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NEWS (news archive and general information are below)

NEW! March 13th 2011: State Prosecutor Will Not Appeal to the Supreme Court
In a letter, recently sent to the lawyers of the Reykjavík Nine, state prosecutor Lára V. Júlíusdóttir announced that she will not appeal Reykjavík District Court’s ruling in the case.

Ragnar Aðalsteinsson, the lawyer of four of the nine – and two of the sentenced – said to news-site Róstur that this proofs the prosecution’s complete surrender and that it is a recognition of the fact that the accusations were badly thought out and without any backing in the evidence.

At the moment it is not clear weather any of the four sentenced will appeal the ruling. More news will appear as they come to us.

March 4th 2011: Who Can Afford to Protest?
An article by Ruth Cape, published on the Bright Green website, e.g. saying:

The initial sign of relief leaves a bitter taste. These are people who have taken it upon themselves to stand up for justice and the beliefs of thousands, people who are critical of the society and world that they live in, people who ask questions. They are being answered with the silencing slap of all the consequences of such allegations and fines and legal expenses totalling the equivalent of over £4000.

Read the full article here.

March 2011: Two new articles related to the Reykjavík Nine by Tord Björk
Two excellent articles, related to the Reykjavík Nine case, written by Swedish Friends of the Earth activist Tord Björk, have now been published on the Saving Iceland website. Firstly an article titled The Reykjavik 9 and a New Era in the Struggle Against Repression, focusing directly on the case and its political context. Secondly, an article titled Iceland, Denmark, Tunisia, Egypt, and Climate Justice, looks at how the national mass protests against neoliberal regimes in Iceland, Tunisia, Egypt and other African and Arabian countries and the Wisconsin in the US are linked with the climate justice movement. 

End of February 2011: Two new detailed interviews about the Reykjavík Nine case
An independent news site, The Fresh Outlook, has recently published two long and detailed interviews about the Reykjavík Nine case.

On the first hand a long article where amongst others these people are interviewed: Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir, one of the Reykjavík Nine; Magnús Sveinn Helgason, historian and Sólveig’s husband; Einar Steingrímsson, professor in mathematics; and Lára V. Júlíusdóttir, the state prosecutor in the case. The article, named After Iceland’s Financial Storm, Reykjavik 9 Gather Steam, can be read here.

On the other hand an interview with the Saving Iceland movement, named “These Nine People were the Perfect Culprits”, which can be read here.

February 23th 2011: The Case of the Spit
One of the Reykjavík 9, plus another friend, are being put to trial – again. The police doesn’t have their story straight and there is talk of police harassment and political persecution. You can read transcripts of the second hearing in English here.

February 19th 2011: Statement from the Reykjavík Nine regarding the ruling
The Reykjavík Nine have published a statement regarding the ruling in the case. You can read it here.

February 16th 2011: The Judges Have Announced Their Ruling
Today, February 16th, the case against the Reykjavík Nine came to an end… for a while at least. At 08:30 this morning the judges announced their ruling in the presence of a full court house of supporters. The outcome is foreseeable: Four people were found guilty of minor charges while the other five were acquitted. You can read a blog from the ruling here and a short analysis of it here.

We will translate as much as we can in the coming days and post it here as soon as it is finished. Stay updated and spread the word. This afternoon the Reykjavík Nine published a press release that was published by most of the local media and will be available in English soon. They have also announced that the case is far from over but did not want to explain any further what the continuation will be. The prosecutor also stated that she has not decided if she will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.

The decision has been a hot topic of discussion in Iceland today: Families, friends and supporters of the nine have been interviewed by most media,as well as some of the nine themselves. One of their lawyers, Ragnar Aðalsteinsson, had a long interview in Kastljós, a daily news report TV show on RÚV, the national TV station.

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General information

Archive of news and articles:

