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- freeriding in Sweden and Finland

In Stockholm, Gothenburg and Helsinki, commuters are taking the initiative in the fight for decent, free public transportation. Buses, trams, commuter trains and underground trains are necessary for workers to get around - a direct action campaign in Sweden and Finland is demanding that it be free.

Online Stock Market Trading Oisin Mac Giollamoir interviews Anna from the planka.nu campaign.

Not a country in its own right, Lapland is made up of the northern reaches of Finland, Sweden and Norway.

Stock Investing Course How did planka.nu start?
It started as a small campaign initiated by the SUF (Anarcho-syndicalist Youth Federation) group in Stockholm after an increase in fares. We made posters and flyers and arranged mass protests in the subway. We also started "P-kassan" - the free-riding insurance. You pay a small amount to join the insurance fund after which if you get caught free-riding your fine is paid.

Unlimited rail travel in the Czech Republic and Germany for any 5, 6, 8 or 10 days. Sweden pass Your pass to unlimited rail travel on the national rail networks of Denmark and Sweden, available in 1 st or 2 nd class. Sweden pass Your pass to unlimited rail travel on the national rail networks of Finland and Sweden, available in 1 st or 2 nd class.

Stock Market Game How is this campaign run and structured?
In the campaign we practice direct democracy in meetings, there is no committee where anyone has more power than anyone else.

Helsinki is served by the airport at Vantaa, 19kms north of the city, where about 120 international flights touch down each day. To get into town, you can either take a taxi or the number 615 bus to the railway station; journey time is approximately 30 minutes. By car, there are land border crossings into Finland from northern Sweden, Norway and Russia. As Helsinki is on the sea, you can also come by ferry from Germany, Sweden or Estonia.

Stock Investing Game What has been the reaction of the media and the state?
The reactions have been stronger than we expected; freeriding seems to be a very controversial method of engaging in politics. Maybe because it's so simple, everybody does it at least sometimes. I think that planka.nu focuses on this common phenomenon and that really scared the politicians. Some of the media loved us and at the same time other media refused to publish the web site address www.planka.nu or even mention the word "planka."

Finland, the quiet sibling of the Nordic countries, earth natural purity that makes it an exceptionally rewarding place to visit. Across the south, cultural differences reflect a turbulent history. speaking wooden towns of the west coast and the domed Orthodox churches of Karelia in the east speak of Finland%š repeated role as the rope in a tug of war between Sweden and...

Journal Prime Rate Street Wall All the local planka.nu groups - Stockholm, Gothenburg, Ostergotland and Helsinki - have been reported to the police but free-riding isn't criminal so nothing has happened.

Sign up to receive our product updates and special offers. Overview of the Swedish Language Around nine million people speak Swedish (Svenska). It is the national language of Sweden, as well as the second official language of Finland. The Swedish language is also spoken by groups in the United States, century immigrants brought the language with them to Minnesota. Swedish is not the only language of Sweden, - the 15, 000 Laplanders who herd reindeer in the north speak their own language (Sami), speaking Swedes along the Finnish border.

Stock Market News Where do you see this going?
So far we've been successful in bringing this issue from the bottom of the list of political problems. For years it wasn't even considered political and nobody wanted to talk about the relationship between social welfare, income and the ability to travel between city and suburbs, to work and to school, etc.

Stock Investing Basics We're aiming for free public transport and we're still a far way from it. We've yet to see what we're going to do about it next.

Stock Investing Software What is the role of the SUF in this campaign? What advice if any would you have for others who are campaigning around the issues of public transport?
The only thing left over from the time when planka.nu was an SUF initiative are the anarcho-syndicalist values. SUF has no ongoing organisational role in the campaign.

Stock Market Trading The most important advice is definitely don't underestimate the media, don't be afraid of using it, and remember: You can do it!

Stock Investing For Dummy Edited by libcom.org news from Workers Solidarity #89

More information

http://iww.org

http://planka.nu/index.php?lang=eng

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