Posted: juillet 18th, 2012 | Author: valognes | Filed under: Antirep, Texts in English | No Comments »
For several months, repression against those involved in the fight against High Voltage power lines (THT) in Cotentin-Maine has increased dramatically. These high voltage power lines, imposed on local people, are dangerous for the health and only serve the private interests linked to the nuclear industry. This struggle took off early in the project, and saw further acceleration after blocking the CASTOR nuclear waste train, when work started for the lines in November 2011.
It then developed, particularly in Le Chefresne, village of the county of la Manche affected by the THT line and opposed to the project, both on the part of the town hall and the local population against the THT line and for the immediate stopping of nuclear power. Once the general assembly of le Chefresne set up, many public actions were organised (removing nuts and bolts from pylons, occupying sites, etc.), to halt construction sites of the project conducted by RTE (Réseau de Transport de l’Electricité, a subsidiary of EDF ). The nuclearised French State, walking hand in hand with RTE, has decided once again to use repression to halt the struggle, arresting activists, convoking others, and by putting people on trial.
Most recently, a weekend against the THT lines was organised near Chefresne, from 22nd to 24th June to organise debates and to think especially about the anti-nuclear movement, ending with a public action against THT lines. But 600 policemen awaited the 500 participants, whose orders were to injure people (25 injured) more than to intervene (one person was arrested and will be in court in August).
The state and RTE prefer and try to suppress and stifle a legitimate dispute. (Police) Forces under the command of RTE are looking for the slightest pretext. Thus, 2nd June 2012 in Saint Pierre des Landes (53), after wounding an activist, they took the opportunity to sue him on the grounds of violently resisting arrest. In the same place, someone is accused of having driven his vehicle too close to a policewoman while parking it… An offence so obvious that he was arrested six days after the event, once RTE, the prefet and the police were also sued… Finally, preferring to harm rather than arrest people on 24 June, the authorities are trying to blame the only person available to them with the spraining of a finger and bruises to the hands of two “injured” policemen, although he does not match the description of the person drawn up by them. Several court cases are pending (one has already taken place).
Each time we call for a support rally in front of the court.
AGENDA AGAINST REPRESSION
6th August 2012: 2pm, Court of Coutances
Trial of the activistd arrested in Montabot, 24th June.
21st August: Court of Coutances, the verdict of the trial held on 19th June
23rd August : 2pm, Court of Laval
Trial of militant wounded and then arrested on 2nd June, in Saint Pierre des Landes.
23rd November : 9am Cnd ourt of Laval
Trial of activist arrested 10th July after an action dating back to 4th July
9th October : Trial of three people in Cherbourg
following actions near Valognes on 23rd November 2011.
To help and / or participate:
Come to the rallies and actions …
Donate by cheque (write THT on the back of the cheque)
to the Association for Solidarity and the Legal Aid:
Association Pour la Solidarité et l’Aide Juridique
APSAJ, 6 cours des Alliés, 35000 Rennes, France.
Contact anti-repression of the anti-THT: +33 (0)7.53.36.62.48 or antirep-tht at riseup dot net
More information on stop-tht.org and antitht.noblogs.org
AGENDA ANTI-THT
1st and 2nd Sept. 2012: General Meeting at Le Chefresne, in the (occupied) wood of la Bévinière.
29th Sept. : anti-nuclear and anti-THT rally in Avranches
Posted: juillet 18th, 2012 | Author: valognes | Filed under: Texts in English | No Comments »
From 22 to 24 June there was a weekend of resistance to the construction of High Voltage Power lines (THT in French) in Cotentin-Maine. This weekend was a continuation of thoughts, information and collective actions that have been ongoing for several months. The first two days were devoted to exchanges between locals and antinuclear activists who came from all over France, and beyond in a few cases! Sunday was a day of action whose purpose was twofold: to make this resistance visible and to sabotage the progress of work on the THT lines.
Looking Back specifically on this day:
Two processions left the camp, one walking towards the town hall of Chefresne, the other towards the pylons. Both processions were totally supportive, in permanent contact and following the same broad political line
Within these two processions we were about twenty people, all anti nuclear, formed as a group “medical team” self-organised all with the ability to perform first aid. We wish to clarify that we were not there as a service, but as individuals actively participating in the construction of this collective struggle against nuclear power and its world.
