ENTSICHERN CONGRESS in Berlin, 29-30 January 2011

Analyse, criticise, dismantle EU!

A considerable part of all legislative and political decisions are currently made via the European Union. Expected resistance in the 27 member states is thwarted by this ”policy laundering” while the financially strongest governments furthermore dominate the course. At the same time the EU enlarge its powers through its own structures which coordinate cross-border activities as well as advance projects under its own direction.

This policy is especially noticeable in the area of European ”homeland defence” and its securitization, militarisation and gendarmerisation of social phenomenons. There is, however, no increased attention which accompanies the development of the EU by now, for example by the social movements. The radical Left, as well, which is normally never short of criticism of the state, remains speechless.

One explanation for that could be that the EU, as a political project with its great variety and constant change makes it difficult to analyse and to grasp. For example the correlation between amendments in one´s own country and the directive from Brussels which is the cause for them scarcely becomes apparent or only at a late stage – too late to go on the war path against it. Therefore we want to present a critical review of the EU and focus on the question as to how the European Union has developed in the recent years and where concrete impact on different areas of our lives can be experienced. We are particularly interested in the consequences for the radical Left. We want to launch a theoretical discussion about the EU and its institutions and show examples of the concrete effects of its policy. The ENTSICHERN CONGRESS regards itself as counter event to the ”European Police Congress” which is supposed to take place in the middle of February again in Berlin. European police forces want to meet there for the 14th time with secret services, military and representatives of ”security” and armament industry, as well as with academics. The promotional event for the police-technical answer to social problems is financed by corporations who are rewarded for speaking-time and merchandising for their products.

ENTSICHERN CONGRESS
The European Union: Analyse, criticise, dismantle

Workshops, discussions, panel events and films on the topic of a view on the EU which is critical of the state: analysing behind-the-scenes deals, contracts and institutions and effects of their policy in the face of financial crises, shift to the right, civil-military ”security architecture” and strengthening ”homeland security”.

Please note: The workshops and discussions will be held in german. Any needed translation will hopefully be done in self-organised translation corners.

Saturday 29 January 2011

from 10.00 a.m. Breakfast

10.30-12.00 a.m.

Changes brought by the Treaty of Lisbon and the Stockholm Programme concerning justice and home affairs policy
The Lisbon Treaty coming into force brought significant changes for the justice and home affairs policy of the EU and its member states: The sector of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters has been made collaborative and now belongs to the standard in all areas of EU policy. Majority decisions are now possible, but on the other hand, the European Parliament has the right of codecision. The amendments are combined with an upgrading of existing EU-agencies as well as the foundation of new ones, for example Europol, Frontex, the civilian-military External Action Service or the secret service center SitCen. The introduction will explain the present legal and political structure of the EU and scenarios will outline its development.
Adeline Otto

12 a.m.-2.30 p.m.

Workshop 1
State project Europe
The state is still the fundamental precondition in order to stabilize the capitalistic mode of production which is inherently conflicting and crisis-prone. Thereby, it is no longer limited to the nation state. Social and political actors refer to a far more expanded field today which includes different dimensions ranging from global, supranational, and national, regional and local levels down to urban district level. Economy as well as the order of the political sphere have undergone a differentiation and flexibilisation which is characterized by overlapping and superimposed spatial dimensions. In this ”postnational” resp. ”multi-scalar” constellation it is increasingly up to the European level of statehood to regulate the social conflicts.
Jörg Kronauer and Sebastian Wolff

Workshop 2
Manifestations of networked security: gendarmerie forces and emergency aid
In various initiatives the European Union tries to establish an increasing militarisation of classical areas of ”national security”. Civil components are embedded into the foreign and military policy which are gaining strength due to the Lisbon Treaty. The member states are building police units which can also operate under military command. Although separated in police and gendarmerie formations in formal terms, these structures meet in joint trainings and military missions. At the same time civilian-military structures are created as well in the European emergency aid. Dominance in disasters is secured by satellites and drones, encrypted situation pictures and a monopolized crisis communication in ”situation centers” of the secret service. Counterinsurgency and ”emergency aid” will shape conflict occurrences in the future both within and outside the EU.
Christoph Marischka, Matthias Monroy

2.30-3:30 p.m.
Break
3.30-6.00 p.m.

Workshop 1
Surveillance from above: satellites and drones as instruments of an European ”security policy”
The players of a new ”security architecture” of the EU fight in many areas which they have chosen themselves: on the shores of Somalia against alleged piratery, in the Mediterranean against illegalized migration and within the own frontiers against ”terrorism” and political uproar. Earth observation satellites and drones belong to the new, highly complex tools for this so-called ”crisis management” currently being developed and tested, which is boundless at the nation state as well as a global level. The recently intensified European security research, the ”civilian” one in particular, but also the militarisation of the space policy are two areas in which billions of Euros are invested. With the help of these examples we want to address some basic questions regarding the implications of the European ”security policy”.
Malte Lühmann, Volker Eick

Workshop 2
A view to the future: ”Early detection” and ”radicalization”
”Extremism” means on a EU-level ”radicalization”: Advices, manuals, a comic and a data collection are supposed to forward the control over deviating behaviour. Being targeted in particular are ”Extreme Right/Left, Islamism, Nationalism, critics of Globalization etc.” Under the ”extremism” discourse, whole communities are placed under general suspicion. On board again is the interior ministry of North Rhine-Westphalia. Measures euphemistically called ”prevention” are accompanied by a trend to search personal and object data by means of software („Data Mining“). Permanent dragnet investigation in police databases strives for nothing less than to foresee crimes and interprets the found connections as ”risks”. In this workshop we will present the ”early detection” concepts and social techniques of EU police forces and discuss possibilities for intervention.
Albrecht Maurer, Matthias Monroy

6-7.00 p.m.
Break

7.00 p.m.