  • Reykjavík Nine: Convictions For Some, Acquittal For Others: Four of the so-called Reykjavík 9 were found guilty this morning of charges stemming from an incident at parliament in December 2008. “A tragic tale”, says the defending attorney. Read the full story here. (February 16th 2011)
  • Off Duty Police Allegedly Harrass Reykjavik Nine Defendants: DV is reporting that a group of off-duty policemen followed one of the Reykjavík Nine into a bar and harrassed him in front of eyewitnesses. Read the full story here. (February 14th 2011)
  • Charges Pressed Twenty Months After The Fact: Snorri Páll Jónsson, one of the Reykjavík Nine, and Sunneva Weisshappel, were in court this morning for charges pressed against them last month over an incident that occurred twenty months earlier. Read the full story here. (February 11th 2011)
  • Sentencing on February 16th 2011: The District Court of Reykjavík has announced that the sentencing in the case against the Reykjavík Nine will take place on Wednesday, February 16th 2011. It will take place at 08:30 in room 101. Be there, all of you! (February 10th 2011)
  • A Failed Attempt to Dispirit Activists: An article by Magnús Sveinn Helgason, summing up the court case shorty after the end of the court procedure, in the February issue of Reykjavík Grapevine. Read the full article here. (February 10th 2011)
  • The Reykjavik Nine committed no crime: “Nine protesters on trial for entering the Iceland parliament may be jailed despite a lack of evidence against them.” From an article in the Guardian, read the full article here.
  • Protesters In New York Support Reykjavík Nine: “Arrest the financiers for market manipulation, not ordinary individuals expressing their concern over their own futures. This trial is nothing short of a debacle and is truly a pathetic joke. The whole world is watching!” Read the full story here. (January 25th 2011)
  • Reykjavík Nine graffiti on a police car: RVK9 graffiti was spotted on a police car in the center of Reykjavík on the evening of January 20th, shortly after the end of the court procedure. See the video here. (January 21st 2011)
  • Stop the criminalisation of left-wing movements in Iceland! Freedom for the ‘Reykjavik 9’!: German MP, Andrej Hunko, condemns the trial of the RVK9 and calls for dialogue with Icelandic parliamentarians about the illegal police spying on Saving Iceland. Read the full statement on the Saving Iceland website here.
  • The court procedure is over: And now we wait for a decision from the court. Meanwhile, you can go through the whole procedure in English by clicking here. A great team of bloggers, translators and technicians, wrote down every single word that was heard in the courtroom during the procedure… and translated it to English. (January 21st 2011)
  • A Conviction Would Be “Absurd”: Another defence attorney for the nine protesters accused of having attacked parliament in December 2008 made his argument yesterday, downplaying the events of the day in question and accusing the prosecution of having not conducted a serious investigation. Read the full news article on Reykjavík Grapevine here. (January 21st 2011)
  • Prosecution And Defence Make Their Case: The third day of the trial of the Reykjavík Nine has once again proven itself the news event of the week, as attorneys on both sides of the trial made their arguments for the court. Read the full news article on Reykjavík Grapevine here. (January 20th 2011)
  • Policeman Called “Idiot”, MPs Not Bothered, Witness Asks To Be Charged With Crime: The second day of the Reykjavík Nine trial continues to never have a dull moment. Read the full news article on Reykjavík Grapevine here. (January 20th 2011)
  • Yesterday’s Trial Reaches Surreal Proportions, Prime Minister Calls It “Sad”: Now in its second day, the trial of the so-called Reykjavík Nine had a bizarre first day, with evidence botched and witness testimony directly contradicting security footage. Read the full news article on Reykjavík Grapevine here. (January 19th 2011)
  • Evidence Destroyed: “The security footage from the day the so-called Reykjavík Nine allegedly attempted to storm into parliament has been completely erased, except for four minutes that show a confrontation between the protesters and parliament security.” Read the full article in the Reykjavík Grapevine here. (January 18th 2011)
  • ‘Reykjavik Nine’ go on trial in Iceland over 2008 storming of parliament: An article appeared in the Guardian this morning, on the first day of trial. Read it here. (January 18th 2011)
  • January 18th 2011: The case has started. Click here for live blog updates and summaries from the court procedure, in English. Also follow us on Twitter: @reykjavik9
  • Solidarity Guerilla Projection on Iceland’s embassy in Washington DC: The Glass Bead Collective projected a video in solidarity with the Reykjavík Nine, on the outside walls of Iceland’s embassy in Washington DC, US. See a video, which is a combination of the video projected and footage from the spot, by clicking here. (January 16th 2011)
  • Great Solidarity concert in Reykjavík: Last Thursday, January 13th, a concert was held to support the case of Reykjavik Nine. A number of musicians performed, poetry was read and short speeches were held. Around 600 people filled the house and the spirit of resistance and support for the Reykjavik Nine were striking. The concert was broadcast live here at rvk9.org so everyone could enjoy the show. Later this week video clips from the concert will be posted here on the website. Photos from the concert can be looked at here and here. (January 17th 2011)