Even within the medical team , we belong to a political perspective of exchange and transmission of knowledge and practices, rejecting notions of experts and job specification.
We are writing this text in order to make a precise statement of events and to denounce the premeditated and assumed “police” violence by the prefecture of la Manche (county in France) that took place this Sunday, 24 June. Because this day is neither to forget nor to trivialise, and was marked again by impunity and military monstrosity, it seems important that these findings and those accusations are widely distributed both in anti-nuclear circle, to professionals working with victims, as to anyone who has to face French law enforcement. This, both in solidarity with our friends-and our self-referred mediation.
The means used by the French police, in addition to substantial numbers of course, were all employed in order to harm and hurt with a strong determination, that was thought about and assumed.
For the procession headed for the THT pylons a heavy arsenal was deployed including stun grenades, and other types of unidentified grenades, tear gas and truncheons. The firings by grenade launcher or hand, were deliberately aimed at people (in the face most often). Recall that the grenades are deadly when fired on a flat trajectory (which is prohibited by law), which was the case and that became standard.
The attack immediately began very brutally (about 200m from the camp) with serious injuries, from the first charge, and did not stop even when we retreated to the camp. And even when security cordons were set up by ourselves around our wounded and then we verbally reported the situation to the cops , charges and firing continued with exactly the same violence.
Another procession was tear gassed without warning after only a few hundred meters walk, which led to their immediate retreat.
Regarding the wounded
-One person was very seriously injured in the eye, they were transferred to a peripheral hospital at Caen University Hospital the same day, their vision is largely impaired and it is unknown if they will recover the same level of vision as before.
-Another person suffered a serious head injury which affected their eye due to the trajectory of a grenade fired, he was operated on that evening. He suffered a triple fracture of the skull and the retina of his eye was affected by the violence of the shock. His vision is extremely impaired irreversibly to 1/20th.
Both people needed an emergency evacuation. But the prefecture deliberately sabotaged the arrival of ambulances to the camp. Instructions were given to block the first ambulance a few dozen meters from the camp. A journalist present at the scene saw this (blockade of an ambulance by a police cordon) which certainly helped the ambulance to pass. The second ambulance was totally diverted by the police, allegedly for their wounded.
Both victims had to wait for more than an hour and and a half. Can we talk about something else other than cynicism and sadism?
-Someone else has had a large wound in the forehead (truncheon), which required stitches.
The rest of the wounded -(about 20) were consequences of multiple explosions of stun grenades. Exploding metallic impacts were lodged deep in the flesh, up to several centimetres beneath the skin, potentially severing nerves and arteries.
Thus, 15 fragments of shrapnel were observed (leg bones, knee, vagina, breast, arm) in one person. One of the fragments bluntly severed a nerve in her forearm. She was transferred to another hospital and then had an operation on her forearm (which means not all shrapnel was removed from the rest of her body). She will have problems moving her forearm/wrist and she lost the felling of touch/sensitivity in her fingers.
Others kept the shrapnel in their bodies, which is not without its problems, both in the short and long term.
Note, the doctor of the “SAMU” (French Ambulance service) with whom we were in contact, was harassed by the chief of staff of the prefecture to provide the identities of the wounded and their destination hospital. If he and other nurses respected medical confidentiality, other employees of the Polyclinic of Avranches knowingly communicated with the police preferring to be snitches instead of caring for patients … hats off to the collaborators!
Police were also on guard outside some hospitals in the area. It was also reported that real police roadblocks (directly on the road with combat gear) were stopping all vehicles and checking identities. And they even monitored the entrance to the University Hospital of Caen, where two vans and a “line” of riot police waited on the driveway. Repression clearly outweighed assistance.
Finally, despite the solidarity between all of us, the feeling of terror leaves, some of us, registered in our minds that will take time to heal … although clearly marked, this will take nothing away from our desire to revolt .
Our purpose is not “crying over our fate” because we knew what we were involved in. We are not fooled, France is a police state that shows its true colours when one attacks its founding pillars, including the nuclear industry. Certainly this is not new but worth constantly repeating. The state does not support this challenge, and even when they have blood on their hands this doesn’t scare then. And this text aims to inform again, and always that state violence is not only symbolic, but is also embedded in the bodies of our affected companions.
