General Strike in Greece, Clashes in Athens

The first general strike as a response to the austerity measures in Greece has met with huge success as the country has been immobilised by the strike with no boats airplanes buses or trains moving within or from and into the country. The media strike which is part of the general strike means there are no news broadcasts or newspapers which limits the extent of our information gathering on the strike and its protest marches

In Athens the protest march is expected to have gathered around 40,000 people and had a very dynamic character. The first incident occurred when a plain clothed policeman was stopped and beaten by protesters. Later riot police tries to side the numerous anarchist block but was deterred by large numbers of protesters. Before reaching Syntagma square several corporate shops and banks were smashed by protesters. In sytnagma square extended clashes between protesters and riot police forces unfolded with use of tear gas on the part of the cops and rocks and molotov cocktails by the protesters. During the clashes Giannis Bardakos, a member of a socialist opposition party DIKKI, was arrested. DIKKI has published a communique condemning the arrest and the "policy of occupation forces' imposed poverty and underdeveloped applied by the State of oppression and violence" adding that "anti-people's terrorism will not pass". The encircling methods of the police at the corner of Phillelinon street however failed, two workers who the cops had arrested were rescued and the two riot police squads were encircled by protesters and heavily beaten with many riot shield broken. The clashes continues across Panepistimiou street where the posh Zonars cafe was invaded by large numbers of enraged workers and teachers who smashed it. The protesters then moved towards the Polytechnic which is under occupation by students in response to the breach of campus asylum in Zografou a few days ago, with many shops across Patision avenue destroyed. The general feeling is one of great success with the forces of repression humiliated and the working class having proved its will to struggle against the state onslaught.

The protest march in Salonica gathered around 5,000 people under rain. Despite small skirmishes no clashes ensued until protesters returning to the Universities moved to destroy car control medal bars at its entrance and came under police attack. The police with utter disregard to the constitution moved its forces into the university asylum and led the protesters to barricade themselves in the rectorial headquarters which are now under occupation in protest to the renewed breach of the asylum.

Protest marches took place in many other towns with mass participation: in Heraklion Crete the marches numbers more than a thousands, while in Volos 500 marchers broke away from the march to break the security cordon of the METKA factory and hold an assembly in the premises.

As far as the antifascist counterdemo planned for today afternoon in Amerikis Square, both the fascist gathering and the antifascist counterdemo were declared banned by the district attorney. As a result, antifascist marches were prevented to reach the square by strong riot police forces and marched instead in the streets of Kypseli chanting antiracist and proletarian solidarity slogans. The fascist scum never even appeared for their advertised bigotry stunt at the square.

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