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Demo against the Powell visit in Athens
Struggle Initiative Greece - 27.08.2004 22:26
Just before the end of the Athens Olympic Games, C. Powell comes to attend the closing ceremony. A demo was organized today by various groups protesting for the visit as well as for the Olympic Games themselves. There was a confrontation with the riot police.
Photo from the confrontation with the police
The demo was call be Struggle Initiative (radical left coalition), the Stop the War Alliance and the Greek SF on 19:00. A few thousands of people took part and the intention was to march to the Greek parliament house and the American embassy. The demonstrators declared Colin Powell "persona non grata" and requested the end of the occupation of Iraq and the assistance of Greece to it. Moreover, there were several slogans against the Olympic Games.
At first the government stated that "the right of the Greek citizens to protest against the Powell visit will be preserved". However, the police raised a blockade outside the parliament house stopping the demonstrators to continue their march. At first the demostrators requested the lift of the blockade but the police refused. Then there were organized attempts to break the blockade and confrontation with the police. Demonstrators were forced to retreat by the extented use of tear gases.
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| Lees meer over: europa militarisme vrijheid, repressie & mensenrechten | | aanvullingen | | | And of course... | A greek anarchist - 28.08.2004 12:33
It is no surprise that these leftish groups deteriorate the presence of the anarchists in this demo. The dispute some lefters had with the officers-in-charge for not been allowed to reach the US embassy, could definately NOT be described as a riot.
From the beginning of the demo anarchists and antiauthoritarians in general where throwing things to banks, to the police etc., and calling the people to do something more "active". while the lefters characterised the anarchists as "provocateurs sent by the police"!
Remember the E.U. summit. It was not the lefters that did the riots. Lefters in Greece don't do riots. Lefters in Greece are often the best mis-information center after the police headquarters...
| | Anarchists and lestists in Greece | Dimitris - 28.08.2004 16:38
I don't undestand why Greek disputes have to be transfered to the Dutch IMC. This announcement was intented to inform people of the movement in the Netherlands for the demo in Athens and not to say anything about the anarchists.
Anyway, the announcement does not say that Greek leftists created riots. It says rather that there was a confrontation of the demo with the RIOT POLICE. Furthermore, you describe marvelously the tactics of the Greek anachists. They hide in demos other people organize and instead of confronting the police they attack against shops, banks etc. This is playing games and not a direct action.
The most important thing about yesterday's demo in Athens was that THERE WAS A DEMO DURING THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE CENTER OF ATHENS. Regardless of the thousands of policemen and soldiers patrolling, the 1.500 cameras and the 2 zepelin watching every move of citizens of Athens, there was an action of the movement in the city.
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