A few people from the “medical team”
mediccaen at riseup dot net
Information on anti-THT:
stop-tht.org and antitht.noblogs.org and www.percysoustension.fr
Posted: juillet 3rd, 2012 | Author: valognes | Filed under: Texts in English | No Comments »
RTE (Réseau de Transport de l’Electricité, a subsidiary of EDF) told us through their lawyer, as part of a case brought to the attention of a judge in the court of Coutances, that:
– Work related to the court of Coutances for RTE represents a cost for the day, in case of late delivery, up to 1 million euros.
– When the construction site of one of the pylons of the line is stopped, there are several dozen workers who must stop working.
– The cost of losing a day’s work on a job site (companies on the construction site are paid despite the blocking of the site) is estimated between €15 000 and €20 000 (not including any eventual penalties if the work was to be finished later than scheduled).
Similarly RTE has listed for us the hiccups they have faced:
– September 25, 2010 nuts and bolts were removed from pylon number 158 in Isigny-le-Buat (50)
– On January 8, 2011 there was a demonstration and occupation on the site of TAUTE in Raids (50)
– April 23, 2011 there was an occupation on the site in Taute in the commune of Raids (50) and nuts and bolts were removed in the local vicinity
– November 5, 2011 there was an occupation of a property acquired by RTE on the path of the line in Notre-Dame de Cenilly (50)
– January 15, 2012 there was deterioration of a drilling machine located on the site of pylon 161 in Notre-Dame de Cenilly (50).
– January 26, 2012 were held demonstrations intended to prevent the execution of works on pylons 122 L and C, 123 L and C, 124 L and C in Hauteville-la-Guichard (50).
– January 31, 2012 nuts and bolts were removed from pylon 438 located in Montaudin (53).
– February 1, 2012 there was degradation of a drilling machine on the site of pylon 254 located in Saint-Maur des Bois (50).
– February 1, 2012 there was degradation of a drilling machine on the site of pylon 310 located in Cuves (50)
– February 10, 2012 nuts and bolts were removed on pylons 159 C and 157 C located on in Notre-Dame de Cenilly.
– February 12, 2012 nuts and bolts were removed from pylon 209 located in Maupertuis (50)
– February 20, 2012 there was degradation of a small excavator belonging to the company LOXAM on the site of a pylon in the district of Mayenne (53)
– February 23, 2012 there was a degradation of pylon 332 in Le Mesnil Rainfray (50).
– February 23, 2012 Also, many people damaged the vehicle of Pierre Alain Jacob, in charge of coordination for RTE and death threats were made against him on the site of pylon No. 577 in Beaulieu-sur-Oudon (53 ).
– February 29, 2012, on the sidelines of an event scheduled at Cerisy-la-Salle (a THT walk ), a group of people came between 9 am and 10:30 to block the entrance to depot of a building site in Cametours (50) .
– March 5, 2012, a group of a dozen people opposed to pruning necessary for the implementation of the future pylon No. P537 tower in Erbrée (35).
– March 6, 2012, 50 signs were stolen or damaged on the path of the THT line in Fougerolles du Plessis and Saint-Berthevin la Tannière (53)
– March 11, 2012, a lot of damage occurred on pylon 447 located on the town of Larchamp (53) and on pylons 249 and 250 located in the commune of Saint-Aubin des Bois (14).
– March 11, 2012 also damage occurred on pylon 448 located in the commune of Larchamp (53).
– March 12, 2012, damage occurred on machines working on pylon No. 203 situated in Le Guislain (50).
– March 14, 2012, degradations were again committed to pylon 577 located in Beaulieu sur Oudon (53).
– March 18, 2012, nuts and bolts were removed on the site of pylon 118 in Saint-Martin d’Aubigny (50).
– March 19, 2012, an opposition demonstration to the work took place on the site of the pylon No. 220 in Montabot (50).
– March 19, 2012, manure was spread on a hundred square meters of the site where the pylon No. 223 on should be built in Montabot (50).
– March 20, 2012 degradation of two construction vehicles (screwdrivers) on the pylon No. 220 in Montabot (50).
– March 22, 2012 a demonstration took place on the site of pylon No. 132 in Le Lorey (50).
– March 29, 2012 opposition took place to pruning at the site of pylon No. 223 in Montabot (50).
