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In May 2008 women from Walbrzych went on a hunger strike.

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They protested against evictions from empty houses they had squatted.

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Over a dozen women took part in the hunger strike.

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Over 360 families faced a similar situation.

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Currently, thousands of people are waiting for social housing.

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Many families are living in squatted flats - and most are threatened with eviction.

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MOTHERS' STRIKE

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The transformation of Walbrzych began with the closing down of the local light and heavy industry.

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Allegedly unprofitable industries were closed and 25.000 jobs slashed.

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When the coal mines were shut down,

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many companies with mostly female workforces were closed, too.

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The restructuring also affected the institutions of social care. 

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Many company-run nurseries and pre-schools were closed down.

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In 2004, the first factory in the Walbrzych Special Economic Zone was opened.

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The SEZ was supposed to be a perfect solution for the city and its jobless inhabitants,

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and it was supposed to provide everything for investors:

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Subsidies, no taxes for 20 years, and a large and cheap labor force.

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The city has almost no income from investments in the zone.

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High unemployment, especially among women, 

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leads to the frequent exchange of workforces and violations of workers' rights.

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In fact, job agencies employ the SEZ-workers, who get unstable, temporary, and low-paid jobs.

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"Welcome To Hell - Walbrzych"

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It's difficult to find any permanent job with decent pay and the chance to get retirement later.

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You get a job through an agency for one month, and then you're fired.

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At the company Prodak it is like this, for example:

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You work for less than a month, and then you wait for a phone call for two months.

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The girls work for 2 or 3 days, and then they wait for 1 or 2 months.

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It's like being a call girl. They call you to come to work.

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And the same with employment contracts:

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Every week you get a new contract, or you get paid just for what you have worked.

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I went to register at the job center,

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and they made big eyes at the amount of old paper I presented. I told them, I had more at home.

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Sometimes you work for a week, then you stay at home for two weeks.

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The salary was what it was.

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Sometimes you worked only for 1 or 2 days, that's it.

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My friend worked for one day, and they never called her back.

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I was told on the phone to come for a health and safety training, not for work.

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The training meant that we had to work on the line for 11 hours.

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11 hours of so-called training, and after that they didn't call at all.

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"Porcelain Factory Ksiaz"

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I worked in Ksiaz, and I had to make 500 stickers.

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It is like transfer pictures...

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Yes, I was paid 2.50 Zloty per hour, for 500 stickers.

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I am cheeky, so I told the manager: "Please, stand there and I will throw them to you."

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Then I took my apron off and walked out.

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Did the job center offer you any internships?

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Yes, they offered me an internship as a maintenance worker,

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but I have already been waiting for it for 2 months.

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Despite the fact that I've already taken many training courses,

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and there is no work in these professions, so I asked why do I need these courses?

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I'm a beautician, and I've done a computer course,

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I can operate a cash register, I have a drivers' licence,

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but I cannot work in my profession and have to work as a maintenance worker.

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They take everyone on a half-year internship, then they take the next people,

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and they don't extend the contract.

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There is no reason to go to the job center. They treat people badly.

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I had no one to look after my children, and they deliberately sent me to work.

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I wanted to do a beautician training, but I was told that is not for me,

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that I had to work and could not take a training course.

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Did they offer you any jobs?

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No, I had to find them on my own.

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So you did not get a single offer?

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The city authorities do not see women's care work.

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Cleaning, cooking, bringing up children, repairing the flats, and keeping accounts,

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all that is not seen as economically valuable.

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For maintaining a society that kind of work is essential.

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That leads to an ignorance in social policies 

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and economic changes on the local and the national level.

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The main problems are constant lack of livelihood, lack of work,

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unstable and low-paid jobs, and homelessness.

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They lead to problems with childcare, health problems, and social exclusion.

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For half a year I could hardly sleep.

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I worked night shifts and took care of my children during the day.

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I had great co-workers. When I fell asleep at work, 

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they hid me behind the machines. So I could sleep and wasn't so tired. 

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Just a nap for a few minutes was enough to get rest. But it was still tiring.

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I would like to work to be with people,

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but I can't because I don't know what to do with my 2 kids.

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I live alone, and have no family here.

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My daughter Wiktoria is 5 and in kindergarten.

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I registered my 2-year old son Marcin there 2 years ago, but he won't go before this September.

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However, kindergarten is only open from 8am to 3pm.

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I won't find a job like that.

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Most mothers here stay at home, and they feel depressed about the situation.

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There is no work, there is nothing here, and everyday life pulls them down. 

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We wanted to create a common space for mothers and children,

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so that they can come and talk. 

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We had asked about such a space already in the past,

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but they told us straight away that we didn't need it.

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It's really difficult to find a job, especially since they ask how many children you have.

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If you have no kids at all, you can somehow manage.

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But if you have kids, they reject you because you will go on sick leaves etc.

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In one place they was a surprisingly tough regime.

