[Onthebarricades] GREECE: International protests, December 2008

[global resistance roundup]

* Greek-inspired protests spread across Europe - Spain, Italy, Denmark etc
* GERMANY: Demonstrations in several cities, protesters resist police 
repression
* BULGARIA: Protests after Bulgarian activist attacked in Greece
* GERMANY: Protesters occupy Greek consulate
* FRANCE: Paris consulate occupied
* DENMARK: Protesters fight back as police arrest solidarity protesters
* UK: Protesters target Greek embassy
* RUSSIA: Leftists detained for protest
* SCOTLAND: Protests reach Edinburgh
* Internet spreads Greek protests
* FRANCE: Protesters block Champs-Elysees
* NEW YORK: Greek embassy sabbed
* Protests in Italy, America
* SPAIN: Protesters fight back against police, storm police station
* UK: Protest in Newcastle
* WALES: Cardiff copshop sabbed
* RUSSIA: Molotov thrown at embassy





http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=13248

Greek Inspired Protests Spread Across Europe Published on 12-13-2008 
Email To Friend Print Version

Source: AP
MADRID, Spain (AP) — The unrest that has gripped Greece is spilling over 
into the rest of Europe, raising concerns the clashes could be a trigger 
for opponents of globalization, disaffected youth and others outraged by 
the continent's economic turmoil and soaring unemployment.
Protesters in Spain, Denmark and Italy smashed shop windows, pelted 
police with bottles and attacked banks this week, while in France, cars 
were set ablaze Thursday outside the Greek consulate in Bordeaux, where 
protesters scrawled graffiti warning about a looming "insurrection."
At least some of the protests were organized over the Internet, showing 
how quickly the message of discontent can be spread, particularly among 
tech-savvy youth. One Web site Greek protesters used to update each 
other on the locations of clashes asserted there have been sympathy 
protests in nearly 20 countries.
More demonstrations were set for Friday in Italy, France and Germany.
Still, the clashes have been isolated so far, and nothing like the scope 
of the chaos in Greece, which was triggered by the police killing of a 
teenager on Saturday and has ballooned into nightly scenes of burning 
street barricades, looted stores and overturned cars.
Nevertheless, authorities in Europe worry conditions are ripe for the 
contagion to spread.
As Europe plunges into recession, unemployment is rising, particularly 
among the young. Even before the crisis, European youths complained 
about difficulty finding well-paid jobs — even with a college degree — 
and many said they felt left out as the continent grew in prosperity.
In Greece, demonstrators handed out fliers Thursday listing their 
demands, which include the reversal of public spending cuts that have 
brought more layoffs, and said they were hopeful their movement would 
spread.
"We're encouraging nonviolent action here and abroad," said Konstantinos 
Sakkas, a 23-year-old protester at the Athens Polytechnic, where many of 
the demonstrators are based. "What these are abroad are spontaneous 
expressions of solidarity with what's going on here."
Across the continent, Internet sites and blogs have popped up to spread 
the call to protest.
Several Greek Web sites offered protesters real-time information on 
clash sites, where demonstrations were heading and how riot police were 
deployed around the city. Protest marches were arranged and announced on 
the sites and via text message on cell phones.
In Spain, an anti-globalization Web site, Nodo50.org, greeted visitors 
with the headline "State Assassin, Police Executioners" and told them of 
hastily called rallies Wednesday in Barcelona and Madrid.
"We stand in solidarity" with the Greek protesters, the site said.
Elsewhere in Europe, reports about the clashes in Greece were quickly 
picked up online by citizen journalists, some of whom posted details of 
confrontations on Twitter. At the Independent Media Center, photos and 
video of the demonstrations were uploaded and plans were listed for 
"upcoming solidarity actions" in London, Edinburgh and Berlin.
One writer on the site london.indymedia.org exhorted people to follow 
the Greek example and "reclaim the streets. Burn the banks that robbed 
you ... It is a great opportunity to expand the revolution in all europe."
"What's happening in Greece tends to prove that the extreme left exists, 
contrary to doubts of some over these past few weeks," French Interior 
Ministry spokesman Gerard Gachet told The Associated Press.
But, he added, the coming days and weeks would determine whether 
"there's a danger of contagion of the Greek situation into France."
In cities across Europe, protests flared in solidarity with the 
demonstrations in Greece.
One rally outside the Greek Embassy in Rome turned violent on Wednesday, 
damaging police vehicles, overturning a car and setting a trash can on 
fire. In Denmark, protesters pelted riot police with bottles and paint 
in downtown Copenhagen; 63 people were detained and later released.
And in Spain, angry youths attacked banks, shops and a police station in 
Madrid and Barcelona late Wednesday. Some of the protesters chanted 
"police killers" and other slogans. Eleven people — including a Greek 
girl — were arrested at the two rallies, which drew a total of about 200 
protesters.
Daniel Lostao, president of the state-financed Youth Council, an 
umbrella organization of Spanish youth groups, said young people in 
Spain face daunting challenges — soaring unemployment, low salaries and 
difficulty in leaving the family nest because of expensive housing.
Still, he said he doubted the protests in Spain would grow.
"We do not have the feeling that this is going to spread," Lostao said. 
"Let's hope I am not wrong."
In France, protesters set fire to two cars and a garbage can filled with 
flammable material outside the Greek consulate in Bordeaux Thursday and 
scrawled graffiti threatening more unrest, Greek Consul Michel Corfias said.
Graffiti reading "solidarity with the fires in Greece," was scrawled on 
the consulate and the word "insurrection" was painted on the doors of 
neighboring houses.
"The events in Greece are a trigger" for French youth angry by their own 
lack of economic opportunity, Corfias said.






