Christina Cherenkova is free!

We have received news that yesterday, Friday 12th April, Christina Cherankova has been released. As many of you will already know, after have spent more than two years in captivity, Cristina, an anti-fascist from Mozyr, in Belarus was detained on March 22, 2022 for anti-military and anti-police posts on Instagram.

Back in March 22, 2022, a dozen anti-fascists, members of various countercultural musical groups, were searched and detained in Mozyr. Five people ended up serving 24 hours, however criminal cases were filed against Cristina and her friend Anna Pyshnik.

Although her posts did not contain calls for violence, they contained a “negative assessment of police officers”, which dated back as far as November 16, 2022. For that reason but also as a warning to other activists, Christina was sentenced to two and a half years in prison.

We extend our solidarity and welcome her home into the arms of her family and comrades.

Derry ABC
www.abcireland.wordpress.com

Solidarity with Former Political Prisoner

Our love and solidarity goes to our friend and comrade, former North American political prisoner @supportericking, as they put a little colour into their new place. Some of the decorations include pieces of artwork that they find inspiring, such a the Red & Black Free Derry Wall. We couldn’t agree more Eric!

This year mark’s the 22nd anniversary of John McGuffin’s death. Free Derry Corner was painted by local anarchists during the 10th anniversary to commemorate the occasion by painting it the Red and Black colours of anarchism.

You can check out Eric King’s activities since his release on their social media pages and here:

www.supportericking.org/

You can read more on John McGuffin at the following link as his friends and comrades raise a glass to his memory on this his anniversary:

http://www.wsm.ie/c/black-flag-anarchism-free-derry-john-mcguffin?fbclid=IwAR1lfh1wBL4vJIn5As0bmP2Ga0HgHGS8ghEKxOExuTCz-hIflkRhb4hpF58

https://sareantifaxista.blogspot.com/2012/04/derry-bogside-in-memory-john-mcguffin.html?fbclid=IwAR30FUtaYIoOJ18g_Zj9TDVnn10AU5zn1B3vdshQurW_6DjNSpIiegHl0jI

https://derryanarchists.blogspot.com/2012/04/black-flag-of-anarchism-flys-over-free.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR24EVH0vdNrJq1nHwipFPaNnGaPSuL7eddVuLrB1oe-OTbwk_gbdJpKzXA

Court Rules Italian Anarchist Prisoner to remain in torture unit

We have received updated information on Italian anarchist prisoner Alfredo Cospito, who is currently being held under the torturous 41bis as legal challenges are being made on his behalf.

“The national anti-mafia and anti-terrorism directorate wanted to remove 41bis from Alfredo, in favour of high surveillance.” However, the Italian Supreme Court has now ruled that #AlfredoCospito must remain under 41bis regime.

As part of this lost legal challenge, the courts have also demanded that an estimated €3000 (appeal rejected) is now to be paid.

Against the #State #AlfredoCospitoLibero Ⓐ🖤#LoStatoTortura #No41bis

Barricade Bulletin No. 25 OUT NOW!

The Derry Anarchist Collective’s very own Barricade Bulletin No.25 is OUT NOW! 

Barricade Bulletin is now available from members locally or directly from the usual local outlets. 

For those beyond the North West, you can download the online version with news and other information. 

As ever Barricade Bulletin is free for prisoners so please get in touch.

Email derryanarchists@gmail.com

For those of you beyond Derry, you can click on the following link to download your free copy below

barricade-bulletin-25Download

Roman Paklin: electrocution forced him to fight for his health

We call on all those who are not indifferent to support the fundraising campaign to pay for the lawyers of Roma and other defendants of the “Tyumen case”. Today, 1st of January is the last day you may donate!

Roma is an anti-fascist from Surgut, a vegetarian and sportsman, very kind, modest and calm, but at the same time strong in spirit and steadfast despite all the difficulties he faced in prison. Together with his friends, he organized a public library in Surgut with literature on libertarian theory, the history of liberation movements, and grassroots self-help initiatives.

He worked in a large enterprise as a car mechanic, he loved his work very much. Roma’s great passion was cars, their internal structure, and their mechanisms. He spent his free time in nature – in the woods and reading. He studied history, philosophy, art, and anthropology. Currently imprisoned, Roma writes poetry and is interested in yoga, spiritual practices, and psychology. 

