Stop Business.

In the run-up to the series of summits, over 40 people were arrested in pre-emptive sweeps of broad left and anarchist groups.

On May 29th, 38 people were arrested at Hosei University in Tokyo at a political assembly against the G8. These large-scale arrests were carried out by over 100 public security agents after the students staged after a march across campus protesting the summits. All of the arrestees are still jailed, and among them are apparently some leadership of the Chuukaku-ha Leninist organization, one of the largest organizations of its kind in Japan.

On June 4th, Tabi Rounin, an active anarchist from the Kansai region, was arrested on accusation of having his address registered at a location other than where he was living. When arrested, his computer, cell phone, political flyers and more was taken from him; these items were used when detectives interrogated him, asking him about his relationship to internationals possibly arriving for the G8, as well as his activity around Osaka. He would be the first obviously political arrest masked as routine police work.

On June 12th, an activist from the Kamagasaki Patrol (an Osaka squatter and anti-capitalist group), was arrested for allegedly defrauding lifestyle assistance payments. This person has been constantly followed by plainclothes police and even helicopters during demonstrations. Clearly, his arrest was planned with the idea of keeping him away from the major anti-summit mobilizations and he will be held without bail for the maximum of 23 until the summit is over. The office of an anarchist organization called the Free Worker was raided in order to look for ‘evidence’ in this comrade’s case.

The same day the Rakunan union in Kyoto was raided, with police officers searching their offices and arresting two of their members on suspicion of fraudulent unemployment insurance receipt. One of these two arrested are accused of funneling money received from unemployment insurance to the Asian Wide Campaign, which was organizing against the economic summits.

Many activists and representatives of Internation Non-Governmental Organization and independent media organizations have been interrogated for hours and denied visas at the airport in Japan, a clear sign of discrimination against political activists.

from indymedia.org:

At around 7:00 am on May 21, 2008, members of the Austrian elite police force (WEGA) 

stormed several apartments across the country. Some of the residents were woken up 

in their beds at gunpoint. A total of twentythree (23) apartments, houses and offices

 were searches in Vienna, Lower Austria, Styria and Tirol. In many of the apartments 

the WEGA kicked in the doors. The officers stormed the apartments like in bad 

Hollywood movies. Only after the residents had been intimidated, ”secured” on the 

wall and/or put in handcuffs did the police start the searches. 

All the arrestees are active in the animal rights movement in Austria. 

The offices of at least 4 animal rights group were search by police. 

The 10 people, a few of which are currently on hunger strike, are 

still in custody. On a bail hearing on June 6th, the judge decided to 

keep them in jail for at least 4 weeks further. 

There have been solidarity demonstrations in Austria and around 

the world to demand the immediate release of the activists and 

for the authorities to drop the charges.