http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/415269.html

Greek Solidarity protests in Germany get stronger
Now is the winter of our discontent | 13.12.2008 14:14 | Repression | 
Social Struggles | World
1000 demonstrate in Berlin, small protests all over the country, major 
protest ahead

As the economy crumbles and prices increase all over Europe, we too 
raise the price of what it costs to kill one of us.

On Friday late evening more than 1000 marched in Berlin in solidarity 
with Greek comrades, police brutality and repression in Germany. Small 
protests of between 20 and up to 200 protesters took place in about ten 
cities across Germany. During the night there were minor arson attacks 
across Berlin on banks, cars and garbage bins.

Significantly the protests have not even reached beyond the marginalised 
radical left, reverberation among a tiny majority over Alexis death 
didn´t even catch on with the powerfull German antifa movement. There 
were no meetings or speakers tours with Greek comades.

Nevertheless it seems that protests get stronger. A major national 
demonstration lies ahead on the Dec 2Oth in Hamburg, but will be limited 
to the marginalised radical left.

But the broader left plans a day of national protest in Berlin or 
Frankfurt over the economic crisis later next year.

The bourgeois media voiced fears of Greek riots sparking youths protest 
in the whole of Europe against the backdrop of a winter of economic 
crisis and discontent.

Protests are ahead in Berlin again today, tomorrow and the next week in 
several cities.

"Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun 
of" Greece...
Now is the winter of our discontent
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Additions
2 banks smashed, a porsche burned
13.12.2008 16:02







http://www.germany.indymedia.org/2008/12/235945.shtml
rzf
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/415911.html

Police crush Greece solidarity protest in Germany
Richard Grove | 22.12.2008 14:12 | Repression | Social Struggles | World
20/12 Greece European day of action in Hamburg: Police force march of 
1300 to stop. But many small protests all over the country
On Saturday police stopped and dissolved by force a protest march in 
solidarity with Greek comrades. The demonstration, which was also 
directed against state and police terror, was closed in several times by 
about 1500 police and repeatedly baton-charged.

The forces of state finally succeeded in using their infamous 
"cauldron-tactic" and the march was dissolved.

Also on Saturday small Greek solidarity protests took place in twelve 
cities all over Germany. The protests were attended by around 20 to 50 
people varying.

There were a few copy cat attacks on police stations.

Nevertheless, Greece solidarity protests in Germany have not reached 
beyond the radical left, and even the radical left has shown restraint 
in organising solidarity. There have been hardly any public meetings.

The broader left has not yet grasped the significance of the Greek 
unrest in the unfolding major crisis of capitalism. But they are 
discussing a national mass demonstration to be held before Easter.

Even the numerous and strong antifa movement did not realise the 
importance of adressing the uprising in Greece. Instead, the same day 
protests in Hamburg and other cities were occuring, the antifa held a 
protest of over 2000 in Nuremberg. The sole issue being the opining of a 
small shop with nazi attire in that city.

However, a public meeting in Berlin organised by Greek students last 
Wednesday was packed with 600 from all sections of the left and the 
broader public.
Richard Grove







http://news.infoshop.org/article.php?story=20081231094528894

Bulgarian union protests Greek attack
Wednesday, December 31 2008 @ 09:45 AM CST
Contributed by: WorkerFreedom
Views: 222
SOFIA, Bulgaria: The head of Bulgaria's largest trade union urged Greek 
authorities Tuesday to investigate an acid attack that left a Bulgarian 
immigrant seriously injured.

