With obvious provocative actions, aggressiveness, a storm of chemicals and severe walloping, the policemen hit for once again the student demonstration and tried to cut the student river, which spreads around and gets out in the streets stronger and stronger.
34 years ago, as if it were today, the first student action against the military dictatorship initiated; the occupation of Athens Law School.
Today, 34 years later … a student river consisting of 30.000 people was hit once again by the special security forces of the fascist para-state.
Today, 34 years after the junta, the democratic state also used the Anti-terrorist police so as to face the students.
While the students were defending the student asylum, the riot police were throwing gas and flare rockets in the Polytechnic Uni.
At the same time, the Special Repression Antiterrorist Units were waiting into special vans in Kaniggos sq., watching the Polytechnic.
Nice day… as it began
The Panepistimiou str., in front of the University Propylaea, to Omonia sq. and Kalfthmonos was full of students, passionate and shining, marching to the Parliament…
The slogan was moving mouth to mouth and it was real, coming from the hearts of the students.
“Today we will get into the Parliament” … and the draft law will be erased
There were a lot of people, replying to those claiming that the student movement is being deflated and is about to end. The people who were today in the street, punch right onto the stomach, those who had announced that this would be the… last demonstration.
Contrary. It has been a new fest.
A new river which has just started flowing. At the end of the march there was a marvellous banner… with the disobedient Gauloises… that wouldn’t let anyone… obey!
While the people were gathering in Propylaea, from the side of Omonoia, a big block from Thessaloniki, Patra and Heraclio arrived. Shouting the slogan “The wind is blowing against them…” the two pieces got into one, at about Santaroza str..
Students and teachers (they are getting less due to the political-social pressure they receive) were there and flooded the streets with passion. We need to mention that the police (mis)informed the corporate Media, reporting only 6 thousand people! That was in the plan as well.
Just note that: in the demonstration, there were students from all over Greece, from occupied faculties in Xanthi, Thessaloniki, Komotini, Patra, Volos, Ioannina, Kozani, Crete. There were also academics and teachers (they were less, though) and some few (judging from their power) high school students.
(…)
Finally the demo is about to start!
The cops in blue and green started following from the very first moment that the demo had started, and they provocatively triggered the atmosphere, by swearing and threatening. They were standing too close to the march, in every adjacent street, trying to get closer from the side. It is indicative, that around Kolokotroni sq., some students chased them away, and they started running like chicken, one behind the other. In some other case, towards Kalfthmonos sq., some cops managed to hit some young lads who were taking photos of them.
The riot policemen were wearing black masks while many cops had sunglasses under their helmets. Well known as uniformed rioters, they… hid their eyes with glasses. (Those guys got insane later, after the end of the demonstration, in the nearby short streets, by detaining anyone walking by and appearing suspicious.)
Outside the Parliament the cops hit with madness and incredible aggressiveness the demonstrators, sprayed a lot of chemicals and new-type tear gas and mercilessly walloped some demonstrators. The kicked on the head and the face the young guy that was on the ground and was finally arrested. They fell on him, dragged him and kept hitting him furiously.
Then they tried to make a circle, so to cut a part of the march. Again, they had been placed all around the Parliament, on the side of Great Britain Hotel, and the side of Panepistimiou. When they broke the demonstration in the Parliament, they were free to encircle, but there were a lot of people and the riot police wasn’t easy to go on playing around.
When the attacks with full of tear gas moved to the Polytechnic, the “glorious police forces” acted in full harmony with close colleagues of theirs, forming a chain from Kaniggos to the Polytechnic.
Riot police, undercovered policemen and Fascists acted altogether.
Along with the riot police forces, apart from the undercovered policemen (covered with scarfs and helmets) there were fascists (of chrissi avgi) who as disturbed citizens were stoning, swearing, threatening and provoking. In between the tv channels there were also policemen with professional cameras, taking pictures during three riots. The fascists and the alleged photo-journalists were in al the streets, where the riots police had just stopped attacking). Also, a van of the anti-terrorist police was parked in Kaniggos str., which finally left empty. They were not specialising in arrests or guarding, after all.
They were in black, wearing masks and members of the Anti-terorist Forces
It’s them who are at the moment guarding in a room of the General State Hospital the student of Physics, in Ioannina, who was walloped and arrested.
In the streets that are vertical tou Stournari (George str. etc.) a lot of chemicals were sprayed, along with new-type ones, such as ammonia. People could not even breath. Most tear gas, as well as the flare rockets were thrown directly… on the heads of the students.
They were throwing for two minutes tear-gas and flare rockets not only to the the gate of the Polytechnic University, but even in the courtyard of the building. [Meanwile the students had managed to gather and move into the Polytechnic University, in order to have a meeting, whilst outside there was the confrontation described]
At some time, a female student got out of the gate and asked the policemen to stop throwing tear gas in the courtyard, they kept on. Not even they didn’t stop, but they replied with seven to nine tear-gases, consequently towards the student and the asylum.
They also tried to move forward, so as to capture people in the gate. All these among a lot of chemicals. A thick white cloud was all around the streets, due to the tear gas sprayed.
Late in the evening, it was decided to hold a march towards the police headquarters, in solidarity to those who had been detained.
The march was hitten severely but he police who had blocked Alexandras ave. long before the Police Headquarters. The march was split into two pieces, which were both hit. Some were chased to Ippokratous, and were attacked by the 5th Police Department, with chemicals, kicks and batons, isolated into the streets.
The night of the junta in Athens, was back after 24 years, once again. Policemen of all kinds stormed into Exarchia [a district in Athens center, close to the Polytechnic Uni.] They surrounded cafes, captured and kept the customers and the passers-by like if they were hostages.
In the nearby streets, the cops and their stooges were hitting anyone they considered to be a suspect, young lads were kicked and slapped, sweared and pushed by the uniformed bastards because they were taking photos.
Nothing was said by the media for the junta night in Athens. They said everything was calm after the riots that happened at the end of the demonstration, while they reported three alleged injured policemen.
PS: The student of the Physics department, of University of Ioannina was severely walloped both at the time of his arrest (he was hit and sprayed from close), while he was being dragged (kicking him on the head and the face) and later he was punched until he was led into the police car.
Apart from the photos and the videos shot, there are eye-witnesses that can testify for the walloping. Among others, he has got serious breathing problem, and is for the moment in hospital, while he is being guarded buy the riot police. He is about to be transferred to Sotiria hospital.
From Athens Indymedia http://athens.indymedia.org
