#title French Speaking Anarchist Federation
#author Fédération Anarchiste
#LISTtitle French Speaking Anarchist Federation
#SORTauthors Fédération Anarchiste
#SORTtopics IAF, France, Anarchist Federation (France)
#date 2006
#source Retrieved on 2020-04-02 from [[http://www.i-f-a.org.gridhosted.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/anarkiista_debato.pdf][www.i-f-a.org]]
#lang en
#pubdate 2020-04-03T08:24:56

In 1953, the anarchist federation was
born, out of a combination betwe en the
followers of Sebastián Faures synthesis
and working class militants, sup porters
of a federal organization. Its action
develops around the possibility, and the
need, of gathering all existing
libertarian
tendencies
in
the
organization, around the autonomy of
each and every group, personal
and
a
common
responsibility,
called
“*Le Monde publication Libertaire*.”

In the seventi es these principles evolved
towards a compromise between
Voline’s
synthesis
and
some
platformists ideas, which took on board,
mainly, class struggle.

Today, the FA defends a plural
anarchism in which contemporary
anarchisms can have a voice while
sharing the organization al and ethic
principles of federalism an d mutual aid.
In this way the different t endencies are
clearly less differentiated and the main
part of the members do ca ll themselves
simply anarchists - without branding.

The FA fights for a free s ociety, without
classes or state, and ba sed on social
equality, where the collective or
individual possession of the means of
production and distribu tion does not
allow for any exploitatio n of the work
of others. In this society t he same means
for development and education are
given from the moment of birth on
every respect. The social organisation is
arranged around the free federation of
producers and consumers, made and
modified accord ing to the will of its
members, aroun d the free union of
individuals and the absolute right of
every individual to express his or her
ideas. The FA is for the abolition of
w aged labour and of every other state
i nstitution, as well as any other form of
oppression which contributes to the
exploitation of men by men, and this
implies the fight against religion and
mysticism, even if they hide under the
drapes of science, against patriotism and
for the fraternity between all human
groups and the abolition of borders.

It is the whole of society that the
anarchists in the FA want to build up
again, on a base of respect and
solidarity, not for an individual, a class
or a party, but for every individual. This
social question can not be really and
definitively solved unless done so on a
planetary level. Following the principle
of the autonom y of groups and
individuals, the FA do not intervene in
the strategies that are followed by each
one, whether it be on a syndical-unionist area or in any other aspect of
local m ilitant intervention: feminism,
against patriarchy, antifascist, against
nuclear power, for the environment,
antimilitarist, pacifist, against religion,
etc.

These actions should not be in
contradiction with the aims pursued by
the FA, and they can be criticised. But
mainly the anarchists in FA strive to
fight altogether with the dispossessed of
the world against every government, in
this way acknowledging the class war,
the aim of which has to be the birth of
an anarchist society.

It is a question of just allowing the
ex ploited social classes to gain their
em ancipation, as it will be them who
will bring into being the anarchist
society. With this in mind, it is
necessary to take part in reivindicative
and emancipatory struggles, so to allow
individuals to reach a breaking point
situation against the system. Through
this a call can be made towards the
workers, the exploited ones, the
casualised, to fight against mendicating
negotiations, to opt for direct
autonomous action and to get co-ordinated on federal lines. Enemies of
every dictatorship, the anarchist reject
all the authoritarian theories whether
they are inspired on Marx, on the
church,
on
monarchy,
fascism,
liberalism, islamism or any other.
Revolution will necessarily be made of
stages in which oppressive institutions
are destroyed and of more constructive
times, in which a new society is built,
managed by every one from the start, on
anarchist lines. It is because of this that
the FA has to be a useful revolutionary
tool, until its aims are fulfilled.

*** How it works

A congress, the only instance in which
decisions can be made is held every
year and takes decisions by unanimity
of all the groups taking part. Here the
general orientation of the organisation is
decided, as well as the propaganda
campaigns to be carried out in the year,
and it gives a mandate to the different
secretaries and coordinators.
From a few years up to now, every three
months there is a meeting of the
Enlarged Committee of Relations
(CRE), organised so that the social
situation can
be
analysed and
it is possible to react quickly on the
level of the federal campaigns.

A Relations Committee (CR) brings
together, every month, the secretaries
and coordinators to make sure that there
is a coordination of the campaigns and
to check on the work done. Every one
accepts personal responsibility.

Finally there are some specific
commissions made by the different
groups on particular discussion and
work issues (campaigns, internal work,
etc.)

*** Right now

Right now, the French Speaking
anarchist federation brings together
about sixty groups , in France as well as
in Belgium. Also in Morocco there are
quite a few individuals and people who
keep in touch. This allows the
federation to cover a quite dense and
regular network over this territory and
makes of the specific anarchist french
speaking
organisation
the
best
established and developed of them all.
The anarchist federation publishes a
weekly journal, Le Monde Libertaire,
which sells about ten thousand issues,
distributed through the traditional
militant circles, through subscriptions,
but also in news agents. Also, more than
twenty years ago the federation did set
up a local radio station, Radio
Libertaire, which covers most of the
Paris area, and scores quite sizeable
audiences. This radio is a mean of
expression for the whole of the
federation, directly run by the congress,
and with a similar name to the other
publications. It is a similar case to the
Editions du Monde Libertaire, which
every year publish leaflets and books.
The different groups in the federation
manage their own locals, as is the case
of the Monde Libertaire bookshop, at
145 rue Amelot in Paris, the bookshop
La Plume Noire in Lyon, L'autodidacte
in Besançon, L'insoumise in Rouen, La
Commune in Rennes, the Athénée
Libertaire in Bordeaux.

At the 2002 congress the FA approved a
motion to open up, to relate to and to
support other libertarian organisations.
This unity of action of the libertarians
allowed for the mobilisations which
brought about the anti G8 activities at
Annemasse, with the establishment of a
libertarian village and a red and black
block during the demonstrations.

Taking part in this were the Federation
Anarchiste (FA) , Alternative Libertaire
(AL), the Organisation Communiste
Libertaire (OCL), the Organisation
Socialiste
Libertaire
(OSL) - Switzerland, No Pasaran (an antifascist
network)
and
the
Confédération
Nationale du Travail (CNT).

This initiative was really successful.
After it, it was decided by the FA
congress to make a proposal of unity
towards the FSE, and set up a
Libertarian Social Forum and an
Anarchist Bookfair. This time as well,
the libertarian organisations answered
the call, and a week of debates and
demonstrations was organised. Later,
during a demonstration against nuclear
power, libertarian unity took shape
again (FA – AL – OCL – OLS,
Offensive Libertaire et Sociale, a split
up from the No Pasaran network). This
kind of initiative had been preceded by
the cooperation during the No Borders
camp at Strasbourg.

This activities proof that the organised
action of the anarchists is possible and
that it allows for a better presentation of
our ability and our ideas.
In these last times, the activities of the
federation have been mainly related to:

 - Anticapitalism ( with the CLAAAAC
G8 campaign and the FSL ...) ;
 - The feminist struggle and against
patriarchy.
 - The struggle against nuclear power
and for the environment (campaign for
capitalist
decrease,
décroissance,
campaign for free public transport...)
 - Struggles against religion and for laity.
 - And of course on the fight to defend
the public sector, of pensioners, of
social security and on the rest of social
struggles.

On an international point of view, the
Federation anarchiste adheres to the
International of Anarchist federations
(IFA), since its creation in 1968. It
organised the international ́s seventh
congress in Besancon, on the 9th, 10th,
11th and 12th of april, 2004.