Istanbul: Burning Barricades

Luther Blissett "nomadologist"
Posts: 50 Joined: 24-06-06
Submitted by Luther Blissett on 15 December, 2006 - 10:07.
Quote:
2000 turkish police with support of anti-terror units attacked on dec. 7th democratic structures of the civil society such as the federation "TEMEL HAKLAR" ("basic rights") or from critical magazines and newspapers... infrastructure and institutions were destroyed, or confiscated.
whole parts of Istanbul were turned into a battle field when people of the organization and other organized or autonomous persons began to resist the repression.

The people built burning barricades which were very effective. the police used tear gas, gas bombs etc... many hundred residents tried to attack and to occupy a police station in the Istanbul district Gazi.

Indymedia UK

Any updates?

Leo Uilleann "Communist Left Forever"
Posts: 227 Joined: 16-07-06 Location: House of the Rising Night
15 December, 2006 - 19:59

It was organized by a very dark Stalinist "terrorist" organization called DHKP-C. Here's what the bourgeois media says about the events (it's in Turkish):

http://www.milliyet.com.tr/2006/12/08/yasam/ayas.html

It seems basically like a clash between their supporters and the police.

wangwei
Posts: 230 Joined: 20-09-06
15 December, 2006 - 20:40

The term "stalinist" gets thrown about a lot in terms of revolutionary organizations. Having said that, does anybody know the actual political line of the DHKP-C?

Devrim "Enternasyonalist Komünist Sol"
Posts: 2848 Joined: 15-07-06
15 December, 2006 - 22:09

Yes, I know about the political line of Devsol/DHKP-C, and as Leo said they are Stalinists. I think it is very interesting that the things that people notice in the news about Turkey are things like this, and not the fact that their is a potential strike in the public sector. I think it coes down to an anarchist obsession with violence against the state. These sort of events happen repeatedly in Gazi Mah, and Nurtepe (where I used to live actually), but what perspective does it offer to the working class.

Devrim

Serge Forward
Posts: 1233 Joined: 14-01-04 Location: Leicester, East Midlands
16 December, 2006 - 02:33

Yep, Devsol are most definitely stalinist and proud.

Luther Blissett "nomadologist"
Posts: 50 Joined: 24-06-06
16 December, 2006 - 07:16

I noticed it because barely nothing was said about the nature of those protesting (on the indymedia site). The photographs were startling, and I don't know any anarchists who are obsessed with violence against the state. All the anarchists I know of practice non-violent and hold non-violent demonstrations.

'Dark stalinist activism' - what concerns me is that the media and state use this type of violent action to shut down genuine activist groups who practice non-violence.

In Israel especially, the peace movement on both sides of 'the fence' had suffered for years at the hands of 'arabised' agents who were finally managed to capture on film causing the disruption tactics which the police or army then use to break up our peaceful protests, and besmirch the nature and cause of our peace protests in local Israeli and wider world media, turning public opinion against our ideologue.

As always I am interested to hear of impending strikes in the public sector - Israel's recent (peaceful) strike action basically shut down all transport systems, and gates in and out of the state, plus majority of the Govt bureacracies.