17th of February 2007 was the "NoDalMolin day". This demonstration represented one great challenge. A bet has been won. A challenge that now is going to continue. A new movement, a determined and joyful multitude of beyond 150.000 people has invaded the city to say NO to the new US Army Base in the name of a future without war. Amato (Home Office minister) and Prodi’s (premier) provocations were rejected, and nobody was intimidated by government’s threats of tensions. A multitude of people arrived in Vicenza on his own, by bus or by train. In this feature, you will find news, photos and audios collected during this extraordinary mobilisation against the Dal Molin Base and against the War.
Saturday, February 17th there were many good reasons to go to Vicenza. The Permanent Assembly against the construction of the US Army Base called for a great demonstration. We will try to list some of these reasons here below.
First of all the struggle against the "Dal Molin" re-opens in Italy a new season of multitudinarian conflicts, starting from the strong and intelligent unification of all those topics that have characterized movements during last few years: the fight against war, the struggles for commons and the one for self-government.
The 2nd reason is that the movement against "Dal Molin" is a "true movement", made up by differences that are not unified only by an instance but start from a sort of "common sense" that reflects social and productive cooperation of a territory. This multitude wants peace and freedom, the government and the US want war and submission.
Coming 3rd there simply is the fact that this movement is a true movement and for this reason it scares powers. All politicians’ provocations (the demo is to be violent, keep shops closed on that day, stay home, etc. etc.) prove movements’ strength. The stronger a movement is, and the stronger is the way powers try to repress it. This is why institutional powers don’t scare us, they actually are an impulse to all, to participate with more determination to mobilisations for democracy and for defence of a common goods.
The 4th reason is exactly that common goods are represented in concrete terms. Peace, rights are not banal demands. And more, the same movement becomes a common good itself in the moment it becomes an expression of disobedient and independent life, capable of deciding by itself. The movement says: "We, the multitude, we will now on decide for our lives".
The 5th reason is in the fact that the Vicenza’s movement expresses the will of all and for all. It is the real sense of the democracy. Parties and government are a minority in the country and in the city and we, therefore, cannot allow them to decide over people’s heads. It will not be the monarch to decide, neither in Vicenza or elsewhere, and therefore we once again say: "the King it is naked", as Carnival’s tradition teaches us.
The 6th and last reason has to do with the joy and determination of Vicenza that is increased by activists of all social centres and self-organized movements, and this has been called the heart of Saturday’s march.
To be in Vicenza, to become Vicenza means not only to do the right thing but it also means to take on the occasion of changing again. And changes must come from us, from people. Because we believe that this is the right thing to do.
Voices and images from the march
Multimedia! photo and video from the various GlobalProject’s Editorial Staff:
Photo (B/W) of “L’angelo Viaggiatore” in on air on Sherwood Radio.
Photos and minivideo of the trains and the march powered by Global Project Milan
Photos (B/W) by Global Project Padoa
Photos of the trains and the march realized by Global Project Trento
Multimedia! more:
Photographic gallery 17 February NoDalMOlin
17/02 Italian and foreign Press Review and Web media on the NoDalMolin march
Articles, photos and videos from web and mainstream media.
Trento - Fermiamo il bando di gara della base militare di Mattarello
