Thousands of anarchists meet in Saint-Imier BE: how an inconspicuous watchmaking village in the Bernese Jura wrote world history

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The location was not chosen by chance: next week anarchists from all over the world will meet in Saint-Imier BE. Because: In September 1872, the Anti-Authoritarian International was founded in the small town in the Bernese Jura.

The association “150 years of the Congress of Saint-Imier” presented on Monday the framework for the international meeting in the Bernese Jura city. 268 conferences and workshops, 48 ​​concerts, 42 films, 11 plays, 7 exhibitions and a book fair are planned at twelve locations in the 5,000-strong city, members of the association said. The meeting starts on July 19 and lasts five days. About 4,000 people are expected.

No authority – in any form

During the event, the participants reflect together on political and social developments. The meeting also serves to strengthen ties between those who identify as anarchists. It must also convince others to join the movement.

Anarchists reject all forms of authority – be it government, economics or society. However, the association does not do anything illegal and, according to the organizers, is also in contact with the Bern canton police.

Because: Anarchy does not mean chaos and lack of order, the organizers emphasize. Rather, it is a movement that opposes any centralist and authoritarian power.

Saint-Imier – the center of anarchy

With the meeting in Saint-Imier, the anarchists commemorate an event in contemporary history: in September 1872, the Anti-Authoritarian International was founded in the inconspicuous watchmaker’s village. The 150th anniversary was supposed to be celebrated in 2022, but was postponed by a year due to the corona pandemic.

The meeting of 1872 was a result of a split in the labor movement. Karl Marx (1818-1883) and his followers sought central leadership, in contrast to the Russian revolutionary Mikhail Bakunin (1814-1876). Bakunin founded the Anti-Authoritarian International in Saint-Imier with 14 like-minded people from Europe and the US. They accused Marx of authoritarianism and dictatorial centralism.

At that time, the Bernese Jura with its battered watch industry was open to the theories of anarchism. A lot has changed, globalization made the watchmaker’s staff restless. They dreamed of a better life and a world free from domination and exploitation.

Little is left of Bakunin’s ideas

Only: most of it fell into oblivion over time. The building in which the congress in Saint-Imier took place has been preserved at least to this day. Since 2017, there is even a Rue Bakounine in the commune of 5,000.

On Rue Bakunine, however, little was left of Russian ideas – against private property, against the state, for the individual freedom of all. “It is a cul-de-sac, flanked by single-family homes and private gardens,” the Tamedia newspapers recently wrote. Bakunin would turn in his grave in Bern if he heard that. (oco/SDA)

Source:Blick