Another one bites the dust

topic:	Economic Inclusion
located:	Germany
editor:	Gurmeet Singh

Berlin was once a city of squats. It’s now officially the city of investors. With Liebig 34 evacuated, the city has taken one step closer to becoming just like any other major European capital: a place where investment rules.

Commenting live on the evacuation, Der Spiegel wrote:

“"Liebig 34" is one of the last symbolic projects of the autonomous scene in Berlin. A large number of police are on site. According to the police, around 1,500 officers from eight federal states were on duty, including special technical units such as rescue teams. A clearing vehicle and ladders were ready.

According to police reports, around 1,500 people protested against the eviction. According to the German press agency, there were also scuffles between the emergency services and black-hooded demonstrators. Occasionally bottles flew. There is a very emotional mood, said a spokesman. But he spoke of a largely trouble-free protest. Information on injured persons and possible arrests are not yet available.”

Reports throughout the day suggested that more than 50 people had been evacuated from the squat.

You might be thinking, “well, so? Squats aren’t legal, why should they be allowed to stay?” Squats are a vital part of political struggles and provide a focal point for community action against private abuses of power, such as unfair rent increases, and institutional issues such as unfair laws.

Squat.net writing before the eviction commented:

“The anticapitalist struggle is an intersectional one. Liebig34 provides a perfect example. In their fight against housing being a commodity, capitalism and patriarchy, they have been a symbol for radical queer feminism for 30 years…Liebig was originally squatted on June 30th, 1990, the summer after the fall of the Berlin wall, where many buildings were left empty. The house sits on the corner of Rigaer Straße, a place particularly known for its squatting history. In 1999, Liebig then turned into a women-only and lesbian space. Over the years and adapting with the times, Liebig became more inclusive towards non-binary and trans people…Liebig’s one of the few hausprojects, where cis-men do not dominate the conversation of our leftist space...Most importantly, Liebig34 has served as a refuge to people wanting to live outside the confines of our patriarchal capitalist society. Simply the need for a space like this is the most important reason why it has stayed alive over all these years.”

Squatting, as you can see, provides an option for people to express themselves politically, outside the centrist, mainstream norm. This may theoretically allow for the development of right-wing and far-right squats, but such developments are likely to be rare, given the different ideals of “living” and “family” that these political visions typically hold dear.

Writing in ExBerliner, Nathalie Flakin reminds readers that it’s important to bring context to bear on squatting. In whose name are the police being mobilised to evict people with queer-inclusive politics?

She writes: “This is all for Gijora Padovicz, one of the biggest realty speculators in Berlin. This "realty king" has specialised in buying old buildings and forcing out the people living there — he might sue them, or a pipe might break and not get repaired, or maybe an ATM will pop up in the entrance. Once a house is emptied, it can be "modernised" and sold as condominiums — oligarchs the world over need places to park their money, after all. If you google Padovicz's name, the first thing you will find is a Padovicz Watchblog run by angry tenants.

Right around the corner from the Liebig34, actually, is a building in the Wiedenweg 63, which belongs to Padovicz and has stood empty for years. The city is spending millions to evict the Liebig34 — so the house can stand empty for speculative purposes.”

We must understand Berlin’s efforts to evict squatters as a police action for investors and speculation, and an action against left-wing politics. This city has been a beautiful place for left-wing ideas and action for thirty years. With each passing day, it’s becoming a beautiful city for investors.

Image by cocoparisienne

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