On Wednesday 25th May, police forced their way into the homes of 6 Padua University students. All have been active in the movement of recent student protests that have shaken several Italian cities, culminating in the December 14th mass protest in Rome. This follows the significant growth of the European movement fighting against attacks on labour rights, welfare cuts, and the marketisation of education, all under a common banner of “We won't pay your crisis”.
Following arrest and release without charges, the 6 students are now judically forced to reside in their homes which are not in Padova where they study, and respect the order of signing at a local police station 3 times per week. Last month a protest which the students attended clashed with a Lega Nord politican, a party known for it’s flirting with fascism, and regularly playing on themes of xenophobia and racism. The protest was brutally attacked by police, whilst the Lega Nord politican was left to continue his quite explicit promotion of intolerance and racism. This 'special precautionary measure' is an attempt to intimidate and repress those active in promoting a fairer social and economic system. It is self evident that the police are using these restrictions as an excuse to suspend the political activity of these students, and as a result the sanctions are becoming widely recognised as extreme, and a blatant act of political repression.
There is a new generation who are facing the consequences of unsustainable capitalist policies: a lifetime of precarious working conditions, growing inequalities, and growing disparity of wealth. Protests in Madrid, Athens, London, Rome, Egypt, and Tunisia have shown that this “generaciòn sin future” is fighting back, to claim the future, to create "democracia real", a system which is in the interests of the people, not a small corporate elite. What is clear is that governments, politicians, and economic special interest groups, are fearful of regular people who denounce those in power and fight for a different social system.
We will never surrender. We won't pay for your crisis. We will claim the future.
More info at:
www.globalproject.info www.unicommon.org Reality Shock