INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-BULGARIA:

DEMONSTRATION AGAINST IMMIGRANT DETENTION BULGARIA:

Anarchism is worldwide, perhaps even more so now than in its 'golden age'. It is also internationalist to the core and defends the right of free movement across the world. Here's a report from the A-Infos website about a demonstration in Bulgaria against detention of immigrants in that country. I've done my best to edit it into proper English.

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Bulgaria, Repost from Protest in front of the detention center

Here is a small report from yesterday.... Sofia, Bulgaria - On March 20, 2010 at the "Home for the temporary accommodation of foreigners" in the quarter of Busmanci from 11 am to 13 pm we held a peaceful protest rally against arbitrariness and repression against immigrants and in defense of their human rights.

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We gathered about 40 people to protest against this antihuman place demanding the immediate release of the people in general and also against the state policy against people detained there. The protest was organized by the Civil Initiative Committee and the Federation of Anarchists in Bulgaria.

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Anarohsaprotiva was attended by activists, lawyers, friends of the detainees at the center, bloggers, and citizens. Despite good weather and previously sent press releases - the place had a TV and 2 journalists. No cameraman nor any other journalists.

However, police were in place, ie before the high walls of prison long before the protesters. A video-duty cop was also at his post. The people in the prison had been informed of the protest and thus people stood at the bars. Dozens of hands with Victory sign passed through the narrow bars. Many of the people inside were tied hand and mouth with rags, probably torn sheets. Many showed photos through the bars of their children. There were handmade banner with the inscription Busmantzi -Freedom;. Throughout there was chanting - "Guantanamo, Freedom, Human Rights We Want Freedom" ... attempts at chanting in Bulgarian.

The protesters distributed a leaflet on the problem and the newspaper "Free Thought". the leaflet was read during the megaphone, was a short talk by a former prisoner at center. Chants were in Bulgarian and English, slogans such as "There's no Illegal people," "Papers for All or No Papers at All!", The freedom of movement is everybody's right, we are here and we will fight", "Busmanci - Guantanamo", "No borders, no nations stop the deportation" and others.

There was a short parade down the street to the jail. Police did not intervene, and after half an hour the protesters withdrew, arguing before the final closed that "we will be back, this is only the beginning". People waved for a long time through the bars and shouted "Thank you" while the group went away.

This was the first protest in Bulgaria for the rights of immigrants and refugees ever....Pictures here

:http://bulgaria.indymedia.org/article/36611

LGB, AS group Sofia.

INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-BULGARIA:

SOLIDARITY WITH QUEER BULGARIA:

The following item first came to Molly's attention via the Europe section of the Anarchist Black Cat Discussion board. It is originally from the International Queer Solidarity Network.

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Solidarity with Queer Bulgaria: 27 June 2009:

The International Queer Solidarity Network calls for a European mobilization, with support from the United States, that will stand in solidarity with Queer Bulgaria. On June 28th 2008, neo-Nazi groups aggressively attacked the first LGBTQ Pride march in Sofia, Bulgaria. A week before the march, the Bulgarian National Alliance, the most visible nationalist organization in the country, called for a “week of intolerance.” The BNA strongly encouraged nationalistic groups to organize themselves against the right of the queer community in Bulgaria to peacefully march, which resulted in loosely organized violence during the festivities.(I find it pleasant that the other side can be at least as "loosely organized" as we anarchists all too often are-Molly)

BNA members and other neo-Nazis threw molotov cocktails and small explosives at the participants of the Pride march. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. However, more than eighty skinheads, including Boyan Rasate (head of the BNA) were arrested for their attempted harm and direct violence toward pride participants. This year neo-Nazi groups are once again organizing themselves against the march and Bulgarian queers’ ability to defend their human rights. The Bulgarian government not only tolerates but also encourages such attitudes. Two of the parties in the Parliament of Bulgaria are nationalistic and one of them, Ataka, called for “the men to beat up the gays.”

In addition, the Prime Minister of Bulgaria and head of the “socialist” party, Sergei Stanishev, subtly, through hidden sparks of hatred, said that he did not like the “manifestation and demonstration of such orientations.” Even though the rights of LGBTQ people in Bulgaria are protected by the constitution, this is yet more empty rhetoric in the hands of the powerful. The queer community refuses to give up its rights to a free assembly. There will be another Pride march on the 27th of June 2009. Let’s unite and stand together against the homophobic and transphobic state of Bulgaria and growing neo-Nazism in Europe.

