It is a sign of the times that in the days running up to today’s opening of the G-8 summit in the Italian city of Genoa, international attention has been focussed not on what will be discussed and agreed by the leaders of the main industrialized nations, but how many demonstrators will turn up and how will the police cope. Will there be 10,000 protesters or 10,000? Will there be violence? How much damage will be done to this venerable and rather beautiful maritime city? What do the local inhabitants think about it all?
It must be a living hell when a city is effectively shut down because of the presence of the world’s leading political figures: no buses and taxis, streets barricaded and closed even to pedestrians, shops and businesses shut. Ordinary life grinds to a halt. And that is just when events are peaceful. Add thousands of protesters determined on violence and it is a recipe for a nightmare. That is the prospect facing Genoa. The city is effectively in a state of war. There is no public transport; steel grills and concrete barricades have been erected across roadways. Twenty thousand heavily armed police and soldiers patrol the city; the Italian authorities have even installed ground-to-air missiles in case of an air attack. Naval vessels patrol the cost. Shops and restaurants are closed behind steel shutters and will remain so until Monday. And if there are riots, there will be a very expensive cleanup afterward. The Genoese must wonder whether the honor of hosting so important event is worth it.
In the 18 months since the anti-globalization movement first stormed to world attention with very dramatic protests on the streets of Seattle during the World Trade Organization summit, virtually every major international get-together has been targeted. It is not just those dealing with finance; it has got to the point where it no meeting is spared. At the EU’s summit in the Swedish city of Gothenburg last month, there were massive street battles between polices and some 20,000 protesters. Such is the level of intimidation that last month’s meeting in Barcelona of the World Bank had to be cancelled; even so, 10,000 demonstrators turned up anyway and protested. Again there were running street battles with the police.
The fact that they did turn up in the Catalan city and protest so violently shows that many of those involved deliberately seek confrontation. They come from Europe’s and America’s disillusioned and alienated young, often students or those out of work. They have no common agenda apart from hating capitalism and being willing to use violence. In America and Europe, there are even now camps where would-be protesters are trained for violent protest.
There is little reason to imagine that this will change. The point is surely near at hand when no European or American city will want to host an international summit. It would not be surprising if, in future, they are located in less easily accessible locations: perhaps Armenia or Georgia? Or on islands where the ferries can be cancelled? How about Elba or Rhodes? Even better, Ascension Island in the middle of the Atlantic. At least it has a major international airport.
It is no joke. This is a serious matter and it will have to be addressed.