– March 30, 2012 copper was stolen from the MCCF site located in Bourgneuf (53).
– March 30, 2012 damage was also done to pylon No. 369 in the district of the Le Teilleul gendarmerie (50).
– March 30, 2012 opposition to work on the site of pylon No. 114 in the commune of Saint-Martin d’Aubigny (50).
– March 30, 2012 opposition to work on the site of pylon No. 222 in Montabot (50).
– April 13, 2012 nuts and bolts were removed from pylon No. 566 in Saint-Cyr le Gravelais (53)
– April 17, 2012 there was damage and nuts and bolts were removed from pylon No. 137 situated in Cametours (50).
– April 20, 2012 there was damage to material on the site of pylon 234 in Montbray (50).
– April 20, 2012 there was damage and theft from the building site depot of Chapelle Janson (35).
– April 24, 2012 there was damage to four bases at the site of pylon No. 15O in Dangy (50).
– April 25, 2012 there was damage to the base on the pylon No. 153 in Dangy (50).
– April 25, 2012 there was damage (nuts anf bolts removed, bases were twisted) on the pylon No. 155 in the commune of Notre-Dame de Cenilly (50).
– April 25, 2012 there was damage to the base of pylon 119 in Feugère (50).
– April 25, 2012 there was a blockade on the depot of the site located in Fleury (50).
– April 25, 2012 there was a protest at the depot of the site located in the Chapelle Janson (35).
– April 25, 2012 there was damage to the base of the pylon No. 202 in Le Guislain (50).
– April 25, 2012 dammage to pylon No. 369 in Lapenty (50).
– April 25, 2012 there was opposition to work on pylon No. 543 in Bréal-sous-Vitré (35).
– April 28, 2012 there was a demonstration and damage to pylons 560 and 561 in Saint-Cyr le Gravelais (53).
– April 28, 2012 there was damage to pylon 566 towers in Saint-cyr the Gravelais (53).
– May 2, 2012 there was damage to the road protections in the area of pylons 133-134 in Le Lorey (50).
– May 4, 2012 material was stolen from pylon 378 at La Ferrière (50).
– May 5, 2012 there was a blockade to the access of pylon 544 by the planting of trees in Bréal sous Vitré (35).
– May 6, 2012 there was an occupation and damage to a building owned by RTE in Notre Dame de Cenilly (50).
– May 7, 2012 damage to three bases on the pylon 202 at Le Guislain (50).
– May 7, 2012 damage to a crane on pylon 406 in the commune of Fougerolles du Plessis (53).
– May 10, 2012 damage and theft on the drill tower of pylon No. 107 in Saint-Martin d’Aubigny (50).
– May 11, 2012 destruction of 10 cases of insulator on the pylon 147L in Carantilly (50).
– May 11, 2012 damage to a crane on pylon 205 in the commune of Le Guislain (50).
– May 14, 2012 there was opposition to work on the pylon 385 in Heusse (50).
– May 15, 2012 damage to pylon No. 147L in Carantilly (50).
– May 15,2012 damage to pylon No. 305 in St Laurent de Cuves (50).
– May 16, 2012 there was opposition to work on pylons 470 and 471 in Ernée (35).
– May 17, 2012 there was damage to a machine at pylon 532 in the commune of Bourgon (53).
– May 20, 2012 there was damage to the drill tower at pylon 385 in Heussé (50).
– May 21, 2012 damage to Pylon 155L in Notre Dame de Cenilly (50).
– May 30, 2012 damage to pylon 511 in the commune of Juvigné (53).
– May 31, 2012 there was damage in the commune of Le Lorey (50).
The list ended on May 31. We look forward with impatience to the list of blows to the line Cotentin-Maine and elsewhere throughout the summer months, no pylons are safe.
We thank RTE for continuing to encourage us to disturb sites, informing us of the reality of the impact of our actions.
Similarly, we can not thank EDF enough for giving us the call-out for action against the pylons in 1983 (Lefevre report of 13 April 1983 – Department counter-operations-management studies for the service networks EDF):
"When the activists who today are focused on nuclear turn there attention to the THT lines, the situation risks to be serious because although we can protect nuclear power stations with barbed wire fences and riot cops, this is not the case for the pylons."
Extract from a confidential EDF report in 1983