No one has been arrested for the attack Dec. 22 on Kostadinka Kuneva, a 
union official with the Athens association of cleaners.

Bulgaria's top union official, Zhelyazko Hristov, wrote an open letter 
to Greek President Karolos Papoulias, saying Kuneva's colleagues had 
received death threats because of their union activities.

Kuneva, 44, has been living legally in Greece for seven years, working 
as a cleaning lady. Police said two men ambushed her on a street outside 
her central Athens home on her way back from work and splashed acid on 
her face. She is hospitalized in serious condition.

According to Hristov, 80,000 of the 200,000 Bulgarians living in Greece 
work without labor contracts and do not have social insurance.

Today in Europe

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On Monday, about 200 people gathered in Piraeus, the main port near 
Athens, to protest the attack. Protesters scuffled with police, and four 
officers were slightly injured. The protest took place outside the 
company that employed Kuneva, which provides cleaners for Athens trains.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/12/30/europe/EU-Bulgaria-Greece-Acid-Attack.php







http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/245245,protesters-occupy-greek-consulate-in-berlin--summary.html

Protesters occupy Greek consulate in Berlin - Summary
Posted : Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:31:36 GMT
Author : DPA
Category : Europe (World)

News Alerts by Email ( click here )

Berlin - Demonstrators angry at the shooting death of a 15- year-old 
youth by police in Athens occupied the Greek consulate in Berlin for 
most of Monday before departing peacefully. About 20 protesters wearing 
ski masks barged their way into the reception area of the building in 
west Berlin during the morning while supporters on the street outside 
chanted, "It was murder."
One of those outside, a man wearing black who described himself as an 
anarchist, said, "We are here to defend our dead comrade in Greece. I 
want to stir up some trouble."
In the end there was no trouble, and the protesters left after eight 
hours with no arrests.
The Greek embassy, which is located elsewhere in the city, had asked 
police not to use force at the consulate, a mission that mainly assists 
Greeks living in Germany.
Police said the consul, the chief of the office, had insisted on a 
dialogue with the protesters and had refused to lay an official 
complaint. Occupiers who answered his phone for him said that the consul 
had been pleasant and had served them coffee.
Some 120 armed police warily watched the protesters from outside through 
the day.
The teenager died Saturday in the central Athens district of Exarchia 
after being hit by a bullet fired by a policeman. Police said groups of 
anarchist youths had earlier attacked a police car with stones and 
firebombs.
The incident triggered two nights of riots in the capital and the 
northern city of Thessaloniki, causing widespread damage and injuries to 
40 people.
Berlin sympathizers said they wanted Germans to know about the issue.
During the day, they flung leaflets from a balcony of the Greek 
consulate to Christmas shoppers on the street. The consulate is located 
on Wittenberg Platz near a major Berlin department store.
A female protester told Deutsche Presse-Agentur
[NOTE: Yes it does end there. Mess-up I imagine]






http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_Europe&set_id=1&click_id=24&art_id=nw20081209142629303C599561

Protesters enter Greek consulate in Paris

December 09 2008 at 02:34PM

Paris - Protesters entered part of the Greek consulate in Paris on 
Tuesday after three days of rioting in Greece triggered by the shooting 
of a teenager by police, an embassy spokesperson said on Tuesday.

"They have entered the building but not the consulate offices on the 
first floor," Alexandre Bouzis, the Greek embassy press attache said.

The action came a day after demonstrators staged a similar protest at 
the Greek consulate in Berlin.

"This is a symbolic occupation. There are about 20 students outside and 
60 inside," a spokesperson for the protesters said.

Bouzis said police were at the scene but the situation appeared to be 
under control.
"They are there, they are demonstrating, the situation is quite calm, 
they are quite calm. French police are there," he said.






http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_Europe&set_id=1&click_id=24&art_id=nw20081211131702912C495704

Sixty-three Danes held for pro-Greek protests

December 13 2008 at 10:15AM

Copenhagen - Danish police say they briefly detained 63 people following 
a rally to support the demonstrations in Greece.

Police spokesperson Michael Paulsen says some of the 150 people who were 
demonstrating late Wednesday in downtown Copenhagen hurled bottles and 
paint at riot officers.

Paulsen says all those detained were released by Thursday though some 
might face fines for refusing to obey police orders.