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I was shocked. The people really worked like robots.

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Every week we got a new contract, and mothers got fired.

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I was fired because I took a one-day leave to take my sick child to the doctor.

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So the kids can't even get sick.

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In order to get a pension I have to work at least twenty more years, 

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but where should I work?

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There are many empty flats in Walbrzych. 

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Almost in every tenement house you can find one empty flat. 

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They were built for workers before or after the war, and they were not renovated since.

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In most flats there is no bathroom.

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The toilet is outside, and there is no hot water, gas, or sewage system.

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It all happened when my father died. They took the children away from my mum.

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They said that we lived in poor conditions,

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and that my mum was not able to take care of 9 small children. 

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So the "best" was to take the kids to the orphanage.

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Then my mum was evicted to the shacks on Osiedlencow Street.

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The flats there are in awful condition. There is neither electricity nor gas.

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I don't want to live there with my kids.

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My friend Magda told me about an empty flat, so I went there.

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I applied for that flat at the Public Housing Agency, but I was told to leave the flat.

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I said I won't leave the flat. Where should I go?

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To qualify for social housing you need to collect a number of points.

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The more points you get, the bigger your chances to get a flat. 

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You get points, for example, for being homeless for more than 6 months,

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but it has to be confirmed by the homeless shelter or the police.

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Every year only 50 renovated flats and 50 flats needing repair are provided,

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although much more people need a flat.

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Occupying an empty flat is sometimes the only solution for mothers,

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who otherwise have to stay in a homeless shelter,

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or leave their children in an orphanage.

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The city authorities and the company responsible for social housing

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try to get rid of the problem of illegal squatting, rather than to solve it.

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In my situation I was forced to squat this empty flat.

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My parents had left me, I had no place to live. I was alone, and I had to occupy this flat.

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I got three eviction orders, and I was convicted with 3 years probation.

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They did not kick me out, because they would have to give me substitute housing.

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Why can't you rent a flat?

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Because the flats are too expensive.

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We are not sick and abnormal, we just can't afford to buy a flat.

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We have families with 3 or 4 members, and we can't get permanent jobs.

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The jobs we can get are casual, for a week or a month.

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Who will give us a loan to buy even a flat we have to renovate?

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The housing situation is difficult, and noone solves it.

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I know that only a few social housing flats are provided per year.

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My mother died, and my father moved to a smaller flat.

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He de-registered us, and I was left on the street with two children.

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I had no other choice but to just occupy this flat.

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I applied to the Public Housing Agency,

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and they let me live in the flat and connected the utilities.

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I had to paint the window frames, replace the window panes, and repair the ceiling.

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There was straw, and the plaster fell down into the soup.

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I spent money on the renovation of this flat, 

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so I could live in decent conditions with my kids.

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And I can't even stay in this flat until I get social housing.

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The city authorities themselves have, actually, encouraged people to take over empty properties 

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by saying that if you find 3 empty flats, you may live in one of them.

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Yes, they told us that if we find 3 empty flats, we may renovate one of them.

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I occupied an empty flat because my previous flat had only 20 sqms,

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and I was expecting a second baby.

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The electric wires were burnt.

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A local police constable visited my neighbour. She was not there, so he knocked at my door.

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He looked around and said: "Oh my god, what is happening here!?

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Why is the furniture standing in the staircase?"

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I described my situation, and said that I was waiting for the electrician.

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He advised me to take over one of the bigger, empty flats.

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He asked me where I will bathe my daughter? "In the coal bucket?"

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I did not hesitate. On the next day I occupied an empty flat a friend had told me about.

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It was in her block, and it was renovated.

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The previous owners, a married couple, had died.

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So on the 14th of February I moved in.

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One person told another, and the news spread that it's faster to get such flat.

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So girls with small kids took over such flats, as long as they had the guts.

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You really have to have courage to go through all this.

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Somehow the Public Housing Agency undeliberately allowed us to do this.

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I applied at the registration office, and registered in the flat for 5 years.

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On the 30th of March city mayor Kruczkowski told me to leave the flat

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and go to a homeless shelter.

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The water supply was cut off although I have 3 little children.

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For 3 years I had no running water. I had to buy water in a supermarket, 

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or sometimes a neighbor gave me a bucket of water for the kids.

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I received a 3-month sentence with 2 years probation,

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and my husband received a 6-month sentence with 2 years probation.

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Squatting is treated as a crime.

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Criminal and civil proceedings were started in order to evict people.

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The company responsible for social housing charges double rent.

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Letters to the electric and gas company are being sent,

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demanding that electricity and gas in such flats does not get connected.

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The court gives you a fine.

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Finally, people who occupy a flat without permission lose the right to social housing.

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I did it for my kids, but it turned out that what I did was not for me but the council.

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I removed the mold in the flat, I put in new windows.

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If they see that you renovate a flat, take care of it,

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they push you down and try to evict you rather than help.

