Politics

Reporters Without Borders shares the concern that the Chilean Union of
Photographers and Cameramen has expressed about the possibility of more
violence against media personnel by the security forces, especially
carabineros militarized police, during the protests that are expected
to take place today and tomorrow in response to calls from the student
movement.

What follows is a statement agreed by the Occupy the London Stock Exchange General Assembly based on the discussions carried out by small groups. “At today’s assembly of over 500 people on the steps of St Paul’s, #occupylsx collectively agreed the initial statement below. Please note, like all forms of direct democracy, the statement will always be a work in progress”.

Occupation of the London Stock Exchange or thereabouts, Day 3. Some workers of the City came out to interact with the protesters. Communication always was the aim of the campsite dwellers, to be able to express their frustration at a system of inequality and injustice. They spoke in words, in music, in placards and in peaceful creativity.

Success of the 3rd Conference of the Iraqi Civil Society Solidarity Initiative and 1st International Marathon in Iraq
Both events, organized by ICSSI members, took place successfully in Erbil on 7-9 October 2011 and gave tremendous visibility to the Iraqi civil society, its struggle for a laical state, peace and human rights.

Organizers estimate that 15,000 people converged in Times
Square on Saturday afternoon, the culmination of a day of
marches and protests that covered much of lower
Manhattan. Actions from New York to Madrid, Rome,
London, Jakarta, Tokyo and Sydney were part of a
global day of action called for by the Indignados
movement in Spain and later joined by Occupy Wall Street.

Press Release 16/10/11: Canon Chancellor Giles Fraser defends people’s right to protest and addresses the crowd before morning service at St Paul’s cathedral. The Canon calls on the police to leave the occupation at St Paul’s. OccupyLSX reports that 250 people camped overnight, despite initial police use of force, maintaining a calm and engaging occupation.

In Germany about 40000 people went on the streets: very mixed, old, young, mostly middle class, educated. In Berlin it was about 10000, in Frankfurt in the bank metropolis 8000 with the goal to occupy, in Cologne 1500, Duesseldorf 1500, Munich 1000, Hamburg thousands and so on. The organisators in each city were joyfully surprised because they expected a few hundred only.

Between 4000 – 5000 people gather in London’s Square Mile to voice their anger at the social and economic inequality in the UK and beyond, OccupyLSX holds first people’s assembly this afternoon to decide future plans for its occupation, People’s assemblies spring up near St Paul’s despite police refusing to allow protesters onto Paternoster Square [the LSX location]

By Farooque Chowdhury*

Across oceans and covering continents people around the world are struggling. There are protest marches, demonstrations, occupations. It’s now global, a globalization of struggle for democracy, for a decent life. It is One Earth One Humanity One Loved, as a placard in the Occupy Wall Street Movement announces.

FRIENDS:

“Our call for change unites us.
We want a new society that gives people priority over economic and political interests.
We want to demonstrate that society has not gone to sleep, and that we will keep fighting for what we deserve by peaceful means.
We want all this, and we want it now.” (Sol, May 2011).