The International Queer Solidarity Network calls for a European mobilization, with support from the United States, that will stand in solidarity with Queer Bulgaria. For more information on how you can help you can contact: iqsn@riseup.net or sofiagaypride2009@gmail.com If you cannot attend the Pride, visit http://www.iqsn.org/ for more information on how you can help. www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6oz3yeW5yo

e-mail:

iqsn@riseup.net

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For those curious about what the International Queer Solidarity Network is all about see the following statement from their website.

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About Us:
The International Queer Solidarity Network is a developing network of collectives and individuals working to strengthen the global movement of queer liberation. IQSN brings to light the injustices faced by the Queer community world-wide, and builds global solidarity with local struggles. IQSN is part of the larger movement building a world that is free from oppression of all people, including queer and trans people.
Points Of Unity:
* Our work thrives to provide a true sense of total liberation for everyone as we desire to live in a world that is free from discrimination, hatred and intolerance.

* We support a diversity of tactics, ranging from web-based and person-to-person education, to electoral/legislative campaigning to direct action and militant resistance.

* We stand in solidarity and support the tactics used by the community most affected.

* We oppose domination and hierarchy in all it’s forms.

* We value the skills and wisdoms(sic-Molly) possessed by the many different cultures in our world, and support the right to cultural self-determination.

* We believe that governments and institutions are violent and oppressive forces to queer and trans people and other marginalized peoples.

* As part of a global movement towards universal liberation, we recognize the interconnectedness of all forms of oppression. Queer and trans people will not be free until all people are free! and that means you, muthafuckas!!!

* We are in solidarity with all groups and individuals working to end oppression on institutional, socialized, and inter-personal levels.

BULGARIA:

ANARCHISM IN BULGARIA-AN INTERVIEW:

The following is from a website that I have recently discovered, Autonomy Land. To say the least I am unfamiliar with the orientation of this site, but they have presented an interview about an important anarchist movement in eastern Europe. Bulgaria has always had an active anarchist movement, and this is still true today.This anarchist movement has had a exemplary history of "class stuggle". The following interview should be viewed in the light of the USA "anarcho-nut" organization , Crime Think, attempting to extend its imperial influence across the world(US imperialism in its purest form). Unfortunately many anarchists in various countries meet anarchism via such perversions of the the idea. It should be known that there is a "class struggle" anarchist organization in Bulgaria, and that many of the younger anarchists will eventually gravitate towards such wheh they realize the futility of immitating American subcultures. Here's the interview.

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Anarchy in Bulgaria: An Interview

A Bulgarian organizer and ‘zine publisher describes current anarchist projects in his country, discussing how Really Really Free Markets work in an eastern European context and addressing the local relevance of CrimethInc. texts from the United States. Contacts are included for those hoping to connect with anarchists between Sofia and the Black Sea.

Q: Describe your group: how many people are involved, how long have you been active, how do you make decisions together? What projects have you been involved in?

A: :I am part of 2 groups. The one is called “Anarchosaprotiva” (AnarchoResistance). It is based in Sofia and now we are something like 6-10 people. The group has been active since 2001. I joined this in 2004. We have a meeting every week. We don’t have any particular scheme to talk and make decisions.

It’s more like a friendly conversation and when we have ideas to do some action all of us should agree and get consensus about the thing, but everyone is free to do whatever he/she wants outside of the group. The group used to publish a monthly leaflet called “Anarchosaprotiva” as part of the Bulgarian anarchist newspaper “Svobodna Misal” (Free Thought). Now there are a lot of changes in the newspaper which is published by FAB (federation of the anarchists in Bulgaria) and this supplement is stopped being publish in the newspaper. The group has done a lot small protests actions against the militarization and the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. We and our Greek friends from Anti-Authoritarian Movement Thessaloníki organized a No Border Camp in Bulgaria and No Border Actions in Greece to support the freedom of movement and the illegal immigrants jailed in a illegal detention center in Venna (Greece). Some of us also have been part of the Food Not Bombs group here in Sofia which lasted for 6 months but now is dead. We have also done some creative anti-elections actions and took part in a lot of ecological protests. We put out some anarchist leaflets and distribute them during protests, concerts and at some video screenings that we organize.This year we also organized 2 times a Free Festival (Really Really Free Market).

