Population almost doubled: Thousands of anarchists take part in meetings in St-Imier BE

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On Friday night, some 4,200 meals were served to participants from around the world, a spokeswoman for the organizers said when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency.

Since the meeting opened on Wednesday, the face of the 5,200-strong watchmaking town has changed. Up to and including Sunday, (mainly) young people from all over the world will flock to the cradle of anarchism. In just a few days, the population of St-Imier almost doubled, 151 years after the libertarian congress that gave birth to the anti-authoritarian International took place there.

“It is impressive to see this crowd on the street,” the mayor and Bernese FDP councilor Corentin Jeanneret told the Keystone-SDA news agency. “In the beginning there may have been a certain mistrust among some participants, but the fears quickly disappeared because the population is benevolent.”

cost 200,000 francs

A total of about 300 events – lectures, concerts, films, exhibitions and a book fair – are offered during the festival. Participants focused on sharing ideas, publicizing struggles, strengthening relationships and convincing others to join the movement. “The anti-authoritarian vision brings us together,” the organizing committee stressed last Wednesday. The cost of the event was approximately CHF 200,000.

With the meeting in St-Imier, the anarchists commemorate an event in contemporary history: in September 1872, the Anti-Authoritarian International was founded in the small town in the Bernese Jura. The 150th anniversary was supposed to be celebrated in 2022, but was postponed by a year due to the corona pandemic. (SDA)

Source:Blick