[Peace-discuss] Fed Up With Austerity Policies, #Blockupy Storms Streets of Frankfurt

Fri Mar 20 10:31:06 EDT 2015

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

 <http://www.commondreams.org> Common Dreams

Fed Up With Austerity Policies, #Blockupy Storms Streets of Frankfurt

'There's a crisis in Europe, especially southern Europe, and people are
being asked to tighten their belts and we don't accept that,' says
anti-Troika organizer; Hundreds arrested after splinter group clashes with
riot police

 <http://www.commondreams.org/author/deirdre-fulton-staff-writer> Deirdre
Fulton, staff writer

Description:
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ines/blockupy.jpg?itok=rBs-6xys

The Blockupy protest on Wednesday coincided with the inauguration of the
European Central Bank's new $1 million building in Frankfurt, Germany.
(Photo: DPA)

Anti-austerity protests boiled over near the new headquarters of the
European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt on Wednesday, with hundreds of
people
<http://www.thelocal.de/20150318/blockupy-frankfurt-liveblog-anti-ecb-blocku
py-demo-in-frankfurt> arrested after an off-shoot from an otherwise peaceful
march clashed with police.

Around 10,000 anti-austerity protesters reportedly
<http://www.dw.de/violence-as-ecb-protest-begins-in-frankfurt/a-18322124>
gathered under the banner of #Blockupy-an alliance united against the
so-called 'Troika' of the ECB, the European Commission and the International
Monetary Fund who oversee bailout packages in the eurozone. The alliance
opposes the economic policies behind such packages, saying they harm the
poor and middle class.

 <http://www.dw.de/rage-against-the-ecb-whats-blockupy-against/a-18321709>
According to the German news service Deutsche Welle, the Blockupy network
"is composed of more than 90 organizations from across Europe-some big, some
small-that have united in opposition to what Blockupy calls 'the European
crisis regime'."

As Deutsche Welle reported on Tuesday:

Some of the bigger member organizations include the activist groups Attac,
founded in 1998 to advocate a financial transaction tax; the German
political party 'Die Linke' (The Left), which currently has a little over
ten percent of the seats in the national parliament; and even Germany's
second biggest union union, Verdi, which has over two million members.

Syriza, the leftist alliance party that won Greece's national election in
late January, is also a Blockupy member.

Around 100 high-profile guests, including ECB President Mario Draghi, were
expected to attend the opening of the ECB's new headquarters, which cost a
<http://www.wsj.com/articles/blockupy-protests-break-out-in-frankfurt-as-ecb
-opens-new-building-1426667947> reported $1 billion to build.

"We're doing this on the day of the inauguration because there's nothing to
celebrate,"
<http://www.wsj.com/articles/blockupy-protests-break-out-in-frankfurt-as-ecb
-opens-new-building-1426667947> said Hannah Eberle, a Blockupy spokeswoman.
"There's a crisis in Europe, especially southern Europe, and people are
being asked to tighten their belts and we don't accept that."

But BBC  <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-31938592> reports that "hopes
of a peaceful rally were dashed" early Wednesday:

Tyres and rubbish bins were set alight and police responded with water
cannon as firefighters complained they were unable to get to the fires to
put them out. One fire engine appeared to have had its windscreen broken.

Activists said many protesters had been hurt by police batons, water cannon
and by pepper spray.

According to news
<http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/mar/18/anti-capitalist-protesters-
clash-police-ecb-frankfurt-hq> reports, dozens of people were hurt and
hundreds arrested as demonstrators
<http://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2015/mar/18/blockupy-anti-ecb-prot
est-in-frankfurt-in-pictures> clashed with riot police.

Organizers of Wednesday's rally sought to distance themselves from those
perpetrating violence.

"We have two types of actions in today's protests, two sides," Slauke Loewe,
a member of Blockupy team,
<http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150318/1019660105.html> told Sputnik news
agency. "On the one hand in today's protest there are Blockupy actions that
are within our plan, thousands of people blocking the European Central Bank
because of the austerity policy, on the other hand we have the actions that
are not within our action plan. That is not what we were preparing for this
day. It has to be clearly said!"

Katja Kipping, leader of Germany's Left Party, which supported the Blockupy
actions,
<http://www.thelocal.de/20150318/blockupy-frankfurt-liveblog-anti-ecb-blocku
py-demo-in-frankfurt> stressed that "Most people demonstrated peacefully.
Unfortunately not everyone stuck to the consensus for the action. We want
that to change."

But the larger goal remains in place, she added: "We also want a
different...social policy in Europe."

Follow the #Blockupy actions on Twitter:

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<http://commons.commondreams.org/t/fed-up-with-austerity-policies-blockupy-s
torms-streets-of-frankfurt/6082> Top Comments

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wantrealdemocracy 

Mar 18 2015

Be happy! Very happy! The US's Bretton Woods/IMF/World Bankster system's
survival is threated by Blockupy! We need to get out on the streets here in
the belly of the beast to end the bankster's control of all life on Earth.
Look around you!! Can't you see the damage that is being done to us all by
the psychopathic people in control of the world economy and the government
of the United States. They call it 'violence' when people get so angry that
they break a window or spray paint on a building? Isn't the real violence
the destruction of our human and civil rights? We must respond to the
violence this rotten system and corrupt government is doing to the working
people of this nation. It is time to express our anger and scare the shit
out of our 'rulers'. We must get out on the street to demand a truly
democratic political system to share the wealth of our nation and care for
our people and our environment. 

Time is running out. When are you going to get angry and DO something the
change things?

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