On September 1, 2022, work operatives took Roma to the hangar, so he describes the terrible days of torture: “My hands and feet were bound with duct tape, I felt like I was electrocuted, then they pulled down my pants and said that I would go to the zone as a downcast. After the torture, Roma had a suspected stroke, lost his eyesight, and lost his arm. Now he is undergoing treatment in the psychoneurological dispensary “Lebedevka” in the Tyumen region.

Roman is charged under Art. 205.4 of the Criminal Code “participation in a terrorist organization” + part. 1 Art. 30 part. 2 articles 205.2 of the Criminal Code “preparation for a terrorist act”.  In December 2023 prosecution added two more charges, “illegal preparation and storages of explosives as a part of organised criminal group”, and alltogether Danil may be sentenced to a prison sentence between 15 and 30 years. Roma refuses to torture testimony and completely denies guilt, during a year in the pre-trial detention center he sought medical assistance.

We remind you that a year ago six anti-fascists from different cities were detained and accused of terrorism. Also, the support team runs a Telegram channel in Russian dedicated to the case.

The guys have been in pre-trial detention for more than a year and they will face trials on the merits of the case. Families and relatives will have to pay for the participation of lawyers in these sessions and they will not be able to cope without you! Now is the time to show solidarity and lend a helping hand to the victims of Russian repression. We thank every concerned member of our large community for your support. You are our strength! Solidarity is our weapon!

Новости, Анархический Чёрный Крест

Анархическое движение, Антифа, Беспредел власти

Tyumen

Роман Паклин

Тюменское дело

• Русский

1st January is the last day to donate for the Tyumen case fundraiser!

Six anarchists from Russia have been held in pre-trial detention for a year on spurious charges of creating a “terrorist community”. According to Russian law, our comrades face a total of 5 to 15 years of imprisonment for the charged articles, and 15 to 30 years of life imprisonment for organizing or leading a “terrorist community”. The main proof of guilt is a confession given under torture.

The last day of the fundraising campaign for Tyumen case is January 1st. Unless goal is reached, none of the money is delivered for our comrades.

All details about our fundraiser and donation instructions are available here.

You may read more about the Tyumen case from articles in our website. 

We also invite you to sign to our regular e-mail news letter which we launched few months ago, if you are interested to sign the list, you are are welcome to do it in here.

Mailing list will be of a low frequency, usually no more than one mail for a week.

Thank you for your solidarity,  Anarchist Black Cross Moscow

Новости, Анархический Чёрный Крест

Правозащита, Тюрьмы

Russia

Tyumen

Tyumen case

Firefund

ABC Moscow

• Русский

Anarchist Prisoner Eric King Released To Halfway House After Ten Years

Following nearly ten years of incarceration and numerous attempts by the State to frame, murder, and break him – anarchist prisoner Eric King has now been released and is headed to a half-way house “for several weeks,” reports supporters.

Imprisoned for taking direct action in solidarity with the Ferguson uprising, Eric King survived everything from COVID, to attacks by neo-Nazi prisoners, and years of abuse from guards. In a statement from 2016, King stated:

I stand by my actions. After seeing what happened in Ferguson, so close down the road, I was disgusted by the lack of mobilization in my city. Three hours away people were fighting for their lives and we weren’t even taking to the streets. We were doing nothing. My act as a very personal display of my anger and rage toward the state as well as an act of solidarity to everyone in Ferguson. We never know our own strength until we are tested and even with my ridiculous sentence I feel at least proud to have been able to stand strong and refuse to cooperate with the state.

In 2022, Eric King was victorious in court against a frame-up attempt by guards, after they attacked him in a supply closet and attempted to slap him with an additional 20 years in prison.

Currently there is a fundraiser set-up for Eric to help him with his post release. Eric is also one of the co-editors of the new book, Rattling the Cages: Oral Histories of North American Political Prisoners, published by AK Press, sales of which benefits the Anarchist Black Cross warchest program and Eric King’s family.

Eric’s bravery and courage in the face of years of torture and abuse is a testament of our collective ability to resist and weather the horrors of state repression. For future updates, be sure to check out the Support Eric King page, here.

News on anarchist political prisoners in Belarus

In mid-November it became publicly known that Ihar Alinevich spent 20 days in the punitive isolation cell.