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I got a verdict from the court, and I was told to wait for social housing.

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The Public Housing Agency was not allowed to evict me before I get social housing.

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At the Public Housing office a woman told me they did not receive anything like that,

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but I know those letters were delivered to them and to me.

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Still, she said it was not true, and an offical told me to go to a homeless shelter.

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People gave me furniture, a TV set, clothes for the children, and other basic things.

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The Public Housing Agency threw it all away.

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When I asked them where the things were, they said it went to the charity.

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My things, that were in good condition, went to the charity?!

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They just threw them away without informing me.

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Now I'm homeless, I do not have my things, I have nothing.

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What are the chances of getting social housing?

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Well, they send me to the shelter.

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I have lived there for 4 years, and I'm still waiting.

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I will die before I get social housing.

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Such policies led to the mothers' strike.

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17 women occupying flats in the district of Bialy Kamien decided to protest through a hunger strike.

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Electricity and water supplies were cut off in all squats in the city.

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For a few days, women, their partners and kids occupied the council office in Bialy Kamien.

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The strike lead to the re-connection of gas and water for all the women and their families.

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But the issue of the legalization of the squats was not solved.

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[Banner: For you nice houses, for us the basements]

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People say the Public Housing Agency received the order directly from the top,

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from the city mayor Kruczkowski.

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That is why they cut off the utilities: because Mr. Kruczkowski gave his permission.

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We asked at the Public Housing Agency why they cut off all the utilities.

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They said they didn't know. 

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They had everything in their computers but they were not allowed to show it to us.

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We started to shout and said that we will solve the issue in a different way,

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and that we will talk to the media.

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That's how it all started, when we and our kids were left without water and electricity.

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I did not agree with that, so I demanded that the district councilor calls the mayor

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or someone higher to come here and explain why it all happened,

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that without any written order all the utilities were cut off,

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even without notifying us.

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From one day to the next they cut off everything.

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They just wanted to kick us out onto the street.

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We kept asking for the mayor to "lower" himself and come and tell us

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what will happen with us. Noone showed up that day.

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We decided to call the media and go on strike.

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They pay fines, and they pay rents. So I am asking, why living there is illegal?

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The mayor here is in his second term, so I am asking, 

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why for so long noone in this townhall has been solving the problems of these people?

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On the next day, someone came to us. The mayor did not come until one week after the strike.

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We didn't want to leave our flats, and we didn't give up.

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I was sentenced twice. One sentence was with three years probation.

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They went to court against me, claiming that I do not take care of my children.

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And they wanted to take them away from me.

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We were treated as if we were sick and abnormal, as mothers who don't want to work.

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I was even called a thief who has stolen a flat together with furniture. 

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A person, who was supposedly living in this flat, appeared after 20 years.

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She said that I had stolen her flat and her belongings.

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I said I would leave the flat if she showed me any papers that she is entitled to live in this flat.

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I still haven't seen any documents.

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I couldn't take it any more mentally, and I wanted to leave the flat,

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but I would have to rent one room for 1,000 Zloty. 

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How could I get money for that?

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One person here said, if you can't get in through the door, get in through the window!

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For those who just sit around, nothing will get better.

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Because if you just sit around and don't fight, all officials will ignore you.

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They just make promises and do nothing.

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One person here said: It is like the dog - it wins when it barks;

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a person who shouts, talks a lot and fights for his/her case will win... just like me.

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I did fight. I constantly went to offices.

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They told me that they will not connect the water supply to my flat.

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They said: "Water in your flat!?" Two probation officers acted on my behalf.

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Everywhere the answer was negative. They said, that I will not have water,

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in the Public Housing Agency, in the townhall, everywhere.

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I started to fight myself, and it turned out that after a month they connected my water supply.

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So I believe that if you start something, you need to finish it.

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If you start fighting for your squats, then don't give up and continue the fight.

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After the mother's strike the Feminist Think Tank conducted participatory research in Walbrzych.

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Collective meetings and discussions lead to the reflection of problems of living in poverty,

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on how to start a public debate on it, and on how to resist.

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Round table talks were held in the local council of Podgorze-district in May 2010.

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We shared experiences, gained knowledge and started to fight together.

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The women's collective meetings continue to be held regularly

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as the women's social initiative - "Toddler Academy".

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Participants: Malgorzata, Dagmara, Edyta, Dorota, Monika, Katarzyna

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Cooperation: Agnieszka, Aneta, Beata, Katarzyna O., Katarzgyna P., Krzysztof, Malgorzata N., Malgorzata M., Marcin

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Filmed by SzumTv and Feminist Think Tank

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City pictures: Kasia Pawlik "Noita"

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Protest pictures: Lukasz Giza, LJ

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Funding: Filia Die Frauenstiftung

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Film distributed with the Anarchist Review No. 12 www.przeglad-anarchistyczny.org