In addition to the tradtitional family friendly 1st of may celebration by the ruling socialist party BSP, Anarchists today staged a protest in central Sofia. It came to some violence with he police.
More info here
Source: Novinite.com
Showing posts with label anarchists. Show all posts
Showing posts with label anarchists. Show all posts
Friday, May 1, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Interview with Aresistance
Introductionary note
Readers might be surprised why I choose to make interviews with groups not participating in the protests. I do this because I believe that readers with a western background like me easily will interpret the Bulgarian political landscape in familiar terms of left and right. Young people clashing with police in the streets is a long time hallmark of the militant left wing, and a close to yearly scene in cities like Berlin or Copenhagen.
Needless to say - this is not the case in Bulgaria. But to better understand this landscape, pretty far from Berlin or Copenhagen, I think it is necessary to also include the viewpoints from the non-participants.
Therefor I here publish an interview with an anarchist group called Aresistance, that did not take part in the protests. The original version of the interview in an email form in Bulgarian can be found here.
Interview
Q: Why did you not participate in the demonstrations 14 Jan 2009?
A: The answer can be found in the statement we published three days ahead of the demonstration. The shortest way to say it is: we don't want to participate in anything that hurts the cause we stand behind. Тhere were direct as indirect reasons. We had the information that this demonstration was not well prepared and that there would be provocations.
(I will make an English summary of the statement in the next post)
Q: Do you, as a political movement have any contacts with:
Q: Does it, according to you, have any significance at all who wins the elections 2009?
Q: What do you think about the protesters demands?
A: This prtoest was tactically confused from the very beginning, and with the lack of experience it was bound to fail. The demands were not, and are not, realistic. This turned into a classical populist protest, similar to the very system that they would like to reform.
Q: Many of the protesters ask for eurointegration. What's your understanding of Bulgarias role in the European Union? How can Europa help Bulgaria? How can Bulgaria help Europe?
A: Yes, you are right, this is a very prominent thesis among the ecologists - EU as a correctiv of the local power. They believe the pressure from the EU on Bulgarian politicians wil solve our problems. This is a complete dilusion. The idealization of the EU is one more myth. One forget to analyze, that a large part of the problems are conected to foreign investors, companies from the EU, and bhehind stand strong lobby groups and EU politicians. Bulgaria has a place in the EU only if the EU is built up on a democratic, transparent and free foundation. Currently this is not the case. Festung Europa serves only the elites!
Q: Which are the biggest problems in Bulgaria, according to you? (I don't know why I asked this twice ;) )
A: Theре is only one problem - the close relations between the mafia and the power. These are the same structures, thaty have haunted the whole life. The imitation of democratic proceedings, without any form of citizens' pressure and experience as a correctiv. The impossibility to organize serious, big unifications on social grounds , groups that protest and exist over time
Q: How do you propose to solve these problems?
A: Decentralisation and authonomy based on civic associations. The crushing of the party mafia and oligarchy. The creation of working alternatives to today's status quo.
Q: Which place do you see for internet, blogs and other new media in a democratic state?
A: On teh one hand this is a very powerful weapon, still out of control from the politicians. On teh otehr hand this comfortable anonymity works against, or rather substitutes for civil movements in the streets, in real life.
Please write a list of five things that is missing in Bulgaria, and five things of which Bulgaria has too much.
Missing
Solidarity
Counter culture
Democracy
Resistance
People
Too much of
Passivity
Consumerism
Stupidity
Chalga (Cheap brand of Bulgarian pop music)
Cops from DS (Darzhavna Sigurnost - the STASI of Communist Bulgaria)
(Great thanks to my special friend Annie for helping me with the interview :) )
Readers might be surprised why I choose to make interviews with groups not participating in the protests. I do this because I believe that readers with a western background like me easily will interpret the Bulgarian political landscape in familiar terms of left and right. Young people clashing with police in the streets is a long time hallmark of the militant left wing, and a close to yearly scene in cities like Berlin or Copenhagen.
Needless to say - this is not the case in Bulgaria. But to better understand this landscape, pretty far from Berlin or Copenhagen, I think it is necessary to also include the viewpoints from the non-participants.
Therefor I here publish an interview with an anarchist group called Aresistance, that did not take part in the protests. The original version of the interview in an email form in Bulgarian can be found here.
Interview
Q: Why did you not participate in the demonstrations 14 Jan 2009?
A: The answer can be found in the statement we published three days ahead of the demonstration. The shortest way to say it is: we don't want to participate in anything that hurts the cause we stand behind. Тhere were direct as indirect reasons. We had the information that this demonstration was not well prepared and that there would be provocations.
(I will make an English summary of the statement in the next post)
Q: Do you, as a political movement have any contacts with:
- The enviromentalists
- The protesting students
- Other organisations behind the protests ?
A: Yes, we have good, personal contacts with different people, and we know what is going on in these groups.
Q: Does it, according to you, have any significance at all who wins the elections 2009?
A: Of course there is, but this is not a question of new politicians and a new ethic in the political life - this is rather a tactical queston for the activists at a reshuffeling within the oligarchical lobby - if it the field will be opened for for the movements of civil organisations, or if the new government will adopt adopt a harder attitude towars all kinds of protests.
Q: Which are the biggest problems in Bulgaria, according to you?
Q: Which are the biggest problems in Bulgaria, according to you?
A: The oligarchic model and the lack of a civil opposition to these practices. The political apathy and the educational system, that produces politically litterate young people.
Q: What do you think about the protesters demands?
A: This prtoest was tactically confused from the very beginning, and with the lack of experience it was bound to fail. The demands were not, and are not, realistic. This turned into a classical populist protest, similar to the very system that they would like to reform.
Q: Many of the protesters ask for eurointegration. What's your understanding of Bulgarias role in the European Union? How can Europa help Bulgaria? How can Bulgaria help Europe?
A: Yes, you are right, this is a very prominent thesis among the ecologists - EU as a correctiv of the local power. They believe the pressure from the EU on Bulgarian politicians wil solve our problems. This is a complete dilusion. The idealization of the EU is one more myth. One forget to analyze, that a large part of the problems are conected to foreign investors, companies from the EU, and bhehind stand strong lobby groups and EU politicians. Bulgaria has a place in the EU only if the EU is built up on a democratic, transparent and free foundation. Currently this is not the case. Festung Europa serves only the elites!
Q: Which are the biggest problems in Bulgaria, according to you? (I don't know why I asked this twice ;) )
A: Theре is only one problem - the close relations between the mafia and the power. These are the same structures, thaty have haunted the whole life. The imitation of democratic proceedings, without any form of citizens' pressure and experience as a correctiv. The impossibility to organize serious, big unifications on social grounds , groups that protest and exist over time
Q: How do you propose to solve these problems?
A: Decentralisation and authonomy based on civic associations. The crushing of the party mafia and oligarchy. The creation of working alternatives to today's status quo.
Q: Which place do you see for internet, blogs and other new media in a democratic state?
A: On teh one hand this is a very powerful weapon, still out of control from the politicians. On teh otehr hand this comfortable anonymity works against, or rather substitutes for civil movements in the streets, in real life.
Missing
Solidarity
Counter culture
Democracy
Resistance
People
Passivity
Consumerism
Stupidity
Chalga (Cheap brand of Bulgarian pop music)
Cops from DS (Darzhavna Sigurnost - the STASI of Communist Bulgaria)
(Great thanks to my special friend Annie for helping me with the interview :) )
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