#1 Police evict squatters in Copenhagen; riots ensue
Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2007 11:31 pm
Okay, this story started a few days ago, but it seems to have rapidly gotten worse. I only caught wind of it today; I'm surprised there's not a thread already. I'll be posting news stories from the last few days documenting the various developments.
International Herald-Tribune, March 1
International Herald-Tribune, March 1
CNN, March 3Protesters pelt police during eviction of squatters in Copenhagen
The Associated Press
COPENHAGEN: Dozens of people were arrested after angry protesters threw cobblestones at the police Thursday as they began the eviction of squatters from a building in central Copenhagen.
Three people were treated for injuries, including a German citizen who was hospitalized after being hit in the head, according to a hospital spokeswoman. Two Danes were treated for minor injuries.
The highly publicized eviction has drawn anger from the squatters and others, who have viewed the former theater as free public housing for years.
Dozens of onlookers clashed with hundreds of police officers who took part in the eviction, which began shortly after 7 a.m. when a helicopter lowered members of Denmark's anti- terror police to the building's roof.
Officers with anti-riot gear then sealed off the surrounding streets as the police began removing squatters.
More than 70 people were arrested, including at least 35 people who had barricaded themselves inside the house. Dozens were arrested for throwing objects at officers, and trying to cross police lines. A police spokesman, Per Larsen, said foreign citizens were probably among those arrested, but he had no details on nationalities.
"The morning action happened with military precision," Larsen said. "It went by the book."
It was unclear how many people were inside the house when the eviction began.
Dozens of protesters quickly gathered behind police lines shouting "stop police brutality." Nearby shops, fearing riots, began boarding their windows.
Police monitored border crossings with Sweden and Germany because Danish squatters have used the Internet to call for foreign squatters to help.
In the southwestern city of Malmo, three men arrested for carrying flammable material and explosives were suspected of heading to Copenhagen to join the protests, another police spokesman, Merima Lulic, said.
They weren't kidding about anarchists coming from all over. Check this. New Zealand NewswireAnarchists join Danish protesters
POSTED: 0226 GMT (1026 HKT), March 3, 2007
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) -- Anarchists from across northern Europe flocked to join protesters in the Danish capital on Saturday after two nights of riots sparked by the eviction of squatters from an abandoned building that had been a center for young leftists and punk rockers.
More than 500 people, including scores of foreigners, have been arrested since the riots started Thursday.
Authorities said more than 200 were arrested early Saturday following overnight clashes in which demonstrators pelted police with cobblestones and set fire to cars.
A school was also vandalized and several buildings damaged by fire early Saturday. One protester was reportedly wounded in the violence, while 25 were injured the night before in what police have called Denmark's worst riots in a decade.
More scuffles were reported in various parts of the city Saturday night after a day of relative calm.
Dozens of police vans patrolled the streets and broke up gatherings of protesters to prevent larger mobs from forming. Police said several of those arrested were carrying Molotov cocktails or firecrackers, but that no major violence was reported.
Police said activists from Sweden, Norway and Germany had joined hundreds of Danish youth in the protests. Sympathy protests were held in Germany, Norway, Sweden and Finland.
Peter Vesterheden, the head of Copenhagen's prisons, said 25 foreigners had been arrested.
Critics said the demonstrations were misguided because they target a Scandinavian welfare state that ranks among the world's most egalitarian countries.
"The spoiled kids in the Youth House woke up to reality in Danish society where you have a job and pay rent," Anders Fredrik Mihle of the governing Liberal Party's youth wing said, referring to the building where the squatters had been evicted.
Like its neighbors, Denmark has a generous welfare system supported by high taxes. Education is free and health services are heavily subsidized. However, leftists have criticized the center-right government for eroding the system with proposed reforms including raising the retirement age and trimming student grants.
The protesters see their fight to keep the "Youth House," a four-story building used by young squatters since the 1980s, as symbolic of a wider struggle against a capitalist establishment.
"This is a display of anger and rage after more than seven years of struggle to keep what is ours," said Jan, a 22-year-old activist who has been coming to the building for the last 10 years. He declined to give his last name, saying that was the norm among people frequenting the building.
The riots were sparked when an anti-terror squad on Thursday evicted the squatters from the red brick building with graffiti-covered walls. Built in 1897, it was a community theater for the labor movement and a culture and conference center; Vladimir Lenin was among its visitors. In recent years, it has hosted concerts with performers like Australian Nick Cave and Icelandic singer Bjork.
As news of the riots spread, sympathizers around Europe rallied support for the protesters. The Danes warned like-minded foreigners Saturday that the borders were tightening after two nights of clashes had turned the normally quiet streets of Copenhagen into a battle zone.
"Solidarity among people has no borders, just like the Spanish civil war or the youth rebellion in the late 1960s. People recognize themselves in such causes," said Rene Karpantschof, a sociology lecturer at the University of Copenhagen and former squatter.
The eviction had been planned since last year, when courts ordered the squatters to hand the building over to a Christian congregation that bought it six years ago. The squatters said the city had no right to sell the building, and they demanded another building for free as a replacement.
