general report from lausanne
ronya | 30.05.2003 18:31
Report Laussane
An empty city – image of a faraway town in the Far East. Like a ghost town, windy, there is nobody and nothing. This is the city centre of Lausanne. People have disappeared. The shops have closed and are boarded up. The movement of people present until yesterday is strangely vanished today. It is silence and people walk fast, as fearing each other (?) The smell of rain begins to make its presence.
It seems as mass media served their mission: spreading fear, danger and terror. Today two people in the tram were speaking in a low voice about the fear they felt that ‘those demonstrators’ had began arriving to the city, near by were we sitting – the ‘enemies of the peace’. This was the victory of media – victory because they manage to deflect the attention from the issues of the anti g8 protests. They call the demonstrations=chaos, riots=the police violence and repression.
It was therefore – the pink and silver block demonstrated yesterday – to demystify the media campaign and to come closer to people and tell what the g8 is about – and how this concerns all citizens. In a way it affects the lives of everybody. To show that activists are not violent, have reasons why to be there, strong reasons why everybody should try to stop the g8 meeting.
The police is everywhere: on alert, awaiting. Helicopters are circulating around the area. The police presence is incredible, only walking a few blocks you can see police- motorcycles, vans. One can hear helicopters, ambulances, and police cars/vans non-stop everywhere.
Yesterday the authorities began to close the borders, not explicitly but people that wanted to cross from Italy to France were blocked. The black lists they call it, it’s easier to cross through the Swiss border.
In the alternatives camping sites is the place were you feel the life. The organization of activities, such as food, cleaning is in the order of the day. The assemblies, aim to be points of information and people intervene and participate without intimidation.
es
An empty city – image of a faraway town in the Far East. Like a ghost town, windy, there is nobody and nothing. This is the city centre of Lausanne. People have disappeared. The shops have closed and are boarded up. The movement of people present until yesterday is strangely vanished today. It is silence and people walk fast, as fearing each other (?) The smell of rain begins to make its presence.
It seems as mass media served their mission: spreading fear, danger and terror. Today two people in the tram were speaking in a low voice about the fear they felt that ‘those demonstrators’ had began arriving to the city, near by were we sitting – the ‘enemies of the peace’. This was the victory of media – victory because they manage to deflect the attention from the issues of the anti g8 protests. They call the demonstrations=chaos, riots=the police violence and repression.
It was therefore – the pink and silver block demonstrated yesterday – to demystify the media campaign and to come closer to people and tell what the g8 is about – and how this concerns all citizens. In a way it affects the lives of everybody. To show that activists are not violent, have reasons why to be there, strong reasons why everybody should try to stop the g8 meeting.
The police is everywhere: on alert, awaiting. Helicopters are circulating around the area. The police presence is incredible, only walking a few blocks you can see police- motorcycles, vans. One can hear helicopters, ambulances, and police cars/vans non-stop everywhere.
Yesterday the authorities began to close the borders, not explicitly but people that wanted to cross from Italy to France were blocked. The black lists they call it, it’s easier to cross through the Swiss border.
In the alternatives camping sites is the place were you feel the life. The organization of activities, such as food, cleaning is in the order of the day. The assemblies, aim to be points of information and people intervene and participate without intimidation.
es
ronya