On 17 November, an article about Mikola Dziadok was published by the Belarusan department of Radio «Liberty»: https://www.svaboda.org/a/32688913.html (in Belarusian). Mikola is placed into in a solitary cell in the prison №1 (Hrodna) and continues his self-education: he studies German and Arabic. «Among the books he manages to order are mostly dictionaries, reference books, textbooks. Arabic is not a hobby for him, but a requirement of his professional sphere of interests. His graduation work at European Humanitarian University was devoted to political problems in the Middle East», the article says.
It is known that Mikola Dziadok may call his relatives and receive letters from them, although not as often as previously in the colony. He has some health problems, he is trying to deal with.

While political prisoners are behind the bars, their art finds a response among readers and theatergoers. On 12 November, Krakow hosted the presentation of the Polish translation of Mikola Dziadok’s book «Colors of the Parallel World» (the translation was published in September). And on 13 and 14 November in Warsaw there were screenings of the play based on Ihar Alinevich’s book «On The Way To Magadan», staged by the Czech theater 3+KK.

The performances gathered full halls. One of the moments of the performance is illustrated in this publication.

According to the information of the Human Rights Center «Viasna», Aliaksandr Frantskevich* has been kept in a cell-type facility since September. On 19 October, Lukashenka signed a decree on liquidation of the colony №5 in Ivacevichy and establishment of a so call treatment and labor detention center (euphemism for a colony for alcoholics) there. The liquidation should take place within three months.

The most likely places where Aliaksandr will be sent are colonies in Navasady or Vaukavysk, as only they accept prisoners with a strict regime.

* ABC-Belarus supports Frantskevich as a political prisoner while criticising his political practice at the same time.

Despite the efforts of the prisoners, anarchist political prisoners keep cheerful and even do creative work. Thus, Anastasia Kukhta sent her poems from captivity, and Nikita Dranets – drawings based on the TV series «The Last of Us».

One may read the most recent news from ABC-Belarus via our Mastodon account: https://kolektiva.social/@abcbelarus

Barricade Bulletin #24 Out Now!

The Derry Anarchist Collective’s very own Barricade Bulletin No.24 – Dec/Jan 2024 issue is now out! 

Barricade Bulletin is now available from members locally or directly from the usual local outlets. 

For those beyond the North West, you can download the online version with news and other information. 

As ever Barricade Bulletin is free for prisoners so please get in touch.

Email derryanarchists@gmail.com

For those of you beyond Derry, you can click on the following link to download your free copy below

Barricade Bulletin No. 24Download

For A Campaign Against Prison Slavery

Slave labour. That’s what the imprisoned call the forced work we’re compelled to perform whilst locked up. Imagine the situation where conditions are so bad and the 23 hour lock-up so arduous that you would welcome the chance to get out of your cell to perform some meaningless task just for the brief opportunity it gives you to socialise. Prison workers are prohibited from joining a union, going on strike or organising their workplaces. They face penalties, prosecution, segregation units and/or time added to their sentences. £1.50 per shift is the average wage, but is reported to be lower in some prisons. The most basic factory line assembly work is usually the only labour available and despite the political propaganda about “rehabilitation” there is very little vocational training and education here.

Private companies can make much more from the forced labour of prisoners and this undercuts the value of workers outside. Prison labour is a predatory practice, highly cynical and a direct attack against workers self-management. Any movement that seeks the destruction of capitalism must make prison labour a significant type of their activism. The surest way to do this is to begin in the private companies which are making profits off the exploitation of prisoners. The secondary target is the state itself and its prisons, which are already hardened against the pressure of the social struggle.

Prisoners are experts in the subversion of their workplaces and are waiting for those outside to join them. By improvement of prisoners’ working conditions and pay, those outside will see their struggle see immediate gains. Although this is merely an intermediate struggle it is highly critical as it hits key faultlines of the prison-industrial complex.

Long live Anarchy!

Toby Shone
17th November 2023
HMP Garth

Information about Toby’s case can be found here:

www.brightonabc.org.uk/news.html#56a

You can write to Toby at:

Toby Shone A7645EP
HMP Garth
Ulnes Walton
Leyland
Preston
PR26 8NE

and you can donate to Toby here:

The Bottled Wasp
Sort Code: 08-92-99
Acc No: 65601648
IBAN: GB35 CPBK 0892 9965 6016 48
BIC: CPBK GB22
Ref: ADREAM