Police
evict Occupy Switzerland protesters from the Lindenhof
in
Zurich, Nov. 14. The Swiss movement is receiving criticism
for
being unwilling to challenge authority and risk being labeled
anarchists and communists.
Wochenzeitung, Switzerland
Swiss Occupy
Movement is Too Respectful of Authority
"The
Swiss branch of the Occupy movement has always adhered to all rules and
agreements and has tried to please everyone: the city, the police and the
bankers. If the movement wants the chance to be more than just an appendage of
the international protest movement, it now must find its own identity by going
above and beyond the realm of the permissible."
The message exuded
revolutionary romanticism: Jean Ziegler’s voice - connected by telephone from
Paris to Zürich’s Parade Square - aggressively proclaimed from the loudspeakers:
“A liberation movement is born. You will be victorious.” That was on October 15,
when roughly a thousand people occupied the banking square and protested against
the excesses of capitalism - and for greater equality.
A month later, there are
still about 50 tents on the Lindenhof,
which is in close proximity to Parade Square. On Monday the city of Zürich
denied the squatters petition to remain at the Lindenhof “for 99 months.” The
“Occupy” movement’s presence - at least its physical presence - had declined
markedly over recent weeks. This weekend there was hardly 100 people at the
rally on Parade Square. Was the “most important thing in the world,” (Naomi
Klein) just a brief flicker?
In Switzerland, this danger does
exist. The situation here is different from that in Madrid, Santiago de Chile, New
York or Tel Aviv. In Britain, Greece, Chile, Spain and the United States, large
portions of the middle class are suffering because of the economic consequences
of the financial crisis and the belt-tightening of their respective
governments. Social unrest is not surprising. But even in Switzerland, the
structural effects of capitalism can be physically felt - albeit to a lesser
extent and for different reasons. The most recent example is the pharmaceutical
company Novartis, which is eliminating thousands of jobs despite earning huge
profits.
Posted
by WORLDMEETS.US
Elsewhere, high school and
college students are joining with trade unionists, senior citizens, government
workers, public employees and activists. Meanwhile, occupants at the idyllic
Lindenhof seem like scattered gunpowder without explosive force which, although
they believe they are taking dynamic action and despite enjoying considerable
popular support, after a month hardly seem able to mobilize. Have they, as
philosopher Slavoj Zizek warned in New York, fallen in love with themselves
and with the “nice time we’re having here?”
The movement’s challenges are
obvious: Capitalism is abstract and complex. Accordingly, the fight against it rarely
takes concrete form.Protest remains
unfocused. The two-tier society highlighted by the Occupy movement - 99 versus
one percent – is a catchy slogan, but it doesn’t do justice to the complexity
of the problem. The Swiss movement lacks reference points - both local and personal:
In New York City, for example, the Occupy movement attempted to prevent the planned
opening of a Brooklyn branch of price-cutting discounter Walmart. There, the Occupy
movement connects the large with the small and the abstract with the concrete. And
even in Switzerland, there are possible points of departure: The layoffs at
Novartis, rising rents, lower wages, and society's narrowing options.
The occupiers of Lindenhof always
stressed that they wanted to be a broad-based movement. They rejoice at every
liberal or ex-U.S. Senator who embraces them. But for fear of being labeled “anarchists”
or “communists," they’re keeping their distance from the left and disassociating
themselves from serious demonstrations in front of the villa of Novartis President
Daniel Vasella and outside
parliament. But the reverse is also true: Neither leftist groups nor NGOs nor
unions have joined the protests. Up to now, such a network has not been
established.
The Swiss branch of the
Occupy movement has always adhered to all rules and agreements and has
tried to please everyone: the city, the police and the bankers. If the movement
wants the chance to be more than just an appendage of the international protest
movement, it now must find its own identity by going above and beyond the realm
of the permissible in terms of protest. That also means having the courage to
engage in civil disobedience - especially after being evicted from the
Lindenhof.
