Industrial Workers of the World

Oct 19 2009 http://libcom.org/news/workers-support-city-hall-occupation-nikea-19102009

The municipal workers association of Nikea stand in solidarity with anarchists occupying the city hall since Saturday As the occupation of the city hall of Nikea enters its third day, the support of locals so visual during the protest march regarding the police torture and death of Mohamed Karman Atif, which led to serious clashes with the police and 8 arrests last Saturday 17/10, has been expressed in a communique by the municipal worker's association of Nikea. C

ommunique of Workers Association of the municipality of Nikea about murder–detentions-occupation Nikea City Hall is occupied by anarchist groups from the afternoon of Saturday after a protest, for the death of the unfortunate Pakistani immigrant that took place in the Police Station of Nikea.

The Workers Association demands that the forces of repression leave from within the boundaries of the historic City of Nikea. The occupation of the City Hall by the protesters is a political act, and the attempt to criminalise it is unacceptable and undemocratic.

The workers of Kokkinia [red neighborhood] disapprove strongly the attack of the forces of repression against the demonstrators and the mindless use of chemical gasses in a densely populated area. The police rule imposed cannot intimidate protesters and workers.

We demand the immediate clarification of the case of the death of our fellow human being, the immigrant. We call the Minister of Protection of Citizens [Minister of Public Order] to deal himself with this dark case and not attempt to conceal or whitewash this tragic case.

The Association of Workers protests strongly against xenophobia and racism that extreme-right centers and para-centers are trying to impose on Greek society.

WE DEMAND -THE REPRESSION FORCES NOT TO RAID THE NIKEA CITY HALL.

-THE IMMEDIATE WITHDRAWAL OF THE POLICE FORCES FROM WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF THE CITY OF NIKEA.

-THE CLARIFICATION OF THE CASE OF THE DEATH OF THE PAKISTANI IMMIGRANT.

-THE DEMOCRATIZATION OF GREEK POLICE AND THE FIRING OF EXTREME-RIGHT ELEMENTS IN ITS RANKS.

NOTE: It must be noted that bourgeois media have imposed a total black-out on the events, pointing out that the Minister of Public Order, who was decorated by the CIA in 2003 for his anti-guerrilla operations, has activated his old methods of "media guidelines", i.e. censorship on issues of human rights and civil order that might be harmful to the government.

UPDATE: 5 out of the 8 arrested protesters who were led to the courts today are being charged under the "anti-hood" law of the previous government which transforms any breach of the law into a criminal offence if the court accepts that the protesters were wearing hoods or covering their faces. This means that any breach of the law "under a hood" can be punished by maximum 10 years imprisonment. Given that many anarchists in greece wear hoods as a symbol of their ideology this is considered to be a re-activation of the 1930s "idionimo" which imprisoned and exiled people of communist convictions. The parody of justice is even more apparent by the fact that in the day of the march it was raining, so penalising wearing a hood is more or less a conviction to illness or a prohibition of protest in winter conditions.