Riot over Culture Center Tear Down

Hundreds of youths in Copenhagen disrupted traffic with roadblocks and bonfires and clashed with police to protest the planned demolition of a culture center.

The Danish capital's police made at least 80 arrests while clearing squatters from the center that's known as Ungdomshuset. The operation began at 7 a.m. local time and involved the use of a helicopter to land riot-squad officers on the roof, police spokesman Flemming Steen Munch said in a telephone interview. One protester received injuries requiring hospitalization, he said.

After serious social conflicts and uprisings by the autonomist and squatting movements in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the subsequent 'Ungdomshuset' was offered as part of a political compromise to the activists. The mainly young activists dubbed it ‘Ungdomshuset’ (‘The Youth House’), and started running various cultural and political activities out of there. It has for many years served as one of the only multicultural, basis-democratic collectives/community centres in Copenhagen, with the exception of the Freetown Christiania. Property rights remained in the hands of the local council, which in 1999 decided to disregard the previous political compromise and sell the house to the highest bidder.

In 2003 the fundamentalist Christian sect ‘Faderhuset’, which had bought the property in 2001 prompted the authorities to evict the ‘Ungdomshuset’ and its users. Despite many demonstrations in support of ‘Ungdomshuset’ Faderhuset won the ensuing courtcase and the politicians avoided serious involvement in the conflict, despite the political nature of the case. Many domestic demonstrations saw alleged police brutality and in December an ‘Ungdomshuset’ demonstration turned into a major confrontation between activists from all over Europe and the police. Subsequently the ‘Ungdomshuset’ was fortified in order to avoid an eviction and return the issue to the political arena.

The police is in Ungdomshuset. Around the neighbourhood and in the rest of the city there are actions, happenings, events and fighting. Many arrested, many severley hurt.
There is a demonstration starting at 17.00 which has just been surrounded by police. Calls for international support!

Police raided brutally Ungdomshuset today. Many people are severely hurt. Many arrested. Pics of the eviction:

While representatives of Ungdomshuset met with the head mayor of Copenhagen French activists occupied the Danish consulate in Lyon. Also Berlin and Moscow activists have carried through support actions within the last week.

A meeting in Copenhagen and actions in France, Germany and Russia
from http://ungdomshuset.dk

While representatives of Ungdomshuset met with the head mayor of Copenhagen French activists occupied the Danish consulate in Lyon. Also Berlin and Moscow activists have carried through support actions within the last week.

At a meeting at city hall today people from the house met with politicians of the Social Democratic Party to re-present the four demands from the house. Stating that a new house has to be in our local area, has to be as big or bigger than Ungdomshuset, has to be self governed and has to be given to us.