30,000 on demo in Rome, actions elsewhere in support of the jailed

national | miscellaneous | news report Saturday November 16, 2002 19:46 by hydra

Rome demo for the arrested ativists from southern italy

At twenty four hours notice there was 30,000 people at the Piazza Esedra in Rome today to support those arrested in the political round-up in the early hours of yesterday morning. Other demonstrations in Italy have been smaller, but impressive nonetheless.

Firenze: 3.000
Viareggio: 500
Perugia: 500
Genova: streets blocked
Napoli: 15.000
Roma: 30.000
Palermo: 1.000
Pisa: 200
Milano: 3.000
Taranto: 4.000
Arezzo: 200
Latina, Lecce, Bergamo, Monza also saw mobilisations.

In Paris, London and other european cities there have also been actions and demos in front of Italian embassies.

Some other Information
Almost all of the charges against he accused relate to crimes of 'association', which is to say that there are few particulars, and most of the evidence relates to communications both internal and external of the movement. The public posecutors in Genoa appear flummoxed by this action, initiated by a prosecutor from the small southern city of Cosenza, and have stated that none of those arrested have arise as subjects of their own investigation. Such scepticism from a part of the criminal justice infrastructure bodes well, although in Italy the judicial process can be a long drawn out punishment in itself.

Several of those arrested aloso worked as journalists, one of them for Radio Gap, which was a coopeative project put together by independent radio sations around Italy to cover the Genoa protests last year.

Response
The various groups particpting in the ESF and related actions have all taken positions in support of those imprisoned, including the Lilliput Network, Agnoletto (from the Genoa Social Forum), Rifondazione Communista and the Greens. Francesco Caruso was an extremely high profile player, boss of the disobeddienti in the South.

Interestingly, the Rebel South netwpork no longer actually exss, having split in two during Genoa, one element uniting with Casarini's Disobeddienti, the other joining with the COBAS (grassrooots trade unions) to form the Network for Global Rights.

Actions at Italian embassies and consulates are encouraged.

More news as it comes.