Irregular Migrants Face the Boot in Greece
By Apostolis Fotiadis
ATHENS, Aug 29 2012 (IPS) – A crackdown on irregular migration has entered its fourth week in Greece. The government is shutting the Greek-Turkish northeastern border across river Evros, and removing massive numbers of undocumented migrants from big urban centres into makeshift detention camps.
Continue reading ‘Irregular Migrants Face the Boot in Greece – by Apostolis Fotiadis (ips news)’
Statisticians and magicians
By Dimosthenis Papadatos – Anagnostopoulos
originally published in Greek in: Red Notebook
One out of five. These are the “illegals” that the Police discovered in the first 12 days of the (ongoing) “Zeus Xenios” sweep operation. And what does this ratio reveal to us?
First of all, the obvious: 6.344 persons were arbitrarily arrested, even though they legally reside in Greece and they have never committed any offence.
They were simply arrested because of the color of their skin – and probably on conviction that criminality does not exclusively apply to the “illegal” ones. In the end, those legally residing in the country are still aliens.
Continue reading ‘Statisticians and magicians’
While the police is operating a huge sweep in Athens and Evros since August 2nd, racist attacks are getting more. Migrants communities speak of more than 500 hate crimes in the last six months and an organised wave of hate crimes in the last days.
Continue reading ‘more than 500 fascist attacks against migrants in the last six months!!!!’
the images remind of other times….
Greek police released this video of todays sweep operation in the early morning hours at Larissis Railway Station in Athens:
In a press release of August 10 the police summed up that amongst others within the frame of the operation “Xenios Zeus”:
– 6.690 migrants were arrested
– 1.555 were detained because they were lacking legal residence papers
– 52 private houses were searched
and by the economic police:
– 103 shops were controlled
– 23 brothels were controlled, 48 persons were arrested and 22 were ordered administrative deportation
– Another 172 street sex workers were arrested
Greek police evict immigrants from Athens
Greek police arresting women and children
At around 7 AM GMT+2 on Saturday, May 26th, a large police contingent surrounded the building complex of the former Chatzikosta Hospital, located on central Papandreou Avenue in the city of Ioannina. This complex, apart from being a temporary home for migrants and refugees, is also were the Antiviosi squat is located.
Continue reading ‘Ioannina, Greece: “Cleansing” operation against migrants’
The exploitation and violence of agricultural farmers in Manolada against their migrant workers continues. On May 12, 2012 the workers of the strawberry harvest started a strike demanding higher wages now. The police supports the farmers with sweep operations arresting migrants in the area. On May 16, 2012, the third day of the workers strike the protests resulted again in the arrest of about 10 workers – mainly migrants.
The government continues with its’ pre-election campaign against migrants and refugees. Publicised sweep operations and a medial discourse on “illegal migrants as hygiene bomb” have built the grounds for a racist agenda. These racist measures and medial games are used as much as the opening of the new detention centre near by Athens to win votes for the elections.
Continue reading ‘Racist discourse and police operations go on in Athens’ centre’
Since Thursday and the beginning of the pogrom in the centre of Athens the Greek police has taken 2.000 migrants into custody of which 420 were arrested. In total 234 persons were arrested for being undocumented being issued an administrative deportation.
Another 63 migrant women have been arrested for prostitution.
The fascist medial campaign against migrants will be continued on Sunday with a press conference of the ministers of citizen protection and health. Fear has been already effectively spread among migrant communities through the media showing endless arrests, controls and models of the new detention centres. The public discourse is dominated by the construction of migrants as a threat to the Greek society repeating mainly words such as: “illegal immigrants”, “contagious diseases”, “criminals”, “clean the city centre”, “dangerous” etc. This pre-election campaign is obviously aimed to distract the society from the economical measures that are being imposed by the government and to spread fear among migrants.
The announced “pogrom in Athens” started yesterday with massive police forces in the centre of the capital. More than 200 migrants were arrested near by Omonia Square, from the streets, squares, houses and shops. Police forces invaded more homes also in Kipseli and arrested street vendors near the university buildings in Patission street and elswhere. This massive sweep operation and its promotion in the Greek news as top issue of the pre-election campaigns is the most publicised repression against migrants of the last period. 
The police has aimed to raid approx. 140 buildings where migrants live, because they perceive them as “hygiene bombs” and a “threat to public health”. The police raids will also focus on empty old houses where migrants found provisory shelter.
As the Minister of Citizen Protection said: “This attempt for the
η προσπάθεια που γίνεται για την ελάφρυνση του κέντρου της Αθήνας, για την αποκατάσταση της τάξης, για την προστασία της κοινωνικής ειρήνης στις γειτονιές του κέντρου της Αθήνας, είναι μία ολοκληρωμένη επιχείρηση.
TV News top issue these days is the pre-election propaganda concerning “illegal migration”. See video: