Re: [Fwd: Police Raid Seminar on Economic Globalization] (fwd)

Tue, 01 Sep 1998 23:35:22 -0400 (EDT)
Peter Grimes (p34d3611@jhu.edu)

Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1998 08:26:12 -0400
From: Barbara Larcom <larcom@bcpl.net>
To: Peter Grimes <p34d3611@jhu.edu>
Subject: Re: [Fwd: Police Raid Seminar on Economic Globalization] (fwd)

Peter, I don't have "independent" confirmation, but I can tell you that
Carl Chatski told me about this on Friday about 7:00 p.m. He got it off
the Internet before 50 Years Is Enough even sent it out. I'll write and
ask him his source.

Richard Ragland could also just follow up with AGP/AMP Geneva Dispatch
<press-action@agp.org>, the apparent originators of this news, and ask
them for their source.

Barbara

Peter Grimes wrote:
>
> A verification would be useful here...HELP!!
> --P
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1998 08:52:17 +0200
> From: Richard Ragland <RRagland@csir.co.za>
> To: WORLD SYSTEMS NETWORK <wsn@csf.colorado.edu>
> Subject: Re: [Fwd: Police Raid Seminar on Economic Globalization] (fwd)
>
> Can anyone independently verify whether this is a real report or a
> joke?
>
> I find it unbelievable. Was there any reason given for the raid?
>
> Rick
>
> Richard Ragland
> Emerging Industries - Projects Manager
> Industry and Enterprise Development Programme
> CSIR
> P.O. Box 1124
> Port Elizabeth 6000
> South Africa
> Cell: 082-657-0506
> Tel: (041) 532131
> Fax: (041) 532325
> E-Mail: rragland@csir.co.za
>
>
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On Tue, 1 Sep 1998, Judge wrote:

