The Czechoslovak Anarchist Federation (CSAF) was founded in 1995. CSAF is a member of the International of Anarchist Federations (IAF-IFA). The CSAF consists of groups or individuals, who consider themselves as anarchists. We are an organization of working people, students, unemployed people and pensioners, who agree with anarchist principles. It means above all federalism, autonomy, grassroots activities and absence of all kinds of hierarchy or inequality. CSAF strives for building a libertarian and autonomous society, based on autonomy of territory and production, federalism, solidarity and social justice. All what we like or don’t at the society and what we want instead of it is written in platform minimum, which is available on the federation website, as well as organizational statues, which were updated in the year 2011.

Searching the anarchist politics

CSAF activities are largely based on the interests, priorities and determination of their own members. Additionally, our options are determined by our small numbers and also by the state of broader anti-authoritarian movement, part of which we are. Year 2011 was for us the year of internal discussions about our place and future direction. Comprehensive text titled "Searching the anarchist politics," which reflects some of the partial conclusions of the discussion can be found both on the website and in the journal Existence 4/ 2011. When asked as to what the anarchist organizations should today focus, there can be found a few points as a proposal for an answer: 1) Taking back the public space, 2) Building Solidarity Movement, 3) Joining the current protest movement, 4) Autonomous projects, 5 ) Development of the anarchist movement.

Members of our federation are very often involved in various projects, campaigns and initiatives of the broader anti-authoritarian movement. In our effort is just about the specific activities and their meaning, not whether it is signed just beneath CSAF. We understand our struggle as a common, and so we approach it.

Against cuts and neoliberal reforms

The most important issue for us in the year 2011 was still the neoliberal assault of the right-wing government against workers, students, unemployed and pensioners.

Anti-social politics of the government more than once drove out on the streets the labour unionists and initiatives fighting against the government's reforms. Members of the CSAF joined these actions with the critique from anarchist perspective.

The labour union demonstration was held against the reforms and government on the 21st of May in Prague. The demonstration was attended by more than 40 thousand people. CSAF also joined the demonstration with banner „Capitalism against people, people against capitalism" ,leaflets printed for the occasion and a new issue of the newsletters "From below" (Zdola). The area where the demonstration began was plastered with posters and anarchist wallpaper A3.

CSAF has published on its website a call for solidarity with a strike, announced by a coalition of transport unions on the 16th of June. The call was heard by most groups of CSAF and many supporters. The government and its inclined media tried to claim that the strike in transport harmed especially "ordinary people" who were said to be angry at the strikers. However, the published survey showed that 7% of respondents participated in the strike and 50% sympathized.
Some of anarchists in Prague joined independently an accompanying demonstration, which was directed to the Government Office. CSAF and its supporters organized a variety of support actions in various places across Czechia.

Some of us supported „demonstration against government reforms", which was held on the occasion of the anniversary of the "Velvet Revolution“ on the 17th of November in Prague. Four thousand upset people participated in the demonstration, which was organized by ProAlt initiative

CSAF has always tried to promote anti-capitalist attitude during these protests. This also raised the issue of thematic focus of most of the posters and wallpapers A3, published in 2011.

Anarchist May Day

Members of CSAF were actively involved in the 4th annual May Day festival, organized by the Anti-Fascist Action. Some of us joined an anti-fascist blockade in Brno, which was aimed at not to release neonazi march in the streets inhabited mostly by Roma people.

In addition to this busy schedule, we still decided to hold a small reminder of the roots of May Day as a Labour Day and its tradition in Czechia, which is, among other things, connected with a shooting island (Strelecky ostrov) in Prague. About 60 people gathered here to listen to a few speeches, folk songs and poems. When the meeting at shooting island was over, there followed the exodus to the May Day festival, which attracted around 10,000 people.

Members of CSAF also prepared its own programme for the festival. In the first place there was a CSAF „distro - tent", where the publications and materials of CSAF and Anarchist Black Cross were available. The tent was also used as a beneficial bazaar in which people contributed mostly with music CDs and especially older anarchist magazines. Separately there was established "info-tent" in which people could take A3 paper, leaflets, promotional materials, or discuss with the members of the Federation. There were also improvised "exhibition hall", where visitors could see three installations. The first one was devoted to anarchist black cross and activists murdered in Russia, the other one returned to 15 anniversary of the CSAF and the history of its activities and the latest featured A3 wallpapers project. CSAF also took care of transcription of lectures of John Holloway and Alan Carter.

Occupy

After the indignant Spaniards came out to the streets and occupied the central squares of most cities on the 15th of May, their countrymen who work and live in the Czech Republic tried to present the movement of Democracia real ya! also here. It started with meeting on the 20th of May and went on with other actions - mainly in Prague and Brno. Spanish friends have brought a fresh air to public events in the Czech Republic and enriched them by the public assemblies, which were an integral part of their actions.

The initiative Real Democracy now! was established in summer on the basis of these events. Anarchists are also part of the initiative, but for themselves, not as members of any organization. CSAF promoted and supported various activities of this initiative, which included events such as Action for Global Change (15/10/2011), In solidarity with the victims of police violence in the U.S. (25/10), or demonstration on the occasion of Human Rights Day (10/12).

The protests in cities across the United States have brought to us the Occupy movement, which was inspirational for the foundation of small groups of people such as one in the town of Olomouc or Pilsen. The anarchists were involved as well. CSAF tries to provide information and analysis on the protests and movements of "the indignant" around the world in its magazines and website.

Antiracism and antifascism

During March the activists of CSAF-Prague spread leaflets and stickers under the famous slogan "No one is illegal“ with information about status of foreigners in the Czech Republic. Part of the action was hanging out a banner at a busy junction. In early April, Prague group of the Federation supported the action called "Week for the forest industry workers", which was aimed at the situation of immigrant workers employed in the forestry industry.