  • Solidarity Protests For Reykjavík Nine Across Europe: Several solidarity actions and events have taken place and other announced, across Europe lately. Read a short news article about some of the here. (January 17th 2011)
  • Iceland, the Cracker Factory: One of the Reykjavík Nine, Steinunn Gunnlaugsdóttir, was asked by the Reykjavík Grapevine Newspaper to write a short article for their recent January publication, about the year 2010, with thoughts about what a new decade could bring. Read the article here. (January 13th 2011)
  • Watch the concerts LIVE from our web:For those that are not able to attend the concerts tonight can watch it LIVE by following the video link below. You will need Quicktime or VLC (both applications are free) and chances are that they are already installed on your computer. CONCERTS LIVE VIDEO
  • January, 13th  Reykjavik Nine Solidarity and Support concert at NASA:
    The bands and acts performing are: múm, Sin Fang Bous, Reykjavík!, Diskóeyjan, KK and Ellen, Parabólurnar, Einar Már Guðmundsson, Steini from Hjálmar, Prins Póló, Ellen K. and Pétur H., Elín Ey, Arnjótur, Idir, one of the accused nine, and more to come…
    The location, Nasa is one of Iceland’s biggest clubs and concerts venues, and is located on Austurvöllur, the square in front of Iceland’s parliament, where most of the biggest protests have taken place last years. The concert starts at 20:30 and entrance fee is 500 ISK.
  • International days of solidarity actions: A call-out for international days of solidarity actions with the Reykjavik Nine, from January 10th to 16th 2011, has been published worldwidely. It can e.g. be read on Anarchist News and on Saving Iceland. Translations of the call-out and/or other coverage about the case have been appearing in other languages, e.g. in Greek here, Finnish here and Danish here. (Early January 2011)
  • Live Twitter updates from court: The RVK9 supporters will be present in the court room with live Twitter updates in Icelandic and possibly in English. Make sure to follow us on Twitter: @reykjavik9
  • Court procedure in January 2011: It has now been confirmed that the court procedure will take place in January 2011. It will take at least three full days, January 18th, 19th and 20th, from 09:15 to 17:15 each day. More information as it arrives.
  • December 8th two years had passed since the event leading to the charges against Rvk9. Supporters gathered inside and outside Iceland’s parliament in solidarity. Reykjavík Grapevine covered the story.
  • A press release from RVK9 supporters: The Kitchenware Revolution: Two Years Later. (December 8th, 2010)
  • Article by Snorri Páll, one of the Reykjavík Nine, in The Reykjavik Grapevine: Political Persecution: Setting Examples, (December 3rd, 2010)
  • New video: A Reykjavík Nine supporter explains the case on the 2010 London Anarchist Bookfair. Watch the video by clicking here. (October 23rd, 2010)
  • A brand new booklet about the court case, originally distributed at the 2010 London Anarchist Bookfair. Download the booklet here: Support the Reykjavík Nine – please send it to your friends and comrades, print it out and distribute it. (October 23rd, 2010)
  • Iceland’s consulate in Bern, Switzerland was attacked in Solidarity with the Reykjavík Nine. Click here to read about it. (October 14th, 2010)
  • Article and call for solidarity actions, originally published on the Bristol Anarchist Bookfair: Support the Reykjavík Nine! Fight State Repression in Iceland! (September 11, 2010)
  • Article by Magnús Sveinn Helgason, in The Reykjavik Grapevine: “Witnessing a show trial or seeing justice being done?“, (August 31, 2010)
  • Article by Haukur Már Helgason, published on SavingIceland.org: Update on the Reykjavík 9 (August 2010)
  • Press release and photos from a solidarity demonstration by the Icelandic consulate in Barcelona: Reykjavík Nine: Solidarity Demonstration in Barcelona (July 9, 2010)
  • Video from a progressive RVK9 solidarity art event in Reykjavík’s Living Art Museum: The Mob Against the Prosecution! (July 2010)
  • Article by Magnús Sveinn Helgason, in The Reykjavik Grapevine: “Attacks on Alþingi of no concern to Alþingi “, pdf, p. 12. (July 2, 2010)
  • Article on SavingIceland.org: “Iceland’s Post-Collapse Trial” (June 30, 2010)
  • Article and solidarity declaration on SavingIceland.org: “A Spade is a Spade, Repression is Repression” (June 29, 2010)
  • Article by Magnús Sveinn Helgason, in The Reykjavik Grapevine: “The Poop Throwing Left Wing Conspiracy” (June 24, 2010)
  • Article by Haukur Már Helgason, on SavingIceland.org: “Nine Protesters Charged for Attacking Parliament” (May 24, 2010)
  • Article by Haukur Már Helgason, on blog “Infinite thought” (May 18, 2010)
  • Interview with members of the Reykjavik Nine, in The Reykjavik Grapevine (p 5, p 24): “We Are Examples” pdf. (May 10, 2010)
  • Op-ed article by Magnús Sveinn Helgason, in The Reykjavik Grapevine :”The Imaginary Anarchist Threat” (May 10, 2010)
  • A translation of the Indictment against the Reykjavík nine in English
  • A translation of the declaration of solidarity with the Reykjavik nine in English