The police and judiciary provoked the battles in Bologna. They then seized the opportunity to launch a massive raid on left-wing and counter-culture publications.
Fundamental issues of freedom of expression are at stake here. The comrades concerned issued the following statement on the day of the raids. We print a short
version.
Today, May 7th 1977, the police forces (ie the Security Service, the Public Security and the Carabinieri) acted on the initiative of Catalanotti, the "democratic" magistrate of the Bologna tribunal.
They have launched a large-scale and widespread operation of intimidation and repression against magazines, newspapers, counter-information bulletins of the movement, bookshops, alternative distribution centres, publishing houses, and the homes of comrades who are linked, whether in their theory or in their practice, with the area of opposition media.
In particular, the following were raided:
The "Il Picchio" bookshop in Bologna The "Calusca" bookshop in Milan
The "Porta di Mare" bookshop in Milan The "Rosso" editorial office in Milan The "Bertani" publishing house in Verona The offices of L'Erba Voglio in Milan
The, offices of publishing houses linked to the
"Area" publishing co-op in Milan The homes of editors of "Senza Tregua".
The "Punti Rossi" cooperative in Milan
The "Gttaviano" publishing house in Milan. EDB, publishing representatives, in Verona.
The homes of editors of “Primo Maggio” in Milan.
There have been innumerable raids on the homes of comrades, men and women, who have been connected, even remotely, with the distribution and production centres listed above.
There have also been raids in Mestre and Rome. In particular, the editors of Lotta Continua have been subject to intimidation.
We must emphasise that we are facing (for the first time, in such a coordinated and "comprehensivel1 way) something we can only describe as a
project to criminalise the opposition media and their distribution circuits.
We are thus facing the most original and effective forms of censorship since the War. We have experienced the bigoted and ecclesiastical censorship
by the Christian Democrats on the Right. We have also had Togliatti's scissors from the Left (Communist Party). What was lacking was the UNIFICATION of these two historical traditions to give birth to the censorship of intentions by confiscating materials before they can be published .In the present situation it is quite logical for our very “democratic” magistrate Catalanotti to try to re-establish order by trying to silence the production and distribution of the Opposition Media. All he wants is to rub us out, eliminate us, make it impossible for us to exist .... But he should be reminded: the revolution cannot be rubbed out or eliminated, for it is invisible!
May 7th 1977
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