> Date: Tue, 01 Sep 1998 17:19:06 +0000
> From: Judge <bernardo@gte.net>
> To: WORLD SYSTEMS NETWORK <wsn@csf.colorado.edu>
> Subject: Re: [Fwd: Police Raid Seminar on Economic Globalization] (fwd)
>
> Can this be verified?
>
> Judge
>
>
> Peter Grimes wrote:
>
> > ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> > Date: Sat, 29 Aug 1998 21:18:26 -0400
> > From: Barbara Larcom <larcom@bcpl.net>
> > To: Dave Schott <dschott@igc.apc.org>, Erika White <CLawC@aol.com>,
> > Frida Berrigan <disarmnow@aol.com>,
> > Leslie Bilchick <baltimoreaction@erols.com>,
> > Lynn Yellott <lyellott@erols.com>, Peter Grimes <p34d3611@jhu.edu>,
> > Walda Katz Fishman <wkatzfishman@igc.apc.org>
> > Subject: [Fwd: Police Raid Seminar on Economic Globalization]
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > Subject: Police Raid Seminar on Economic Globalization
> > Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 17:14:36 -0700 (PDT)
> > From: Njoki Njoroge Njehu <wb50years@igc.apc.org>
> > To: 50-years@igc.org
> >
> > ------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
> > Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 13:59:10 +0200 (CST)
> > From: Andreas Rockstein <anro0002@stud.uni-sb.de>
> > To: MAI-not <mai-not@flora.org>
> > Cc: AGP/AMP Geneva Dispatch <press-action@agp.org>
> > Subject: Police raid seminar on globalization and resistance (fwd)
> >
> > ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> > Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 03:20:15 +0200
> > From: AGP/AMP Geneva Dispatch <press-action@agp.org>
> > Subject: Police raid seminar on globalization and resistance
> >
> > Tel/Fax: +41 22 3444731
> >
> > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
> >
> > DATE: 27/8/98
> >
> > TO: Information Department
> >
> > FROM: International Globalisation and Resistance Seminar
> >
> > PRESS RELEASE:
> >
> > Police Raid International Seminar
> >
> > Early this morning, police raided a seminar being held in Geneva. Officers
> > illegally searched individuals and private belongings, detaining all 50
> > participants at the station. The detainees, from 17 different countries
> > and including a 6 year old girl from the Ukraine, were held for over 2
> > hours without explanation. Most were eventually released without charge.
> > However, 5 remained in police custody for yet another five hours. Four of
> > these were then released - the fifth is still in custody.
> >
> > The seminar was convened to discuss economic globalisation and its impact
> > on communities and the environment, as well as peoples' efforts to reclaim
> > control over their own lives. Speakers include international economists,
> > journalists, representatives of people's movements, and workers from human
> > rights and other non-governmental organisations. The world-renowned author
> > and President of the Observatoire de la Mondialisation, Susan George,
> > lectured all day on Tuesday 25th, and found, "a group of peaceful and
> > law-abiding young people". She "deplores the police actions and calls for
> > the immediate release of those detained."
> >
> > Without warning, the participants were rounded up into vans and taken to
> > the police station en masse, where they were subjected to lengthy identity
> > checks. This follows a week of close police surveillance. About forty
> > police officers, in a concerted action, entered the seminar site at 7.30am,
> > waking the guests, searching their accommodation without a warrant, and
> > confiscating personal property. They refused to give receipts for the
> > items, which included videos, notebooks, an artist's portfolio, personal
> > diaries and photographs, and the organisers' documents. Most of these have
> > not been returned as yet.
> >
> > It appears that the five who remained in custody were victimized as a
> > result of previous arrests during non-violent activities in May; one for
> > simply walking down the street. The reason for their detention, and their
> > location, remained undisclosed.
> >
> > When a woman from the seminar asked a policeman, "Isn't what you're doing
> > illegal?", he replied, "Yes, totally." Police were also overheard making
> > racist, sexist, and anti-Semitic comments. Taking a passport from the
> > stack, a policeman said, "Oh, that's the Jew!" A Bangladeshi charity
> > worker who had just been awoken was singled out for particularly offensive
> > treatment.
> >
> > A British writer said, "I'm still in shock. It seems that discussing our
> > common experiences about global problems and solutions is now a crime in
> > Switzerland." Another journalist from the Ukraine commented, "I thought I
> > was coming to a country that exemplified democracy." A Nepali human
> > rights worker summed up the group's feelings: "For me it is unthinkable
> > that such police action in violation of human rights should take place in
> > the same city as the UN Human Rights Commission headquarters."
> >
> > Under the steamroller of neoliberal globalisation, it seems that space for
> > public criticism faces increasing repression and the denial of civil and
> > political freedoms.
> >
> > -------------- Leaflet: ------------------
> >
> > DETAINED FOR DEBATE
> >
> > Police Raid International Seminar on Globalisation and Resistance
> >
> > At 7:30 am, Thursday 27th August, about 40 police officers raided the
> > seminar on Globalisation and Resistance being held in Cologny, Geneva. 50
> > participants, from 17 countries, were taken in riot vans to the local
> > police station.
> >
> > In addition, property, including videos, personal notebooks, and
> > photographs, were confiscated, and only returned a few hours later.
> > Everyone was detained for over 2 hours without explanation. Amongst them
> > was a 6 year old girl from the Ukraine. Most were released without charge.
> > 4 were kept for a further few hours, and were released on condition that
> > they leave Switzerland within 4 days. A fifth person is still being
> > detained, and her situation is still unclear. This raid followed a week of
> > police surveillance including helicopters as well as visits from uniformed
> > and plainclothes police.
> >
> > The 16-day seminar aims at critically challenging the hegemonic consensus
> > of neoliberal ideology. Neoliberalism elevates free trade to a provider of
> > great wealth and prosperity for all. The World Trade Organisation's
> > Director General Renato Ruggiero preaches the virtues of the free market,
> > with the prophecy of mobile telephones in the remotest parts of the planet.
> > But this is not the world we live in .
> >
> > The world we live in is increasingly coming under the control of
> > unaccountable, undemocratic, and highly centralised, transnational
> > institutions such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the
> > World Trade Organisation (WTO), and the European Union. Powerful tools for
> > the development of the neoliberal agenda are trade treaties such as the
> > proposed Multilateral Agreement on Investment and various other regional
> > trade agreements.
> >
> > Power and wealth are concentrating in the hands of transnational
> > corporations, such as Shell, Nestle, IBM, and Monsanto. Decision making
> > shifts further and further from local community control, and into the hands
> > of corporate lobby groups, such as the International Chamber of Commerce,
> > and the Geneva based World Economic Forum.
> >
> > Far from generating prosperity the world over, globalisation is causing
> > destruction of environ-ments, and great increases in poverty and misery
> > across the world. While integrating the world into a single global economy,
> > free trade is excluding and marginalising the overwhelming majority of the
> > world's inhabitants. The poor lose control of resources and local
> > economies. The effects of this are hunger, unemployment, forced migration,
> > increased marginalisation of women, destruction of eco-systems, cuts in
> > social services, violence, and general social collapse.
> >
> > As people increasingly show their unwillingness to submit to this global
> > order, nation states are responding with ever more repressive strategies.
> > Basic rights and freedoms which have been earned by hard struggle are being
> > rapidly eroded. This process could be seen in the hysterical police
> > response to the international non-violent actions in May against the WTO
> > and is now reappearing in this week's police raid.
> > The seminar has been entirely educational and consists of lectures and
> > discussions only. Speakers have included well-known people like Professor
> > Nanjundaswami from the Karnataka Farmers Movement of India and Susan
> > George, president of the Observatoire de la Mondialisation. We view this
> > police raid as a violation of basic political freedoms, like the right to
> > organise freely and to free speech.
> >
> > Rather than being intimidated, we would like to extend the seminar to a
> > wider audience. We invite you to come and participate in the seminar. Come
> > to the Palais de Justice, on friday 28th 8. at 4 p.m.
> >
> > We do so to heat up your adrenaline, to inspire your rage and to strengthen
> > your hope !!!
> >
> > --
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