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SWP Cyprus, Cyprus "Indymedia"

clandestina | 18.01.2011 14:07 | Indymedia

SWP on Cyprus "Indymedia"

To IMC Athens and IMC Patras

Intervention in the current dialogue concerning Cyprus Indymedia

For the left, the media constitute a field of battle – on the one hand the big establishments of big editors that own and control newspapers, tv stations and radio stations and the on the other hand the common people, NGOs and activists that are trying to promote their positions as alternative information. This was the aim behind the idea of the first alternative network of information indymedia which started in 1999 in Seattle during the first mobilisations against neoliberal globalisation. In the process indymedia spread in almost all the countries of the planet and developed not only as alternative sources of information but also as a means with which NGOs and activists fighting against the capitalist system, state repression and oppression, against war, racism and nationalism could raise their voice. The case of Cyprus indymedia constitutes one of the exceptions. In the last years Cyprus indymedia has been on a declining and politically degenerating course. The editorial team that calls itself “community” not only is absent from any participation or support in the mobilisations of the movement, but we believe has passed on the opposite side. This was evident in the mobilisations against the murder of Alexis Grigoropoulos (December 2008) and in the anniversary of his murder (December 2009) in the bi-communal event honouring persons who saved the lives of Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots during the conflicts in Cyprus, in the bi-communal event for the day of peace on 1st September (2009) in Cheting Kayia (stadium in the buffer zone), the anti-racist mobilisation against the big police operation “broom” (targeting undocumented migrants) of the Cypriot police in the old Nicosia within the walls and even recently in the anti-fascist mobilisation against the hate marches of the Nazi ELAM (December 2009 and November 2010). Especially with respect to the mobilisations against ELAM, not only was there an attempt through their articles to equate the fascists with the anti-fascists but indirectly there was also an attempt to de-criminalise the fascists of ELAM since all of us the anti-racists were nothing else (for them) but the “red” version of “black” fascism. Moreover they have attacked individuals and organisations that have participated in these mobilisations. In their web-page they argue positively about or even republish articles by nationalists and far right wing organisations just because they, like themselves, oppose a solution to the Cyprus problem with what they call “apartheid federation”. Examples include Emprosthofylakas and Epalxi (with links to Drasis Kes). Furthermore the recent articles of this “community” smells gossip - like “political dirt”, mixed with personalised attacks akin espionage, with “revelations” about the private lives of persons belonging in other “opposing” groups of the autonomist movement. To sum up, we believe that the Cyprus Indymedia covers itself behind the ideology/aims of indymedia, presenting itself as a “community” of the “autonomous” and broader radical left movement. “Autonomy” “left” anti-imperialism and “anti-racism” is the fig leaf of Cyprus indymedia under which in essence they promote the nationalist line, and the line of the “rejectionist” front – that brings together besides the Church, nationalist organisations and parties that oppose the coexistence with the Turkish Cypriots under any federal form – in relation with the Cyprus problem and not only that. The “Workers' Democracy” has expressed its position distancing itself form the Cyprus Indymedia a long time ago with a letter sent to the editorial group of Cyprus Indymedia. The reason was because they tried to use Workers' Democracy as a “allibi” to present themselves as a part of the space or the movement of the radical left. And this was because of their participation 6 years ago in the bi-communal platform “Stop the war coalition- Cyprus” where our organisation is one of the main fractions.

Organosi Ergatiki Demokratia - 16 January 2011
www.wd-ist.org – E-mail:  wd@workersdemocracy.net

 http://falies.com/2011/01/18/%cf%80%ce%b1%cf%81%ce%ad%ce%bc%ce%b2%ce%b1%cf%83%ce%b7-%cf%83%cf%84%ce%b7%ce%bd-%cf%84%cf%81%ce%ad%cf%87%ce%bf%cf%85%cf%83%ce%b1-%cf%83%cf%85%ce%b6%ce%ae%cf%84%ce%b7%cf%83%ce%b7-%ce%b3%cf%8d%cf%81-2/

clandestina

Comments

Hide the following 2 comments

It would be Fair...

