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Italy: Dutch police join Italian witchhunt

01 January 1998

Italian anarchist Paola La Vecchio has been arrested in Amsterdam following a request from the Italian Justice department. Apart from being accused of participating in two robberies in 1989 and 1990 (see Statewatch, vol 7 no 1) he is also accused of membership of a criminal organisation aiming to overthrow the state (article 270 of the criminal code) as well as participating in a criminal organisation. The charges are aggravated by the fact that Paola has been accused of terrorist crimes under a special law introduced in Italy as part of "State of Emergency" legislation in Italy.

However, the very existence of the organisation of which Paola is supposed to be a member, the so-called "Organizzazione Rivoluzionaria Anarchica Insurectiozionalista" (ORAI)is denied by every Italian anarchist. The very name suggests that this organisation has more to do with the fertile imagination of the Italian police than any "anarchist conspiracy". This has not stopped the Italian Justice department from using the alleged existence of this "organisation" to arrest 68 other anarchists, all of whom are charged with membership of a criminal organisation (the apparently memberless ORAI).

The Dutch civil liberties organisation Jansen & Janssens have compared the experience of Italian Anarchists to the way that the Dutch Justice department used the terrorist RaRa organisation as a stick to beat the Dutch left with, applying the now notorious article 140 of the Dutch penal code, which outlaws membership of a criminal organisation. Dutch civil liberties activists have organised demonstrations against the arrest of Paola in Amsterdam.

For more information regarding the case of Italian anarchists contact: "Action Committee El Paso Occupata", Passo Buole 47 Torino 10127, Italy.