Crimean Tatars today are the only politically organized community capable of opposing Russian dictatorship in the Crimean peninsula.
For the past two years the pro-Russian government, established in Crimea by military means, has established feudal-like governance and police state, restricting the people’s political rights, suppressing any dissent, and demanding unconditional loyalty from every group of the civil society.
Consequently, the political life in Crimea has been shifting towards a deeply reactionary dictatorship. Independent politics, social and human rights activism, and even basic cultural and entertainment activities have become impossible for Crimean people without the approval of the authorities. Since the first few m... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) Anarchist January 19 committee canceled carrying of anti-fascist event in Kyiv. Taking into consideration the tangible advantage of far-right militants, which in groups were located near the place of a rally, and taking care for event participants’ safety, the accountables for the event coordinated a retreat. All participants and visitors safely left for homes. On the same day in Kyiv there were attempts to carry another anti-fascist event, which ended up with confrontation with a numerous group of far-right militants, including the ones who related to so-called Civilian Corps of Azov regiment.
The reasons for the aggressive attitude to anti-fascist events by far-right groups were, except for purely ideological antagonism, ridiculous... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) The overthrow of the authoritarian regime of Yanukovych by no means signifies for us the end of our fight. New dictators hasten to take the place of the Party of Regions. They will not hesitate to rely not only on considerably weakened security agencies, but on the far right militants as well. The regime of police and prosecutorial arbitrariness deserved its overthrow unconditionally, but now there may come a time for a new terror that will justify itself ideologically.
At the moment, the main power is concentrated in the hands of the opposition party “Batkivshchyna” (“Fatherland”) , which has managed to rally a substantial part of the ruling class. Its leader, recently released from prison Yulia Tymoshenko, has obv... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) Alexander Kolchenko is a Crimean anarchist, social activist and antifascist who is held in captivity by the Russian authorities. Along with other Crimean activists, he has been kidnapped by the Russian FSB (ex-KGB) and is now detained as a political hostage in Lefortovo jail in Moscow. He is charged with committing “acts of terrorism” and “belonging to a terrorist community”.
Why is Alexander Kolchenko in jail?
Alexander, who has undeniably proved his antifascist stance over many years, is facing preposterous accusations of belonging to “Right Sector”, a radical Ukrainian right-wing organization, whose real role in Ukrainian events is blown out of proportion by Russian official propaganda.
In modern ... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) For weeks and weeks, we have been looking at Ukrainian events, trying to make sense of what has been happening in Kyiv and other cities. We had read many texts, comments and interviews and discussed about Maidan, but we had been always arriving only at new questions to be answered. Thus, when a possibility occurred to get in touch with Ukrainian comrades one of us tried to use it as best as he could. As a result of that effort and thanks to kindness and patience of Denis from a Kyiv branch of a revolutionary syndicalist group called Autonomous Workers Union the following interview came into existence. Hopefully, it will provide you with many useful insights into the Maidan movement and its context.
(NB: The interview was done before the ne... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) Comrades from CGT, SAC, CNT-France, IP, IWW, AIT and all other anarchist organizations!
This year’s May Day we approach with a heavy heart. In Ukraine the economic recession, which still rages on worldwide, is aggravated by our local crisis — the most optimistic governmental estimate is 4–5 percent GDP decline by the end of the year. To make matters worse, there is a distinct possibility of a full scale civil war in our country as well as of a war between Ukraine and Russia, either of which would bring death to thousands and misery to millions.
These circumstances highlight the importance of internationalism, workplace struggles and resistance against state’s repressive policies, all of which always were major chal... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) To the members of GUE/NGL faction in the European Parliament,
Gabriele Zimmer
Dear comrades.,
We, the members of leftist, trade union and human rights organizations in Ukraine, as well as individual activists, would like to draw your attention to the recent events in our country.