Some of us attended the blockade of nazi march in town of Novy Bydzov in March. Nazis had to have their way cleared by police violence.

CSAF joined the "march against the visit of Benjamin Netanyahu" on the 8th of April to demonstrate their opposition to apartheid system, segregation wall and the oppression of the Palestinian people.

After the racist demonstrations in northern Bohemia, the members of federation participated in anti-racism events organized by allied groups : on the 1st of October it was "protest against racism and social exclusion" and on the 9th "The poor are fighting, mighty laugh."

CSAF joined the demonstration of initiative No to racism! on the 17th of November, which was a response to far-right Workers' Party (DSSS) march through Prague. More than 300 people came to express their disagreement with the party that is closely linked with neonazis. The march had to be diverted.

Streets are ours

CSAF has actively joined the actions, whose primary or secondary objective was to restore the public space for people and to oppose its privatization.

The eighth annual of activist festival ProtestFest in Brno was held with the main idea "Let's take what belongs to us. Ask for what they have taken away from us.. "
Part of the festival was big party on the outskirts of the city , where CSAF presented itself with information stalls and a workshop called "Anarchist management".

Local group of the Federation in Pilsen joined the action for saving the House of Culture and against the privatization of public space on the 21st of June. Around 150 people supported this action, which ended with cultural program on the streets of Pilsen. CSAF participated in the protest action called "Antisystema - the march of discontent." in the same city. More than 200 mostly young people joined the protest against social insecurity, increasing poverty, corruption, against the medial and commercial manipulation, wars, public space monitoring, exploitation and plunder of the planet.

We joined the eighth annual of "DIY Carnival" on the 8th of October in Prague, this time with the subtitle "We are the crisis". The festival was attended by five thousand people and dozens of subcultural sound systems.

Commemorative events and expressions of solidarity

Three years ago an anti-fascist skinhead Jan Kučera was killled by nazi in Příbram (town he came from). Every year in January we are reminding this tragic event. Around 300 antifascists honoured his memory by a memorial march in Pribram this year. Local groups of ČSAF organised remembrance action in various towns as well.

This year we reminded the 90th anniversary of Kronstadt rebellion. CSAF published a special leaflet about the event and Anarchist Black Cross started to distribute beneficial t-shirts with the Kronstadt theme.

CSAF actively joins international calls for expressions of solidarity in various cases all over the world - in the year 2011 it was cases from Cuba, Greece, Kazakhstan and Spain.

Anarchist Black Cross

Anarchist Black Cross is a federation initiative for supporting the prosecuted or imprisoned activists.
Fortunately, in 2011 there was not any serious case concerning the local anarchist movement. Activities of ABC were therefore aimed at informing about the cases from abroad (Greece, Belarus, Russia, Great Britain).

ABC arranged several cultural benefit actions during last year - among others the ABC Action weekend aimed at the support for ABC Moscow or several beneficial gigs in various towns of Czechia and Slovakia.

ABC distributes musical CDs, printed material, t-shirts and coffee from Chiapas imported by cooperative Café Libertad as well. Another project of ABC is a cooperation on releasing LP´s and EP´s of sympathizing bands. ABC uses the money from the sale for financial support of prosecuted activists and for printing promotional materials.

Publishing

CSAF is publishing wallpapers A3 every month.The project of A3 is intended for the general public. Anyone can download A3 from website and distribute it or put it up.

CSAF published the fourth issue of magazine From Bellow (ZDOLA) aimed at economic reforms on the occasion of May Day.

Every three months CSAF publishes an anarchist revue called Existence. Existence can be downloaded from website of our federation as well. Existence is mainly intended for the anarchist movement. It brings the theoretical articles, inspiration from abroad or history and also tries to document the activity of anarchist movement. Last year the main topics reflected the events around the world – „Education is not a commodity“, The storm above the sand“, „The awaking Europe“ or „ London in flames“.

CSAF started to publish the magazine for children called Kliceni (Germination), which follows the tradition of homonymous publication of the Czech anarchists from the beginning of the 20th century.

Federation continued to publish comic books. In 2011 CSAF published three of them – the collection "Anarchix", "Class War Comic" by Clifford Harper and "When the night started" by Thomas Fatzinek. CSAF also published the paperback called Labour, the brief and understandable analysis of the ideology of labour. The bonus at the end of the year was the publishing of a wall calendar for the following year with the reproductions of Spanish Civil war anarchist posters.

CSAF considers the web page csaf.cz (there exists an ENGLISH section, where the information about some of our activities in English language are available)as the most important. The web is daily updated. Theory, translations, actual information from anarchist movement at home or abroad can be found on our website. We are also trying to inform about our activities on the websites abroad. Federation also spread information by facebook.

Other activities

Last year CSAF organised several lectures and discussions - for example about Chiapas and Zapatists rebellion, about the passivity in the society or working class struggles in China... Projection of documentary movies also took place in various towns.

Members of federation met twice this year on regular congresses. Discussions about activities, lectures and workshops took place on the congresses.

Seeing that anarchist movement has always been international, CSAF tries to keep the contact with the anarchists and anti-authoritarians from other countries. CSAF is a member federation of IFA/IAF. Members of CSAF for example participated on the “Days of autonomous politics and culture - Anarh” in Trbovlje, Slovenia.

Czech report: http://www.afed.cz/index.php?clanok=1232

Activities of the Czechoslovak Anarchist Federation in 2010
Activities of the Czechoslovak Anarchist Federation in 2009
Activities of the Czechoslovak Anarchist Federation in 2008