Cops, judges, screws : get your hands off!

On February 22th, more than 50.000 people gathered in Nantes for the biggest anti-airport demonstration ever. As it was declared illegal by the prefecture, it quickly had to face a stunning repression package : hundreds of over-armed cops squared the demo whereas a huge anti-riot wall blocked the central street of the city (Le cours des 50 otages). It was the first time in Nantes’ social struggles’ history that a demo couldn’t pass by there. Politicians and media talked about « lootings » and « devastations », deploring the violence after a group of demonstrators tried despite everything to walk the original way.
However, the power and its allies hold back from calling back the extreme ferocity of the repression on this demonstration. On February 22th, hundreds of people have been hurt by police weapons. At least three of them lost one eye from rubber-bullets shots. A lot of people breathed tear gas, got shaked up from astonishing grenades or wounded from disencirclement grenades or repulsed by water canons.

Few weeks later, on March 31th, media exutantly declared a first dragnet after a special police force’s investigation. Nine comrades got searched in their house and arrested at early morning. Two of them were immediately released, as one of them was not even in Nantes on the day of the demonstration. Four other couldn’t prepare their defence since they were sent to the court through the immediate arraignment procedure. Sentences are as heavy as the record are empty : indeed, the only real prosecution elements were the confessions of the accused. Three of them have been condemned to prison term without remission. During this parody of a trial, judge Tchalian did not hesitate to double the Prosecutor’s requisitions and put our comrade Enguerrand directly in prison. One year’s prison without remission for some stones and smoke cans.

The purpose of the repression from police and justice that the movement against the airport and its world is now facing is only terrorize those who revolt and start fighting against capitalism’s hold on our living spaces. It is to psychologically and physically touch social movement, to mutilate and incarcerate some of us to reach all the others. Sentences and mutilations of the 22th of February are not only application of laws or peacekeeping techniques : they are deeply political. This real State terrorism expresses clearly what must be expected for those who resist.
Today, Enguerrand, Quentin, Damien, Emmanuel, Philippe, J. Et G. are its victims. It could have been anyone of us. According to the State and its so-called justice, taking part in a demonstration is sufficient to justify the loss of an eye or a prison term.

We shouldn’t step back as we are facing such a violent repression. By doing so, we would only prove their case. The best support we can give to our wounded and incarcerated comrades is to keep on fighting. Our struggle has never been so powerful and we have never been so close to think of a future without concrete. More than ever, we must keep on fighting and not give anything up against the airport and the world who produces it.

Against the assassine power who mutilated and incarcerated, we have a weapon that it cannot take back. In a letter, on April 8th, Enguerrand said : « The strengh of activist solidarity cannot be defeated » and indeed, we agree. Support actions to the wounded and accused of the struggle has been already diverse and numerous, modelled on the diversity of the elements of the movement. Infinite are the potential actions. Organize a concert or a collect to materially support the accused and their families. Call for a demo (« peacefully helmeted » ?1) to express our revolt against police crimes. Recover the walls with posters and paintings to make sure that no-one ignores what is happening…

Every initiative is welcomed to bring reassurance to our comrades and reming the power our rage and determination. Against the conniving silence of the media spectacle, we can only rely on ourselves to make « justice » a meaningful word anew. We strongly encourage every solidarity action against repression on the anti-airport movement, no matter whether it happens in Nantes or anywhere else, today or in anytime.

No justice, no peace !
Solidarity with the wounded and the accused !
No to the airport and its world !

DEMONSTRATION
Saturday, 17th May 2014
3pm – Nantes’ prefecture

Call open to every collective or organisation that agrees.
Temporary list : Comité de soutien à Enguerrand (Support Committee for Enguerrand), Collectif de l’université de Nantes contre l’aéroport (Nantes’ University’s collective against the airport), SLB UL-Naoned (Nantes’ far-left independantist workers’ union), Solidaires Étudiant-e-s, Collectif de Rezé contre l’aéroport, …

To write to the support committee for Enguerrand or to sign this call : soutien.enguerrand(AT)riseup.net