On Thursday, 16th of January 2014 without the discussion and contrary to its own regulations and to the Constitution of Ukraine, the Ukrainian parliament, passed a series of laws directed at limiting freedom of speech and citizens’ right to peaceful protest. One of the approved items is the infamous amendment to the Criminal Code which bans so-called “extremism”. In this amendment “inciting social discord” is defined as “e... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) This interview with a comrade from the Autonomous Workers’ Union in Kiev was done on January 28, 2014. It sheds some light on the events around the Maidan: the array of reasons behind the protests, their focus on the hated president, the differences to the “orange revolution”, the role of the right, the weakness of social struggles and possible scenarios.
Q: Looking at the pictures from Kiev, it seems that all kinds of people are at the barricades. In your opinion, what brings them together? What do the people at the barricades and all the supporters discuss? Merely the practical issues of the fight against the cops? Or are there assemblies, or other forms of “organized” debates, at the barricades or elsewhere... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) We, the collectives and members of Ukrainian leftist and anarchist organizations, announce that “Borotba” union is not a part of our movement. During the whole time of this political project’s existence, its members tended to be committed to the most discredited, conservative and authoritarian “leftist” regimes and ideologies, which do not represent the interests of working classes in any way.
”Borotba” has proved itself an organization with a nontransparent funding mechanism and unscrupulous principles of cooperation. It uses hired workers, who are not even the members of the organization. The local cells of “Borotba” took part in the protest actions together with PSPU (Progressive Soc... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) The new government, owing its appearance to Maidan events, acts quite as expected and in a logical way. Maidan had contributed to the overthrow of the old regime and was deemed unnecessary afterwards, when the ruling class consolidated their position in the state bureaucracy. The previous government was doing its best to deny every possibility of legal protest, and the new one naturally takes up the baton. Post-Maidan authorities steer their course to Yanukovych-like authoritarianism and repeat the same attempts of building a police state, that sparked mass protests last year.
We can put a blame on Maidan itself, which announced no specific and decisive slogans or demands other than “down with Yanukovych”. The old president had... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) On February 27, 2014, pro-Russian chauvinists of Crimea, supported by Berkut riot police and Russian Black Sea Fleet committed a military coup in Crimea. Right now it’s already obvious that the government of “Russian Unity” movement headed by Aksionov is no more than a puppet of the Kremlin regime.
We don’t regard Ukraine’s territorial integrity and inviolability of its borders as a value, we are against violent “pacification” of Crimea, but we think that the status of Crimea should be defined with due regard to the opinion of the Crimean Tatar minority.
The latest events show that Putin is not going to limit himself with the annexation of Crimea. The aim of the imperialist Kremlin regime is to ex... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) The laws which were passed on January 16th showed that the faction of the ruling class which now controls the government is ready to install a reactionary bourgeois dictatorship on the model of the Latin American regimes of the 1970s. The “dictatorship laws” criminalize any protest and limit the freedom of speech; also, they establish responsibility for “extremism”. Parliamentary mouthpieces of the class dictatorship of corrupted bureaucracy and monopolist bourgeoisie are the Party of Regions and the so called “Communist” Party of Ukraine which has long ago become a political force serving interests of capital.
The Ukrainian repressive system leans on the police apparatus and street gangs of pro-governme... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) On August 31, the Ukrainian parliament, Verkhovna Rada, had agreed upon the first reading of the сonstitutional amendments in regard to the so called “decentralization”; these amendments also add the transitional provision that mentions the “special status” for certain areas in the eastern Ukraine that are occupied and controlled by Russian nationalist juntas — the “particular districts of Donetsk and Lugansk oblasts”, as the official text of the Minsk agreement denotes them. Immediately after the voting had been adjourned, the right-wing parties (UKROP, “Svoboda”, and Oleh Liashko Radical Party) joined forces with populists from Batkivshchyna party to begin a violent assault on th... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) More than 40 people were killed and nearly 200 were wounded in the tragic clash of right-wing combatants in Odessa on May 2: football hooligans and Euromaidan self-defense on the one side; Stalinists, pro-Russian paramilitaries and local police force on the other.
