MONDAY 17M

Milan – Several hundred people remembered Davide ‘Dax’ Cesare, the antifascist militant murdered eleven years ago. After stopping in Via Brioschi, were the young man was killed, the demonstrators arrived at the via Tabacchi police station and confronted the agents guarding it. Though the latter employed tear gas in order to break up the demonstration, the antifascists stood firm and ended their march in Via Gola, another familiar place for Dax. At the same time, Anonymous Italia brought down the websites of the fascist organizations Forza Nuova and Casa Pound – the latter including forum Vivamafarka, radio Radio Bandiera Nera and regional and campaign websites. 

Curno (Bergamo) – Few members of Casa Pound supported by a city council member belonging to the Berlusconi Party were defended by 80 policemen from local antifascist and citizens rushed to expel them from the city.

Genoa – Hearing at the Surveillance Court to decide on special surveillance and mandatory residence measures against two comrades, active in the No Tav Third Cross struggle; as their hearing was proceeding, tens of meters of fences were torn down in Trasta, were one of the great work’s construction yards lies.

Leonforte (Enna) – Michele La Delfa, a 41-years old unemployed and homeless who set himself on fire on the municipality building roof last week, succumbed to his injuries. The family claimed he was excluded from long-awaited social housing assignment, and accused the political class.

 

TUESDAY 18M

Prato – Workers of a logistics company serving the Mondo Convenienza furniture franchise picketed a warehouse, after 48 of them were fired and other 20 were relocated in other regions. The layoffs took place after the workers, enraged by the closure without warning of another company warehouse, clashed with the police.

Vado Ligure (Savona) – The judiciary ordered the seizure of the Tirreno Power coal-burning power plant amid environmental concerns and alleged responsibility of three indicted managers for the deaths of 400 workers between 2000 and 2007 and the hospitalization of almost 2500 people between 2005 and 2012. Two marches participated by the workers of satellite and shipping activities for the company, not covered by unemployment insurance, swept through the city centre to end beneath the municipality.

 

WEDNESDAY 19M
Italy – Spending Review commissioner and former IMF officer Carlo Cottarelli presented incoming 5 billion euros cuts in 2014 and 34 billion euros in the next years. 85.000 public sector jobs are to be cut as well, whereas the turnover of new workers could be completely stopped. Other cuts will limit the purchase of goods and services by the Public Administration and will affect local public transport.

Rome – New police operation at dawn. Eviction of 72 families in Via delle Acacie in Centocelle neighbourhood and in the Anagnina neighbourhood. Also the Angelo Mai independent space for arts was evicted and sequestered.  

Genoa – Giacomo Toccafondi, a police associated doctor responsible for injuries, duress, abuses and failure to provide medical reports during the 2001 Genoa G8 was fired without forewarning from his job.

Pisa – A special plan against housing emergency was developed after three days by the public assembly in Via Marsala composed by families under the threat of eviction, housing rights struggling associations and collectives such as PrendoCasa, migrants’ rights associations and the tenants’ union. The statement recognized the dire situation in the city (more than 5 thousands vacant houses, 1200 evictions, outrageous housing and rent prices, and more), requested a territorial inquiry commission, a 6-months moratorium on evictions and the immediate use of public real estate to guarantee social housing rights. Three new pickets were called from then till the end of the month, and participation to the city council next day was announced.

THURSDAY 20M

Italy – Nationwide day of struggle against the Lupi (Minister of Infastructure, hailing from the New Centre-Right party and Christian integralist Comunione e Liberazione lobby) decree. This law represents a further aid to the markets, the landlords and the banks, with new sell-offs of public property and consumption of soil. Its already infamous Article 5 would prevent people taking residence and to connect to water, electricity and other services in an occupied building. Housing rights movements staged marches and pickets in front of the prefectures in Rome, Milan, Brescia, Florence, Naples, Bologna and Turin. In the capitol, the city’s General Register Office was occupied as well.

Turin – Local people’s assembly inquired about the conditions of the Cavallerizza historical building and started organizing proposals for its grassroots management. Another meeting of disgruntled local commuters, angry over raising costs of provincial transport, poor quality services and reduction of trains was separately scheduled for tomorrow.

 

FRIDAY 21M
Palermo – The eviction attempt of the Teatro Mediterraneo Occupato (an artists’ occupation in the former Mediterranean Fair area, which had been abandoned for 7 years) was foiled by the determination of the occupiers (which sweared to picket the police-controlled building as long as necessary) and the internal quarrels between police and local administration. The latter already tried to evict the artists in February, but was confronted with protracted resistance and a 24-hours non-stop arts’ marathon.

Pisa – After weeks of mobilization of the housing rights’ movements, with pickets, marches, anti-eviction rallies, self-reduction of bills, occupations and tens of families in protest, the City Council had to endorse the requests of the Via Marsala assembly and vote to suspend evictions for unintentional arrearage for the following week and possibly even beyond that.

Leghorn – Ex Caserma Occupata social centre activists walled up Frangerini estate agency in a demonstrative action to denounce lack of social housing in Leghorn, and called up a city demonstration for next March 29.

 

SATURDAY 22M

Turin – Six Nigerian migrants are repatriated after resisting deportation in the previous days by setting fire to various spots of the local CIE (detention centre) in which they were detained. The facility, one of the five left in Italy, is now seriously damaged and can barely manage to accomodate and watch over the 30 detainees within it.

Susa (Turin) – Local No Tav activists and mayors protest the meeting between pro-Tav Turin mayor Piero Fassino and Susa mayor Gemma Amprino. Local elections are scheduled to take place next May 25, along with regional and European ones.

Palermo – Regional Antagonist Students’ meeting in the city at the occupied student house HPO, with participants from Catania and Messina. Central topics of debate were the NO MUOS struggle, the role of student houses in the island and beyond as frameworks of autonomy and counterpower, and the management of local and national public education expenditure. The event revamped the call for the April 12 demonstration in Rome as well.  

Modena – The Guernica autonomous collective temporarily occupied a long-abandoned warehouse in the run-down area of the Artisan Village in East Modena in order to raise awareness about real estate speculation and mismanagement by the local administration. It was also a preparatory action for a future long-term occupation, and a contribute to the nationwide housing rights’ week of action launched by the Abitare nella Crisi housing struggle network.