July 1999 Athens

Gentlemen,

I am here in this courtroom alongside my comrade Nikos Maziotis. Both irreducible enemies of the State, both anarchists.

Looking around the world today, the State order dominates almost everywhere and its order is that of death and destruction. The recent events of the war in Serbia and Kosovo testify to this perfectly. Whatever the State does, even when it tries to hide behind a humanitarian façade, it results in death and destruction.

But the State is not an abstraction, it is not an empty word, but a very concrete thing. The State is constituted of men and things, by capital that realizes exploitation, which keeps millions of people under its control in order to secure profits on investment, an immense administrative and military apparatus that governs, manages and kills on a daily basis.

The situations where the domination of capital and the State is realised are many. One of these is that of Strymonikos, where an entire population has been forced to accept the installation of a gold industry with all the consequences in terms of pollution, environmental destruction, etc.

The mass struggle that has developed continues to this day with the intervention of hundreds of people and with the presence and solidarity of the anarchists. Revolutionary solidarity.

The attack carried out by Nikos Maziotis against the Ministry of Industry is part of this project of solidarity and, for me, it signifies two things:

a) concrete solidarity with the struggles of Strymonikos,

b) it prevents you from slumbering peacefully on your benches.

Everywhere these struggles are becoming more and more relevant and anarchists are always present in them, an integral part of the desire for freedom of those who want to live without masters and without exploitation

In Italy, for example, the struggle in Comiso to prevent the construction of the American Cruise missile base, which lasted more than two years, and the anarchists were present. The struggle in the Western Alps against the installation of the high-speed train, which is still going on, and where the anarchists are present. The struggle against technology, which has seen hundreds of high-voltage pylons being torn down, is still ongoing, and the anarchists are present.

Nikos Maziotis is not alone, in every corner of the world people like him are declared enemies of the State. so they’re just waiting to strike.

 

Perhaps you judges will also be called on to give an exemplary response against so-called terrorism through this trial by the American boss that is globalising the whole world by dominating it.

For we anarchists the State is the only terrorist, and this was recently seen in Kosovo and Serbia where it sowed death and destruction everywhere, without distinction.

Nikos Maziotis is not a terrorist, because he struggles for freedom and anarchy.

You can’t stop him! You can’t stop us!

Alfredo M. Bonanno

translated from : Carteggio [Correspondence] 1998-2000, Alfredo M. Bonanno – Gianfranco Bertoli, letter 67 https://www.edizionianarchismo.net/library/alfredo-m-bonanno-gianfranco-bertoli-carteggio-1998-2000#toc79Signori,