18.01.2011 15:43

to add the Collective Responses by Cyprus IndyMedia and the various Statements of Support that it has received.

They are here:  http://cyprus.indymedia.org/
or
 http://cyprusindymedia.org/

A. From the Collective:
1.
Cyprus IndyMedia Collective Responds to Accusations from Athens and Patra IndyMedia
 http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2011/01/cyprus-indymedia-collective-responds-to.html

2.
Another Collective Response by Cyprus IndyMedia to New Accusations
 http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2011/01/another-collective-response-by-cyprus.html

B. Statements of Support:
1.
Regarding the attack against Cyprus Indymedia by the para-state apparatus
by the Efylakas Editorial Team
 http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2011/01/regarding-attack-against-cyprus.html

2.
A Comrade from Turkey Speaks Out
by BarkIn KarslI, comrade from Turkey
 http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2011/01/comrade-from-turkey-speaks-out.html

also at:
 http://lists.indymedia.org/pipermail/imc-europe/2011-January/0116-fc.html

3.
Cyprus Indymedia: The struggle of memory against forgetting
by Mitchel Cohen, Green Party/ Brooklyn Greens, Red Balloon Collective, No Spray Coalition
 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/greensabroad/message/739

~~~~~~~~~~

Petros Evdokas
mail e-mail: petros@cyprus-org.net
- Homepage: http://petros-evdokas.cyprus-org.net/Another-sort-of-Introduction.html


Cyprus "Indymedia"

18.01.2011 17:45

To the global indymedia network

We are 4 groups involved in the antiauthoritarian, anarchist, libertarian and anti-racist movement in Cyprus.

We would like to confirm the fact that the indymedia Cyprus is hijacked by certain persons that have nothing to do with the radical movement of our country.

On the contrary, Cyprus indymedia is used in order to attack the various actions of the movement: anti-fascist, anti-racist or anti-nationalist, defending public spaces and alternative structures such as our collective library etc. The various lies and the conspiracy theories that are constructed by the administrators can be easily seen for what they are by everybody.

We will only give one example of the paranoia experience. In December 2009 they claimed that anti-authoritarians were planning to burn the city (Nicosia) in an event on the anniversary of the murder of Alexis Grigioropoulos and the revolt that followed it in Greece. The reason for this was a poster that was circulated with a photograph from a molotov cocktail thrown in Athens. (Needless to say when naturally that nothing happened, they came out and said that it was them that saved the city!).

In contrary their stance vis a vis nationalist movements is positive. They advertise nationalist actions through their webpage with the pretext of their “anti-occupation struggle” and their opposition to a federal solution in Cyprus. (Even two days ago they advertised an event of the far-right wing enosist Ανεξάρτητη Φοιτητική ΕΠΛΑΞΗ of Cyprus University (  http://epalxi.net/) the sister group of ΔΡΑΣΙΣ ΚΕΣ. Both the above groups support and promote the idea of the annexation of Cyprus with Greece).

We consider that indymedia is a conquest of the libertarian anti-authoritarian movement and that the specific case of Cyprus indymedia is clearly an abberation. We expect that the dialogue that has started in this context will lead to results soon and that the blog that appears on your lists as indymedia Cyprus will be removed.
Please do not hesitate to contact us in case you need any additional information to reach your decision.

Comradely regards from Cyprus,

Enosi anarhikon
 http://enosianarxikon.blogspot.com/
 enosi_anarxikon@yahoo.com

Falies eleftheriako diktio
 http://falies.com/
 falies@mail.org

Planodio steki dromou  http://steki-dromou.blogspot.com/
 stekidromou@gmail.com

Anti-ratsistiki protovoulia Lemesou  http://antiratsistiki.wordpress.com/
 antiratsistiki@gmail.com 

8th January, 2011

clandestina