I am also part of another group based in Razgrad. It’s not an official group. We are just a bunch of friends that do some small local actions. We are 5-6 people. The best thing is that we have started organizing this Free Festival since last year. Now a lot of people are enthusiastic by this idea of free sharing. We are very happy that we opened an Infocenter in Razgrad. It is open once a week for a couple of hours. We are a little dependent on the owners of the building. It is some school center project but the people running this place are very nice and gave us 1 big room to put literature and movies and we organize video screenings, presentation and music concerts there. My other side project is this Katarzis zine. I started doing it 2 years ago inspired by CrimethInc. I translated some texts and then got the idea to put them together, so this is how everything started. Now some people have started to help me. we write news about actions in Bulgaria, interview anarchist bands and write some our texts.

Q: Which anarchist communities outside Bulgaria do you have the most interactions with and influence from? Greece, the US, Turkey, other places?

A:

Maybe the most interactions we had with Anti-Authoritarian Movement from Thessaloníki (Greece), but we also have connections with a lot of anarchist groups around Europe. Now we get in touch with People’s Global Action network and will try to organize local Balkan network amongst the activist communities to share information, ideas, to support each other and to do some international action together. We have been influenced by the anarchist communities all around the world, but for most of us the biggest influenced is the CrimethInc. Collective.

Q:

How many of the projects you carry out in Bulgaria are based on formats (such as the Really Really Free Market) that you have imported from other contexts, and how have you adjusted them to fit the context in Bulgaria?

A:

We have started with 2 projects based on such “formats” and one is now dead. Some of us were part of a Food Not Bombs group in Sofia. The idea fitted for the context in Sofia, because it is big and developed city following the western pattern. Bulgaria is also part of NATO and spent a lot of money on military actions and support the war in Iraq and Afghanistan so it was good idea to do such kind of actions. There are also a lot of homeless people in Sofia and we decided to help them in someway and to distribute antimilitaristic and vegetarian propaganda at the same time. We were collecting food from 2 big markets and from a couple of restaurants and bakeries. We managed to build good infrastructure and we did actions every Sunday for near six months, but then the summer came and most of the people hit the road and when the autumn came we were very few left, organized 3 more actions and then everything died. The other project based on such a “format” is this Free Festival we have started doing since last autumn. We have heard about this initiative in the USA and thought this was great idea and could be started here in Bulgaria. I think this is a universal model and could be put into action everywhere all around the world. In some countries there is this consuming way of life and the people could share the things they don’t need instead of throwing them; in other countries which are undeveloped there isn’t an excess of such kinds of goods, but the people could share other things like food, skills, songs, any kind of art, etc.… I think this is one of the best examples of what anarchy in practice is

Q: .In what ways is it different to hold a Really Really Free Market in Razgrad or Sofia than it is to hold one in the USA?

I think there isn’t a big difference. Maybe the only difference is the living standard of the people. So while you could find a stereo system or a computer at a USA Really Really Free Market, this is almost impossible at a Bulgarian Really Really Free Market. The people here share mostly old clothes, shoes, books, music CDs, and toys. We try not to limit the event to be only a free market for products, but as a free zone where everyone is stimulated to take part, to play, to dance, to live a free life. And the good of this event is that everyone contributes to it. We only give the idea and set the date about it and the people come and do it.

Q: Do you feel the public response to Really Really Free Markets is different in countries that used to have a “communist” government than it is in countries that have always been openly capitalist? Or is the relation to property the same?

A: I don’t think that there is big difference in the public response. Bulgaria was under “communist” government 40 years and the last 17 years of “democracy” have opened the door to unrestrained capitalism. So most of the people in Bulgaria have started to behave like the others in the Western world.

