[Vision2020] Occupy Wall Street Protest Goes Global

[Tom Hansen]

Courtesy of the Seattle Times at:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2016514985_globaloccupy16.html

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Occupy Wall Street protest goes global
Tens of thousands gathered in cities across the world on Saturday in protest marches modeled on New York's "Occupy Wall Street" movement and sit-ins that began months ago in Spain.

By Deutsche Presse-Agentur

BERLIN — Tens of thousands gathered in cities across the world Saturday in protest marches modeled on New York's "Occupy Wall Street" movement and sit-ins that began months ago in Spain.

Media reported that more than 150,000 people from across Italy took to the streets in Rome, encouraged by Spain's "Indignados" movement of mostly young people, who began protesting in May at high unemployment and inequality

Masked anarchist "black block" protesters set fire to cars on Rome's central Via Cavour, causing the gasoline tanks to explode.

Tax office and defense-ministry buildings were targeted with explosive devices and smoke bombs, media reported.

A group of masked people also broke into archaeological sites near the Colosseum. One 60-year-old was reportedly injured in the face during attempts to halt the radical left-wingers, while police deployed water cannons against them.

"Young people are right to be indignant ... as long as their protests do not degenerate," Italian central banker and future European Central Bank (ECB) chief Mario Draghi said earlier Saturday in Paris.

In other parts of the city, teenagers reportedly smashed shop windows with baseball bats.

At least 70 people — including 30 police officers — were injured in Rome, according to a La7 broadcaster, in heavy clashes between anarchists, who barricaded themselves behind rubbish bins, and police armed with water cannons.

Officers were able to escape from a police car torched by rioters. One demonstrator lost several fingers when a firework device exploded.

Police said around 5,000 people took part in a march on the ECB building in the German financial hub of Frankfurt to protest at capitalist excesses, the perceived injustice of the global financial system and the power of banks.

In Berlin, more than 5,000 people marched on the office of Chancellor Angela Merkel, according to police estimates. Anti-globalization group Attac claimed it had mustered 40,000 demonstrators across Germany.

The Frankfurt protesters carried placards stating, "You are speculating with our lives," and "You are gambling away our future." Some set up tents and one protester, armed with a sleeping bag and thermal underwear, said he was "perfectly prepared" to stay put.

In London, protesters — including WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange — took part in "Occupy London Stock Exchange (LSX)," a collective that had more than 15,000 fans on Facebook and some 5,000 confirmed attendees.

"This movement is not about the destruction of law, but the construction of law," Assange said, according to the Guardian newspaper website, deriding a greedy and corrupt system.

Formally he is under house arrest in Britain, pending possible extradition to Sweden over sex-assault allegations.

"Why are we paying for a crisis the banks caused?" asked Laura Taylor, a supporter of OccupyLSX. "More than a million people have lost their jobs and tens of thousands of homes have been repossessed, while small businesses are struggling to survive."

The Guardian reported that thousands of protesters had gathered in London's financial district, where police in riot gear were applying so-called "kettling" crowd-containment measures.

In Brussels, thousands joined a protest march, the Belga news agency reported, adding that a "small group" of smartly dressed people led a counterprotest at the start of the march.

The protesters adopted the slogan, "We are the 99 percent," a reference to the silent majority they say are enduring the consequences of the crisis.

Hundreds also gathered across Austria. In Prague, about 200 Czech demonstrators marched past the stock exchange.

In South Africa, protests took place in major cities including Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town, organized by Operation Ubuntu, which calls itself a "leaderless resistance movement," formed in sympathy with the Occupy Wall Street protests.

Several dozen people held up signs in front of the Johannesburg stock exchange with political messages such as, "Listen to the people."

Earlier, hundreds of Australians gathered in Sydney's business district to protest at "corporate greed" — falling short of the thousands of demonstrators that organizers had hoped for.

The peaceful demonstration ended with a commitment to picket the Reserve Bank of Australia building for several days.

"We need to challenge those who are the most powerful, who control the global economy and have an enormous influence on elected politicians," chief organizer Mark Goudkamp was quoted as saying by local news agency AAP.

Around 100 people also took to the streets of Tokyo, according to Kyodo News agency, while the Japan Times online news portal reported that some 300 people demonstrated on a range of issues, including the handling of this year's nuclear disaster.

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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"Honest and true,
As the morning star.
Vote for just two,
Ament and Lamar."
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