling Berlusconi’s politics as “post-fascist”.

Labels: Abruzzo, G8, Italy

posted by they lied @ 8:34 PM Comments: 0

December 8: Think Global, ACT LOCAL

Proposal: International Mobilization of Solidarity with the Accused of the Genoese G8.

With the approach of the verdict for the 25 comrades of the G8 trial, the desire to rise to the highest level the forms of solidarity and fight has grown.

The Genoese lawsuit is linked to those of Milan and Turin for the use of the offence of "devastation and looting", which provides ultra-high penalties (8 to 15 years), applied to the expression of dissent and political clash.

The judgment on appeal to the events of March 11th has seen the creation of his first former judicial (6 years, discounted to 4, for the abbreviated rite, for 15 of anti-fascists defendants) projecting a threatening shadow on the imminent outcome of the G8 process.

Saturday November 17th represents an important appointment. The hope is that this is only the first step, which many other initiatives will follow, in a virtuous mechanism in view of the day of judgment. The attempt - to be made the most coordinated way possible by everyone - could be to call a simultaneous mobilization day, December 8th, in many Italian and foreign cities with protests in symbolic places (Law Courts, prisons, embassies, consulates etc).

G8 has been an international issue and, if in 2001, already, the Italian police had shown the political choices made in the management of dissent, which culminated with Carlo's murder, today the judiciary follows in his footsteps with the request of exorbitant condemnations for the demonstrators: the real heads scapegoats, who, according to the hypothesis of the Prosecutor, should "pay for all" with very heavy penalties, up to 16 years in prison. To pay in an exemplary way so that it is an effective warning to all those who, in the future, will they dare to rebel.

On the other side, the two trials for the security forces, for the police massacre at Diaz and tortures at Bolzaneto, are still in the process of hearings and the judgment of first instance will not be issued before the next year.

Verdict that, however it will end, for almost the entire contested crimes, will be just formal, since the prescription will shortly cancel everything.

In Italy the days of July 2001 have represented a watershed in the management of public order and dissent: the police shooting at demonstrators; Carlo Giuliani's murder; the tanks running at a crazy speed against people; "the mexican butchery" at Diaz; tortures at Bolzaneto; indiscriminate beatings of defenceless people; the devastation even of ambulances by the security forces. All of these happened while AN's Honourables, Ascierto and Fini, were visiting the
operating centre of the security forces.

A crucial step towards acceptance of security policies and political repression which, in these 6 years, have changed our cities and attacked the movements through the use of the preventive detention and crimes as "devastation and looting" or subversive association.

The potential international nature of the initiative is given by the fact that the whole anti-fascist and anti-capitalist movement is under charge, movement which, from Seattle on, comes out and sets against the meetings, the last one in Germany, the next one in Japan, and in the 2009 in Italy.

The repression has been deployed even for the mobilization in Rostock, with arrests and trials currently under process. Every situation, national or international, could join with reference to the local context.

Therefore the call is to find a common date for mobilizations, everyone in its own territory, to express the greatest solidarity and complicity with the 25 comrades to the bar.

Never free as long as the last will be slave!

Technorati Tags: Genoese, G8 and Italy.

Labels: G8, Genoese, Italy

posted by they lied @ 1:29 AM Comments: 0