It started as a belligerent mob, comprised of men with “St. George’s ribbons” and red armbands (such armbands were also spotted on some police officers), wielding clubs and firearms, approached the march “for united Ukraine” which was made up of right-wing football hooligans joined by a large crowd of civilian people. As fighting began between the sides, the riot police provided cover to the attackers and cooperated with them. 4 people were killed. I... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) While Putin tries to change the subject from insurrection to war (perhaps in fear that the contagion of unrest will spread inside Russian borders), we believe it is especially important for anarchists and others with a stake in social movements to learn from the revolution in Ukraine. Specifically, we want to study how nationalist and fascist elements were able to take the initiative, and how to minimize the likelihood of this occurring elsewhere in the future.
To that purpose, we present an interview here with a member of the Autonomous Workers’ Union in Kiev, who discusses why groups like Svoboda and Pravy Sector were positioned to take advantage of the social movement, and evaluates the effectiveness of the various strategies anar... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) This guest post, outlining the current political situation in Ukraine, is by DENIS from the Autonomous Workers Union of Ukraine. It is based on a talk he gave at the Anarchist Book Fair in London on 18 October
In terms of class theory, the Maidan protests [that overthrew president Viktor Yanukovych in February] can be defined as a bourgeois democratic movement. aiming at restoring the liberal political and individual rights and freedoms and defending the interests of the bourgeoisie which had been threatened by president Yanukovych. This movement ousted Yanukovych and brought to power a right liberal bourgeois government.
There was a threat of the far right seizing power in Ukraine, in the short period of a power vacuum [after the Yanukov... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) Asheville Fm radio, based in western North Carolina, aired a fascinating interview with an anarcho-syndicalist named Denys, from the Autonomous Worker’s Union in Ukraine. In the interview, Denys debunks many of the myths surrounding the Euromaidan protests in Ukraine, and explains motives behind the stories and propaganda being circulated around the protests.
Why is the Free Association Agreement with the EU (which would mostly benefit the ultra-rich oligarchs of Ukraine) deliberately being construed as actual integration? Ukrainian leaders backed off from signing it at the last minute. Meanwhile, Russia is trying to pull Ukraine into her Customs Union by offering Kyiv a deal for promised purchases of billions of euro of Ukrainian pr... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) Note: on Saturday, June 6 the Right Sector and other homophobic militants came to attack the Equality march, which was a part of LGBT Pride week in Kyiv. The police did provide protection for the event itself (possibly due to the presence of some high-ranking diplomats on the site), but after the march was over, they ordered the crowd of LGBTQIA* activists to disperse. The transport infrastructure of the area did not allow for speedy departure, and nazis hunted their victims one by one on the streets. Up to 20 people were injured as a result. This text is a joint statement of anarchist groups following the incident.
We, the anarchists, took part in the Equality March in order to support every person’s right to live in the world witho... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) In the late evening on the 8th of March several left-wing activists were attacked in central Malmö by members of the fascist Svenskarnas Parti (Swedes Party). They were on their way home after having taken part in an International Women’s Day demonstration against violence against women. The attack took place immediately after the demonstration. One person is now in intensive care with serious head injuries and a further three have suffered knife injuries of various severity. The Nazis had been searching for potential victims the entire evening in the vicinity of the demonstration, in other words, the attack was not a coincidence.
This is not the first incident of such kind: the far-right violence against leftists has been growi... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.) Interview with AWU activists, made by Danish left-wing portal Modkraft.dk in December 2014. We publish here the original text in English.
What kind of an organization is Autonomous Workers Union and how are you organized?
AWU is a class union organized along the lines of federalism and direct democracy. Among our members are anarcho-syndicalists and libertarian Marxists, and our Statute, in addition, allows for the membership of non-finalists. Our organization was founded in the summer of 2011, now we have two local cells in Kiev and Kharkiv. The main vectors of our activity are political education, endorsement of libertarian anti-capitalist agenda and organization of street protests. Also, workplace conflicts are something we look for an... (From: TheAnarchistLibrary.org.)
