Davos: state of siege can't stop protests
Workers Power Global

In Zurich on Saturday 27 January about 1,500 protestors against the World Economic Forum – then opening in Davos – were forbidden to demonstrate. They were subjected to violent arbitrary arrests, encircled by military and police forces.

They were bombarded with water cannon and rubber bullets. In short their fundamental human rights – freedom of expression, assembly and association – were totally denied. Even billionaire speculator George Soros was moved to protest against the heavy handed policing as did the trade union leaders invited to Davos.

On the frontiers of Switzerland cars and busses from all European countries were stopped, searched and some turned back. SWP-organised coaches were stopped for carrying "subversive literature" in the form of Naomi Klein’s book "No Logo". Individuals with any on them that they might be intending to demonstrate were turned back.

Weyman Bennett, of the SWP and London Socialist Alliance candidate for Tottenham, was stopped at the airport and summarily returned to London. Only after vigorous protests, were the Swiss authorities forced to let him in again. Naturally he received thunderous applause at the 800 strong counter-conference in Zurich when he finally arrived.

The entire Davos region itself was already a military exclusion zone. Hundreds of kilometres of barbed wires were placed along the roads at strategic points and along railway lines. Metal police barriers closed all Davos streets. The inner line, some 100 metres from the WEF venue, was manned by soldiers and police, all in black.

The motorway from the south, from Italy was closed completely. Ya Basta demonstrators – as at Prague and Nice – were stopped. Nevertheless some cars and trains with would-be demonstrators, heavily disguised as normal tourists, were trickling into Davos.

Early on the morning of 27 Januaary, seven buses organised by ATTAC Switzerland set off toward Davos After a two hour drive, they were stopped on a small road by an armoured vehicle and encircled by soldiers dressed all in black their faces covered with black hoods. In addition helicopters were circling low overhead, filming the demonstrators.

At the same time, in the small town of Lanqvart, 40 kilometres from Davos, the train from Zurich was stopped. The village was encircled by police forces. The 400 or so demonstrators from the train tried to demonstrate and block the nearby highway. But they were encircled by the police who later opened fire with rubber bullets and water canon. The demonstrators were bundled back onto a train to Zurich.

In spite of everything a demonstration of about 300 people actually started in Davos at 1:30pm. The demonstrators were completely peaceful and good humoured but the police immediately opened fire with water canon, despite the fact that it was snowing and extremely cold. The soaked demonstrators were then manhandled back to the railway station and put in train to Zurich.

On the evening of 27 a demonstration of 1-2,00 took place in Zurich It ended in some violent incidents mainly as a result of heavy police provocation – again water cannon and rubber bullets being used. The police arrested 121 people.

Thus once more, as in Prague and Nice – the "movers and the shakers" of corporate capitalism could only meet behind a ring of steel – barbed wire, armoured cars, water cannon and masked paramilitary police. They have shown once more their ugly, undemocratic face of "the free-market economy" and the capitalist state.

Our task is to use such mobilisations to unmask them again and again to a new generation of young people and workers, to train ever greater numbers of "activists" from amongst the oppressed and exploited of the "three worlds." Suffering from the corporate predators. Then the "movers and shakers" will themselves be moved and shaken – and better still – overthrown.

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