Youths Defeat Police Forces in Utrecht, Netherlands
We hereby share an unofficial translation of an article published by the newspaper REBEL!
Young People rise up against the police and their propagandists in Utrecht-Overvecht
On the night of March 10 to 11, the police attempted to arrest someone on a scooter in Overvecht; in doing so, they knocked him off his scooter and put him in danger. As a result, approximately 50 youths from the neighborhood revolted; the police were pelted with fireworks and stones. When the police commandeered a bus to use against the youths, it was also “completely destroyed,” according to Transdev.
It is remarkable with what courage and speed the young people were able to act; they fought without fear, and everyone got away after two hours without arrests, leaving the State with considerable damage. In addition to material damage to police vehicles and the requisitioned bus (for which the police must pay compensation), two officers were injured with permanent hearing damage.
This follows several months of attention on the way the Utrecht police use violence against Muslims and people with a migration background. According to research by OneWorld using data from Controle Alt Delete, it appears that Dutch people with a migration background died at the hands of the police as much as 11.6 times more often in proportion than Dutch people without a migration background. Despite the fact that people from different ethnic groups in the Netherlands commit approximately the same frequency and severity of crimes, Moroccan- and Antillean-Dutch youths end up in jail 10 to 12 times more often after being suspected than youths without a migration background.
According to the Utrecht Police Commissioner, there have been similar incidents in recent weeks in which the police were attacked. Politicians, from the so-called left, such as the Mayor of Utrecht, Sharon Dijksma of the PvdA, to the Minister of Justice David van Weel of the VVD, have reacted with indignation, calling the incidents scandalous and calling for arrests.
The day after the uprising, a reporter from the propaganda channel PowNed came to the neighborhood to provoke reactions and incite hatred against Muslims and people with a migration background. He was subsequently beaten by one of the youths he was trying to film, a clear sign that police propagandists are not welcome in Overvecht either.
The justified uprising of the youth is an example of the working class defending itself and resisting the injustices of the state. Organizing this resistance is a necessary next step. This most recent incident shows that as long as the police use racist violence without consequences and as long as Overvecht continues to deteriorate, people will continue to resist.