Police spokesman Flemming Steen Munch said officers searched more than 10 homes in Copenhagen in an effort to track down activists. Meanwhile, vandals covered Copenhagen's famed Little Mermaid statue with pink paint, but Munch could not say whether the vandalism was linked to the riots.
Copenhagen residents had mixed feelings about the demonstrations.
"The idea of an alternative society is good," said Berit Larsen, 57, as she watched a peaceful demonstration against the eviction on Saturday afternoon. "We need to have room for everyone but the violence we have seen is not what I consider an alternative way for society."
It seems to be winding down now, though. International Herald-Tribune, March 4New Zealanders Among Arrested Copenhagen Protesters
12:55 pm, 05 Mar 2007
At least two New Zealanders have been arrested following squatter riots in Copenhagen and expelled from Denmark.
Violent protest erupted on the streets of Copenhagen last week after police used helicopters and water canon to evict squatters from a youth hostel in the city.
Copenhagen police superintendent Lars Borg says he can confirm two New Zealand men had been arrested, and it was surprising to find them among the 649 arrested protesters.
Superintendent Borg says the New Zealanders were fined and then expelled from Denmark.
(Note: I had to get the last article from the Printer-Friendly link; the main article appears to be blank.)Copenhagen rioting subsides
The Associated Press
Sunday, March 4, 2007
COPENHAGEN: Copenhagen residents were growing weary of street clashes Sunday after dozens of people were arrested in a third consecutive night of unrest triggered by the eviction of squatters from a youth center.
Neighborhood groups called for an end to the violence, while curious tourists ventured into the streets to snap pictures of charred car wrecks and groups of riot police.
"We wanted to see what has been at the center of the news in the past days," said Merete Toft, 42, while her family members, who came in from a Copenhagen suburb, posed for a picture in front of police officers.
Small groups of protesters threw rocks at the police and set fire to trash bins and barricades overnight Saturday, but the violence did not escalate into the full- scale riots of the two previous nights.
"We are very happy that the situation was so quiet," a police spokesman, Lars Borg, said.
More than 30 people were arrested near Christiania, a partially self-governing neighborhood of the capital, after protesters built barricades on a major street and set them on fire around 3 a.m., the police said.
In all, 643 people have been arrested, including 140 foreigners from Europe and the United States, since the clashes started Thursday. They included 20 Swedes, 20 Norwegians and 25 Germans, the police said. The police said detained foreigners would be expelled.
The riots began when the police evicted squatters from the so-called Youth House in the Noerrebro district of Copenhagen, a graffiti-sprayed, red- brick building that for years has served as a popular cultural center for anarchists, punk rockers and left-wing groups.
"This is a display of anger and rage after more than seven years of struggle to keep what is ours," a 22-year-old named Jan told The Associated Press by telephone, adding that he had been coming to the building for 10 years. He declined to give his last name, saying that was the norm among the people frequenting the building.
Dozens of leftist sympathizers from neighboring countries joined the protests, which many saw as symbolic of a wider struggle against a capitalist establishment.
One protester was reportedly wounded in the violence early Saturday, while 25 people were injured the night before as youths hurled cobblestones at riot police who responded with tear gas. The street violence was Denmark's worst in 14 years.
On Sunday, there were clear signs that local residents were getting fed up with the violence. About 40 wreaths of flowers and lit candles had been placed in front of the police barricades by the Youth House, and two community groups had placed flyers throughout the area calling for an end to the protests.
"There is only one victim in this violent inferno: the residents of Noerrebro," the fliers said, followed by a clear message to the rioters: "You are not welcome."
Justice Minister Lene Espersen has praised the way the police handled the protests to minimize injuries, and also urged parents to persuade their children not to resort to violence.
Built in 1897, the Youth House was a community theater for the labor movement and a culture and conference center; Lenin was among its visitors. In recent years, it has hosted concerts with performers like the Australian musician Nick Cave and the Icelandic singer Bjork.
The eviction had been planned since last year, when courts ordered the squatters to hand the building over to a Christian congregation that bought it six years ago.
The squatters refused to leave, saying the city had no right to sell the building.
Of those arrested, 218 have been held on preliminary charges of rioting, while 15 people have been released, the police said. Others are still awaiting court hearings.
Protesters have vowed to keep up the demonstrations to retake control of the building and have repeatedly called for a political solution to the dispute over the youth center but rejected a proposal to move to another building.
The Danish police in 1993, for the first and only time since World War II, fired into a demonstration on the night of a referendum on the European Union Maastricht treaty.
A total of 113 shots were fired and nine people wounded, prompting a public outcry and changes to police strategy.
The scope of recent violence has stunned this relatively wealthy and peaceful country. But Denmark has a tradition of nonconformism and tolerance for rebellion against the authorities, and many Copenhagen residents say they support the youngsters' wish to stay in the youth house.
"The struggle will continue for a long time," said Jan from the youth center. "As long as there is no Youth House in Copenhagen, there will be a fight to get one."