Sam Buchanan
Sam Buchanan is a New Zealand anarchist.
Background
Born in Paekakariki, brother of Joe Buchanan.
Early 1980s studied at Victoria University. Involved in COST and HART.
- Sam Buchanan is a long-term Wellington peace and social justice activist currently working to encourage anarchist methods and oppose authority, capitalism, militarism and dickheadedness. He is a member of the Common Ground community garden group, the Wildcat Anarchist Collective, The Service and Food Worker’s Union and the New Zealand Deerstalkers Association. Currently (May 9th), he feels like a small fluffy bunny sitting in the path of the zombie-driven bulldozer of global capitalism. Another opinion, from a commentator on the New Zeal blog, calls him: "a typical liberal "pinko" unwittingly supporting socially destructive pro-ethnic nationalist doctrines that originated with Communists."
CORSO/Kanak Solidarity
Mid 1980s - first came in contact with CORSO, when involved in Kanak Solidarity group. [1]
CEC/Anarchism
1991 - Sam Buchanan, an organiser for Committee for the Establishment of Civilisation, told the People's Voice on April 26, that the anarchist movement was composed of "mainly students and unemployed."
1993 - Contact with A. Woolhouse for annual Wellington Anarchist Conference. [2]
1994 - proposed speaker, with Billie Clayton on Anarchy & Peace for Political Revival- National Peace Workshops to be held at Wellington, QB Weekend. [3]
1994 - member of State Adversary Collective, producing The State Adversary PO Box 9263 Wellington. An independent, autonomous collective based in Wellington and open to interested anarchists and supporters. [4]
Police raid
April 8th 1992, staff member, Auckland People's Centre, hospitalised after police batoning during raid looking for "paraphenalia used in the making of bombs". [5]
AYN/AIA
1994 - letter to Aotearoa Youth Network No 11 on debate in Left wing movements.
1997 - contact in AYN April 97 for Activism in Aoteoroa Workshops, same address as Cybele Locke.
1997 - ran media session AIA.[6]
Anti GE
Organisers of a demonstration in Wellington (July 19th, 2003) say the government will face fierce opposition if it ends the moratorium on the release of Genetically Modified Organisms.
"There are too many unanswered questions regarding the threat posed by GMOs to New Zealand's environment to end the moratorium now" says Emily Bailey, spokesperson for the Harakeke Eco Collective which is organising the march.
The demonstration is calling for the GMO moratorium to be made permanent, for the government to withdraw support for the US government's WTO case against European opposition to GE foodstuffs and in favour of safe and controlled lab-based research.
Contacts Emily Bailey, Jonah Marinovich, Sam Buchanan.
Illegal protest
Buchanan put it very briefly and simplistically - 27.5.07 On Frog Blog.
- I consider New Zealand to be in an undemocratic situation at present. Corporate and state interests and an uncritical and unaccountable media walk all over democracy. A capitalist system keeps resources in the hands of a few people who use their money and influence to ge their way. In such system I see the need for sensible, intelligent illegal protest. I’m not advocating irresponsibility or random acts of violence.
Urewera 17 raids aftermath
Wellington anarchist Sam Buchanan, who knows some of the accused, in the Urewera 17 arrests, describes what drives anarchists in New Zealand for the Star-Times website.[7]
- "Our opposition to authority and domination leads us to become involved in feminist, anti-military and anti-colonial movements, and to oppose racism and abuse. Anarchists are also involved in mutual aid projects... .
Arrested
2007, Sam Buchanan, one of the four arrested in Wellington following a raid on an anarchist organising centre, told the NZ Herald he was in disbelief at the charges, as he was a pacifist. Buchanan told the NZ Herald that, during the raid, police smashed a glass door he is expected to replace himself. He commented, “It’s been a very annoying morning”.[8]