Me personally, I am not seeing any revolution. I can't see crowds of people walking around dancing. I can't see women walking around with head held high. I can't see people putting flowers in the guns. I can't see people dressing as they like. I can't see people closing western industries that emit deadly odors. I can't see people imposing people's dignity before interests.
I have never been in Tunisia before, I can not say what was here in the past. But I have been in Algeria, in Syria, in Jordan (and in Serbia during Milošević). Therefore I guess I can have an idea of it. For sure now is a little bit better. A tunisian friend I met in the recent days told me:
<<Before Ben Ali's fall, whenever we went out at night to write on a wall in secret, in the morning we found it cleaned up. By the police? Not at all. By neighbors who feared being blamed by the police. Now people do not bother to clean up the walls. But the police arrests us wall-writers as before>>.
I can add another example: when police stops you and asks why you have a camera in your hands, now you can answer that you are here visiting your brother and chatting with your tunisian friends making videos out of it and it's enough. Before, I guess it was not so.
I am in a little town at the outskirts of the desert in the south of Tunisia and I find a bit of rest to write. Bernardo is working in the local department of the university of Gabes.
I will write all about the tunisian trip once at home. But, nonetheless I feel to write something today. Because, if it is true that there would be many things to say about the so-called "tunisian revolution", it's also true that in these days someone is calling revolution what is happening in Europe. And Tunisia is an interesting point of view. I mean, the spanish activists are calling "revolution" their mobilization. The movement is called "M-15", the slogans are "Democracia real ya" and "Yes we camp". I have to say that I appreciate many points of their platform, especially those concerning active democracy. The tunisian friends I discussed with about the spanish mobilization are excited. They feel that this is another wave of what they started here. And this can be not wrong. However spanish activists called it "revolution" and so the tunisian activists also started calling it "revolution", and "revolution" to them means what we all know. Then go and compare what happened in Tunis and in Madrid and you see that things are hardly comparable. I guess that the tunisian friends will be soon disappointed.
In Tunis the dictator left the power and escaped. People were killed. In Madrid people didn't go to vote (and they had their reason, I am not saying anything else), so the rightist party could win the local elections. Strange kind of revolution. Anyway, I don't want to be unkind to the spanish social effort carried on by the "M-15" movement, but my fiercest criticism is directed to the use of the word "revolution". Is it now something fashion? Or is it a kind of mantra to invoke the benign spirit? Is it a way to give courage to each other? The day that revolution had really to come how we should call it?
And I can't imagine how Italians will call it if Pisapia and De Magistris will be elected mayor of Milan and Naples next sunday.
Anyway, people may think that I am lost in tedious disquisitions. But I rather think that it's absolutely urgent to point out the question. Spanish activists will find their way. Italians will wander a little bit more. But the point is what is happening here in the North Africa. Calling it revolution is not only a provocation, a gamble or a sidetracking. It's a part of the strategy to lay the foundations of a new colonialism.
I have never been in Tunisia before, I can not say what was here in the past. But I have been in Algeria, in Syria, in Jordan (and in Serbia during Milošević). Therefore I guess I can have an idea of it. For sure now is a little bit better. A tunisian friend I met in the recent days told me:
<<Before Ben Ali's fall, whenever we went out at night to write on a wall in secret, in the morning we found it cleaned up. By the police? Not at all. By neighbors who feared being blamed by the police. Now people do not bother to clean up the walls. But the police arrests us wall-writers as before>>.
I can add another example: when police stops you and asks why you have a camera in your hands, now you can answer that you are here visiting your brother and chatting with your tunisian friends making videos out of it and it's enough. Before, I guess it was not so.
I am in a little town at the outskirts of the desert in the south of Tunisia and I find a bit of rest to write. Bernardo is working in the local department of the university of Gabes.
