URGENT - Italy: Police raids on COBAS Confederation

This morning, 31st May 2002, in Taranto, the police carried out a
series of searches against union offices and members on the
orders of investigating magistrates, in particular against the
COBAS Confederation. At present (12.00) with the police action still
ongoing, it seems that 9 conrades are under house arrest with no
possibility of communication with the outside world. Computers and
documents have been confiscated form the Cobas offices. Among those
arrested are some who had made reports against police violence
following the events of Naples and Genoa last year.

Most seriously of all is the charge which has been pinned on those
arrested - they are charged under Article 270, ie. on charges of
"subversive association", which means that they are not being
charged with any particular criminal act, but as a result of their
political activity - their presence in the social struggles and
those of workers and against war - activities always carried out
in thye full light of day.

The COBAS Confederation denounces this most serious act of
intimidation which is nothing less than a fascist pincer movement
against the union and political independance of the COBAS and all
in the radical protest movement. We offer our total solidarity to
those comrades who have been detained and interrogated and the
COBAS Confederatrion demands their immediate release and invites
all workers, anticapitalists and democrats to mobilize to the
fullest extent for the immediate removal of these hateful and
unconstitutional repressive measures.

For the COBAS Confederation,
National Spokesperson
Pino Giampietro