Q: You mentioned taking some influence from CrimethInc. In the United States, some people criticize CrimethInc. by saying that the ideas associated with it are only relevant to middle class people in wealthy countries, that poor people outside the USA can have no use for them. Looking at this question from Bulgaria, what is your perspective on this critique? What have the responses been to the texts you’ve translated? What have people found useful and what has not been useful? How have you changed things to make them more useful, or decided which things to focus on when picking things to translate?

A: Maybe it’s true that most of the CrimethInc. tactics are not relevant for poor countries(or for anything anywhere-Molly). For example, dropping out in a way of quitting your job and make a living by dumpster diving is extremely hard and almost impossible in Bulgaria. I agree with the idea of not supporting the capitalist system at all but sometimes and especially if you are alone it’s almost impossible to be out of this system and you need to work in order to survive. But I still think that if you live collectively with close-minded friends you could arrange your life in an alternative way. Most of the Roman (Gypsy) people in Bulgaria are kind of drop outs and they are still alive and exist somehow. This critique on such kind of CrimethInc. tactics exists here, too. Even some anarchists from FAB (Federation of the Anarchists in Bulgaria) blame us that we are fake and pseudo anarchists following the “modern” Western anarchism, that we are some kind of hippies and distract the attention from the main enemy which is “the state and the capital.” So we are also being criticized and have some conflicts even in the anarchist circles. But on the other hand I see that a lot of young people are interested in the projects we do. Most of the people like the zine we do and I think that the most inspiring thing is this romantic anarchism. In the beginning the zine was only consisted of translations from Days of War, Nights of Love and Recipes for Disaster. Some of them were not useful for the situation in Bulgaria, but it’s always nice to get some new ideas. We try to put these ideas into action and to change them to suit for the situation in Bulgaria.

Food Not Bombs was one of these projects. It’s possible to do it in Sofia because it’s a big city, but sometimes we were not able to collect enough food so we had to buy some stuff. We wanted to organize a Food Not Bombs group in Razgrad too, but it didn’t happen. It’s kind of impossible. We were looking for leftover food at the market but it’s almost nothing for us. So we decided to try this Really, Really Free Market and it has suited perfectly for this small town. First—the idea is great and the people are likely to share, second—nothing interesting happens in Ragzrad and event of this kind attracts a lot of attention, even the local media was interested and supported us. We were also looking for a place to squat and do an infoshop, but there are very few abandoned houses, which in most of the cases are almost destroyed. So we got in touch we some institutional organization (a school center) and asked for a place. They liked the idea for an alternative infocenter and gave us a hand. So we have this infocenter now, we are a little dependent on the building owners and could not do whatever we want in there but for now this is the best project we have done.

Q: What are the best ways anarchists in North America can support the projects of anarchists in the Balkans?

A: Sometimes even an encouraging word is enough to make you feel better and continue the fight. When we are desperate the only thing that help us to not give up is to know that we are not alone, that there are other people like us around the world fighting for a better life. I am not sure what are the best ways anarchists in North America could support the anarchist projects in the Balkans. Maybe first we have to get in touch and get to know each other, to exchange information and ideas about the projects we do, to share books and other propaganda materials.

Q: Please give a list of projects and groups in Bulgaria that could be useful to anarchists in the rest of the world, with contact information for each one.

A: Infocenter “Ecotopia” – this is an alternative information center based in Razgrad. It has a reading space and library with various anarchistic, environmental, anarchafeminist, animal rights, subcultural etc. materials. The place is open for video screenings, discussions, concerts, exhibitions, etc.… so anyone who is passing nearby get in touch: infocenter.ecotopia@gmail.com

*Autonomous anti-authoritarian group “AnarhoSaprotiva” – this is an anarchist group based in Sofia. http://www.aresistance.net/ ; aresistance@riseup.net

*Katarzis zine – this is a zine with news from the local anarchist scene, some texts about everyday anarchism, environmentalism, animal rights, anarchafeminism, practical tips and interviews with music bands:

katarzis@riseup.net

http://www.music.a-bg.net/

– this is an online zine focused on the DIY scene with a lot of information about actions, music, animal rights, practical tips, etc. . .

sfti.diy@gmail.com

http://www.a-bg.net/

– this is an anarchist portal of FAB (Federation of the Anarchists in Bulgaria):

fab@a-bg.org

Thanks so much!