I will write all about the tunisian trip once at home. But, nonetheless I feel to write something today. Because, if it is true that there would be many things to say about the so-called "tunisian revolution", it's also true that in these days someone is calling revolution what is happening in Europe. And Tunisia is an interesting point of view. I mean, the spanish activists are calling "revolution" their mobilization. The movement is called "M-15", the slogans are "Democracia real ya" and "Yes we camp". I have to say that I appreciate many points of their platform, especially those concerning active democracy. The tunisian friends I discussed with about the spanish mobilization are excited. They feel that this is another wave of what they started here. And this can be not wrong. However spanish activists called it "revolution" and so the tunisian activists also started calling it "revolution", and "revolution" to them means what we all know. Then go and compare what happened in Tunis and in Madrid and you see that things are hardly comparable. I guess that the tunisian friends will be soon disappointed.
In Tunis the dictator left the power and escaped. People were killed. In Madrid people didn't go to vote (and they had their reason, I am not saying anything else), so the rightist party could win the local elections. Strange kind of revolution. Anyway, I don't want to be unkind to the spanish social effort carried on by the "M-15" movement, but my fiercest criticism is directed to the use of the word "revolution". Is it now something fashion? Or is it a kind of mantra to invoke the benign spirit? Is it a way to give courage to each other? The day that revolution had really to come how we should call it?
And I can't imagine how Italians will call it if Pisapia and De Magistris will be elected mayor of Milan and Naples next sunday.
Anyway, people may think that I am lost in tedious disquisitions. But I rather think that it's absolutely urgent to point out the question. Spanish activists will find their way. Italians will wander a little bit more. But the point is what is happening here in the North Africa. Calling it revolution is not only a provocation, a gamble or a sidetracking. It's a part of the strategy to lay the foundations of a new colonialism.
<<Now in Tunisia we have a parliamentary dictatorship and those in the parliament were not elected either. The next elections scheduled for july (given that they will be held and not postponed or, worse, no initiative will be taken by the army) will not elect the new members of the parliament, but the Constituent Committee. That means that the non-elected members of the parliament will have all the time to work undisturbedly until the work is done>>.
So told me an activist here. And what is doing the parliament by its own? It's renegotiating contracts with western powers. Which is the principle that is inspiring the renegotiations? Patronage. That means that once the monster's head was cut, let's see now what other head will grow.
What people gained out of this historical changes? By now, a kind of freedom of speech. That is something. It's ok. But I don't think this is what people have fought for and died for. The same situation, absolutely the same, I found in Belgrade after the Milošević's fall in 2000. The same answers from the people. The same frustration. Sorry if I am denouncing and pointing out this risk since february.
So, eventually, what people's uprising was for? It started from an inalienable right to rebel. And that's true. Then. Was it the fig leaf for the secret plans of the great powers? Was it the smoke in the eyes to hide the secret interests of the great powers? I think the answer is not that far from here. So, what calling it "revolution" was it for? Wasn't it a bit like playing into the hands of the imperialism?
Once upon a time a lebanese activist told me in Sidon:
So told me an activist here. And what is doing the parliament by its own? It's renegotiating contracts with western powers. Which is the principle that is inspiring the renegotiations? Patronage. That means that once the monster's head was cut, let's see now what other head will grow.
What people gained out of this historical changes? By now, a kind of freedom of speech. That is something. It's ok. But I don't think this is what people have fought for and died for. The same situation, absolutely the same, I found in Belgrade after the Milošević's fall in 2000. The same answers from the people. The same frustration. Sorry if I am denouncing and pointing out this risk since february.
So, eventually, what people's uprising was for? It started from an inalienable right to rebel. And that's true. Then. Was it the fig leaf for the secret plans of the great powers? Was it the smoke in the eyes to hide the secret interests of the great powers? I think the answer is not that far from here. So, what calling it "revolution" was it for? Wasn't it a bit like playing into the hands of the imperialism?
Once upon a time a lebanese activist told me in Sidon:
<<In politics naivete is not granted. Those who are naïve, do the game of my enemies. Therefore they are enemies for me>>.
Since I am an anarchist, I do not believe in any revolution. I don't believe in revolutions except for the inner one. You can down a system only with another system and I don't believe in systems. That's all.
Since I am an anarchist, I do not believe in any revolution. I don't believe in revolutions except for the inner one. You can down a system only with another system and I don't believe in systems. That's all.