Cracks in the Fortress Europe
Strategies of cross-border resistance: experiences, analyses and perspectives of various spectra and players – panel discussion.
Resistance against the European Union, which is experiencing a considerable increase in powers due to the Lisbon Treaty, appears to be in a very poor shape. The increasing monitoring and sanctioning becomes obvious particularly in police and juridical collaboration and their agencies Frontex, Europol or Eurojust as well as in Internet regimentation. There are few cross-border networks and structures that oppose the progressing militarisation of social conflicts. A radical rejection of this quasi-state neoliberal project, however, needs to position itself towards difficult questions: how can we articulate critique without complying with national patterns? Which stand do we take on the popular demand of ”another”, a more democratic EU as it is presented by liberal currents? How can we network in a transnational way without losing the relation to resistance practice? Why is there no perceivable movement against the excessive surveillance and control of the EU? Where is the radical Left which otherwise readily practice in radical criticism of the state? Where to address protest and resistance? All social movements have to find answers to these questions in the face of the growing power of the EU. Thereby left, Anarchist and radical left structures have definitely an edge in cross-border organisation and mobilisation: in order to criticize the EU migration policy activists from all over Europe come together in No Border-camps for decades, campaigns and action do not remain only symbolic. Around the summit protests against G8, G20, WTO, NATO and EU, too, developed networks and friendships which can be activated seemingly effortless for new protests. What are the conditions for a resistant cross-border organisation against the European security architecture? In the panel discussion we will analyse various perspectives of transnational movements. After an inventory of both unsuccessful and promising policies against the EU we want to gauge how we can put our radical dissent to practice.
We will discuss with:

• Adeline Otto
• Kriss Scholl
• Detlef Hartmann
• René Paulokat

Sunday 30 January 2011

11a.m.-1:00 p.m.

Workshop 1
The right wing in Europe tries to seize power
Informations about activities, strategies and networks of the extreme right wing in Europe.
Various right currents are active within the EU and beyond. Some of them have considerable influence on political decision-making processes in their home countries. Furthermore the extreme right has a significance, as well, in the institutions and committees of the EU. Which are the strongest right currents in Europe and what is their significance for us? How far is their influence reaching? This workshop wants to provide a summary of the current situation as well as an analysis of it.
Carsten Hübner

Workshop 2
Two sides of a barricade
A glance at the international changes in strategy of prosecuting authorities at summit protests in the last ten years indicates their ever improved adjustment to new tactics of resistance. This workshop attempts to analyse the biopolitical dimension of European conflict management
on the basis of the history of repression since the ”Summer of Resistance“ in 2001. Thereby we will examine parallels to other areas as the repression against football fans. Based on the assumption that police forces increasingly succeed to make unexpected surprises foreseeable and providently impossible, we want to gauge in the workshop under which conditions creative resistance remains successful.
Angela Furmaniak, Kriss Scholl

1-2.00 p.m.
Break

2-4.00 p.m.

Workshop 1
EU police databases and a campaign: ”Against DNA-collecting mania”
Since the EU has provided itself with money in Maastricht and with borders in Schengen it is inflationarily expanding mechanisms of repression and control. Our lecture is dedicated to an essential factor for this development: the databases in policing fields from SIS to the DNA analysis files of Europol. Initially, we will give you an overview of the relevant EU data processing architecture. Then we will discuss in more detail about an aspect of state surveillance which is currently rather neglected: DNA databases of the police which are supposed to be fully networked on August 26, 2011 with the end of the Prüm Treaty. Moreover, the exchange of DNA profiles with the US is being planned. The campaign ”Hands off my DNA – Against the DNA-collecting mania” is planning protest actions in spring/summer 2011 which shall be presented and discussed.
Markus Murmelstein, Susanne Schultz

Workshop 2
Financial markets, struggles and the reconstruction of Europe?
„Krisenlabor Griechenland“, (”Greece – A crisis laboratory”) is the title of an analysis of the debt crisis written by J. Malamatinas and me (AssoziationA, January 2011). We see it as an all-out attack on the living conditions in Europe and and beyond with the objective to create a historically new capitalistic command of the living sources of value. I would like to report on that and to discuss with you the resulting questions of resistance.
Detlef Hartmann

Also on the programme:

Sunday 4.30 p.m.
Final discussion
Next Steps?

Exhibition: Rage and Revolt in Greece
A historically unprecedented removal of all social networks and rights that had been fought for over centuries has terminated the common basis for social peace in Greece in response to the crisis. While the words are missing to describe the drastic consequences for the people, a strong movement on the streets produces images of rage and revolt. Margarita Tsomou collects these images as documents of the crisis. This collection of photographs from archives of friends, bloggers and activists shows moments from the riots during December 2008 as well as from the general strikes and demonstrations in the Greek year of crisis 2010.

Culinary supply by the people´s kitchen ”Le Sabot”

More: http://outofcontrol.blogsport.de/kongress