BULGARIA:

ENGLISH EDITION OF KATARZIS MAGAZINE:

Katarzis is a magazine published by a group of Bulgarian anarchists. These comrades have now issued issue #6 in an English version, downloadable as a pdf file from http://bulgaria.indymedia.org/application/11/yeas_of_resistance_print.pdf . The magazine contains some texts and reports of recent actions that the Bulgarian comrades have participated in. The group can be contacted at katarzis@riseup.net . In their own words,

"We wanted to share our ideas for a better world based on freedom, equality, mutual aid and solidarity....We try to destroy capitalism, hierarchy and prejudice and transform life into a joyous, carefree game played for the highest of stakes."

THE DEVIL HEADS BACK TO HIS DARK DOMINION:

US Beloved Comrade Leader Emperor George Bush II finished his tour of the outer provinces of the empire today and is back on his way to his satanic throne to plot death and destruction. His final stop on the tour was in Bulgaria where he received the homage of a regime arguably even more corrupt than his own, though with less opportunity to steal.

Molly failed to hop the baggage compartment in Airforce One as she has through previous legs of the emperor's procession. The Albanian airport security simply stole the goats she presented as a bribe. Poor Molly then had to round up three goats as payment for passage in a leaky tugboat heading towards Italy. As per usual the captain dropped off his passengers a mile off the coast, and we had to swim for it. You know how much cats hate water ! Molly hopes that the captain and crew are quite pleased when they find out that she used their shoes as litter boxes.

Turns out Molly didn't miss much. The only protest on the occasion of Bush's visit occurred a day before his arrival when a motley crew of right wing nationalists, communists and anti-fascists managed to contain their desire to attack each other just long enough to muster 200 people for a brief march and a speech. Bulgarian anarchists who previously mounted demonstrations on May Day and other occasions seem to have stayed away from this dog's breakfast.

Not that the Bulgarian government was making things easy for protesters. Heavy security was in place to make sure that nothing untoward disturbed the visit of the emperor. In the days prior to the visit residents of Sophia were informed that they were forbidden to even hang out washing lest it sully the image of the capital. Security sweeps rounded up beggars and squeegee kids. Even the trash that usually graces the streets of Sophia was ordered to be cleaned up. One wonders where it will all go. Molly has been reading accounts that Sophia's garbage has had the starring role in an almost year long comedy as it wanders from village to village looking for a home. Much larger protests than those about Bush's visit have been mounted by rural residents appalled by the idea that the trash is coming their way. Molly has a fantasy of garbage trucks with armed guards heading out into the countryside.

Well, that's it for now on the glittering trail of the emperor as he visited client kingdoms to the East. Bush came back with lots of loot, a drawing of St. Peters in Rome, and a copy of the autobiography of John Carroll, the first archbishop in the USA. Molly didn't even get a lousy teeshirt as they were all stolen by the Albanian border guards.

THOUSANDS PROTEST RADAR BASE IN PRAGUE:

Thousands of people gathered today near the building of the Czech Foreign Ministry and on a square near the famous Prague Castle to protest both the visit by US President George Bush and the reason that he is coming- to discuss the construction of an US radar base in the Brdy military area southwest of Prague. This radar apparatus is ostensibly to track missiles from "rogue states", but it has given great offense to the Russians who see its construction and the linked construction of an anti-missile base in Poland as aimed at them rather than any presumed "rogue state". The Russians have responded by saying that they have a "new missile" that can circumvent the anti-missile defences that the USA plans. Whether this is true or not is really a matter of personal choice. They have, however, also stated that they plan to have their missiles targeted on any component of the new missile defense system in eastern Europe, a much more serious threat that has led to large public opposition to the construction of such bases in eastern Europe.

The demonstrators held a mock trial of how Bush would be tried for war crimes after an anarchist revolution. To read more on this go to this a-infos report.

For those of Molly's readers who can read French there is an interesting article on a recent fact finding visit to eastern Europe by representatives of the International Relations Committee of the International of Anarchist Federations. They report on the state of anarchism in three countries, the Czech Republic, Belarus and Bulgaria. The report is not triumphalist, a fault that is all too common amongst certain "anarchists". It lays out both realistic numbers and the difficulties of the people in these three countries while still reporting their success. See the above article for more details.