Already on Saturday, 8 November, a prelude demonstration took place in Dannenberg [many pictures, report] with at least 6,000 people from all over Germany – more than last year and double the number expected by police and convenors. Twelve activists of both genders maintained an occupation of a mining pithead tower (like last week) at the final storage construction site in Gorleben and left it voluntarily after 12 hours [pictures]. Other actions continue: Rallye Monte Göhrde, tractor occupations ...
The first actions were carried out in the run-up, for example an attempt to undermine the railway track into the Göhrde forest area.

Many action groups have prepared for the transport in various parts of the country (including Bremen/Hamburg, Göttingen, Biblis ...). This year again a call has gone out to the anti atomic movement to stop the Castor before it gets to the Wendland (Gorleben) area. The last transport had to make a whole series of unplanned stops that delayed it for more than 10 hours. [see Überblick: Castor 2002]... There is another call out [see Aufruf, bundesweit dezentrale Protest-Aktionen] to mount nationwide decentralised protests against the railway corporation. As in previous years, some of the bourgeois press is trying to demotivate the resistance with false reports. Police director Friedrich Niehörster, successor to Hans Reime has set up a propaganda department [see Propaganda-Abteilung].

Atomic weapons and nuclear energy (Atomwaffen und Nuklearenergie), live streaming of the free radios (Live-Stream), up top the minute bulletins (NiX-live-Ticker), organisational matters (Organisatorisches), where is the Castor? (Wo ist der Castor?).

_1 Situation on Sunday, 9.11.

The Castor transport is expected at the reloading crane in Dannenberg on Tuesday – or later? Depending on how often it is blocked on the rail route. Like in November 02 12 Castor containers are transported by one train, and no more is possible. The exact running schedules of the Castor trains through France were declared a military secret in September. Anyone publishing details about them in France risks fine or jail penalties. Despite this, times kept being published, an act of civil disobedience of the constantly grown French anti-atomic movement. The Castor train could already be blocked in France. On Saturday the 8th the traditional prelude demonstration took place in in Dannenberg. More than 6,000 people from all over Germany took part. The Farmers’ Emergency Community (Bäuerliche Notgemeinschaft) took part with almost 200 tractors. Camps and info points were manned/womanned).

An action focal point again this year was the town Lüneburg. Not only does the Castor train have to pass through it, it is also an important logistics junction for the police; as well, in the district administration sit many of those politically responsible for the Castor transport and the police deployment for it. Multi-faceted actions are planned there, too.

In the Wendland area the resistance is concentrated on the "Regio Aktiv" in the Göhrde Forest along the railway line from Lüneburg to Dannenberg. Many actions are also planned in and around the town Hitzacker, a camp, and in the three resistance villages Gusborn, Grippel and Laase.

With a call to attend a „Castoral country party“ (Castorellen Landpartie) the Lüchow-Dannenberg Civic Action Group is trying to mobilise more peoplwe into the Wendland this year and show protest along the Castor route with cultural events.

There were several actions in the run-up: an attack on the railway track at Heidelberg, undermining with water of the rail track in the Göhrde Forest (in der Göhrde).

_2 Criminalisation of activists

"Registered demonstrations are forbidden from 10 November, non-registered ones from 8 November until the end of the transport,“ states an edict (Verfügung) of the district government of Lower Saxony, against which an appeal (Widerspruch) has been filed. The build-up of infrastructure in Lüneburg was obstructed, in Karlsruhe known atomic opponents were served with demonstration bans Demonstrationsverbote) in advance and had their accommodations searched (Hausdurchsuchungen). But male and female police also face legal actions over perjury (Prozess wegen Meineid. Mehr zum Thema).

The media are also contributing substantially to criminalisation of the resistance by allowing themselves to be misused as propaganda instruments. As well as freely invented reports about perpetrators of violence, they attempt to demotivate activisists with false or distorted news. The police have set up their own special propaganda unit (Propaganda-Abteilung, see also Castor: Einsatzleiter ist ein notorischer Lügner, Castor police chief a notorious liar). At the same time independent journalists are restricted in their movements, threatened of directly attacked (direkt angegriffen). For more about the info war strategy of the police see Info-War-Strategie der Polizei.

Weitere Beiträge:

* Breaking news in English  http://de.indymedia.org/2003/11/65609.shtml

* German feature with breaking news (in german)  http://de.indymedia.org/2003/11/65509.shtml