The Copenhagen demonstration was meant to support those protesting 
across Greece over the police shooting of a 15-year-old boy in Athens. 
The Greek protests have unleashed some of the worst violence and rioting 
in the country in decades. - Sapa-AP






http://www.euronews.net/2008/12/08/greek-protest-spreads-to-berlin/

Greek protest spreads to Berlin 08/12/08 13:05 CET
Greece
The following article has been retrieved from the archive and no longer 
contains the original video.
Protests at the killing of Athens teenager Alexandros Grigogorpoulos 
have spread abroad.
About 15 self-proclaimed anarchists stormed the Greek embassy in Berlin, 
saying Greece itself bears responsibility for his death.
There was no violence reported, but the group displayed a banner saying 
the youth was killed by the Greek state.
Berlin police sealed off the embassy while talks began on ending the 
stand-off.






http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,597899,00.html#ref=rss

12/22/2008

SOLIDARITY WITH ATHENS
Police Squash Violent Hamburg Protest
While police and demonstraters continued to battle on the streets of 
Athens over the weekend, German police broke up a large sympathy protest 
after it grew violent.
Scores of German riot police confronted an estimated 950 protesters in 
Hamburg over the weekend who were expressing their sympathy for student 
protesters in Greece by marching under the banner of "Solidarity is a 
weapon."
Police reported that the protest actions -- which allegedly included 
numerous members of the far-left anarchist scene -- were broken up on 
Saturday after they escalated to rioting, with special police units and 
journalists being pelted with bottles, iron rods and fireworks. Four 
police officers were reported injured.







http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2439130,00.html

Protesters arrested in London
08/12/2008 17:57 - (SA)

London - British police arrested two protesters at a rally outside the 
Greek embassy in London on Monday, held to voice anger at the killing of 
a teenager in Athens, a spokesman said.
Scuffles briefly erupted as some 40 young demonstrators bearing 
anarchist banners gathered outside the London mission, amid a third day 
of street battles in Greece over the police killing of a 15-year-old boy.
One small group unfurled an anarchist flag in place of the Greek flag 
next to the doorstep of the embassy, in the upmarket Holland Park area 
to the west of the city centre, an AFP journalist said.
"Cops are pigs and murderers," they shouted in Greek, according to one 
of the protesters.
Scuffles broke out between black-clad demonstrators and police when 
officers tried to erect security barriers to keep back a second group of 
protesters outside the building.
Two protesters were detained.
"They were arrested for a public disorder offence, threatening 
behaviour," David Morgan from Kensington police told AFP.
The protesters had asked to meet the ambassador, but the request was 
rejected, said a spokesman for the embassy.
In Greece itself youths attacked cars and store-fronts in Salonika, 
Greece's second largest city on Monday, and clashes broke out in the 
central city of Trikala as students occupied universities in Athens and 
other major centres.
The unrest has left dozens wounded, caused widespread destruction and 
put new pressure on right-wing prime minister Costas Karamanlis over the 
death of Alexis Grigoropoulos on Saturday that sparked nationwide riots.
In Berlin on Monday about 15 young demonstrators occupied the Greek 
consulate, but there was no report of violence or arrests.
- AFP






http://en.rian.ru/russia/20081213/118843075.html

Young Russian leftists detained for protest at Greek Embassy
17:03 | 13/ 12/ 2008

MOSCOW, December 13 (RIA Novosti) - Police in Moscow arrested eight 
members of a left-wing youth movement on Saturday for holding an illegal 
protest near the Greek Embassy, a police spokesman said.
The members of the neo-leftist Red Youth Vanguard, including its leader, 
Sergei Udaltsov, were demonstrating against the December 6 shooting by 
Greek police of a 15-year-old boy. Alexandros Grigoropoulos's death has 
sparked a week of youth rioting across Greece.
"The Red Youth Vanguard members tried to hold an unauthorized picket of 
the Greek Embassy in Moscow, and after repeated requests to disperse 
they were arrested by police," the spokesman said.
The eight were taken to a local police station for processing.
In cities throughout Greece on Saturday peaceful rallies were held in 
memory of Grigoropoulos. One policeman has been charged with his murder, 
and a second as an accomplice.






http://www.nowpublic.com/world/alexis-grigoropoulos-edinburgh-protest

Alexis Grigoropoulos Edinburgh Protest

uploaded by TFleming December 11, 2008 at 01:11 pm







http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081212/NEWS/812120340/-1/NEWS09

Protesters in Greece spark unrest in Europe
News services
Advertisement

MADRID, Spain – The unrest that has gripped Greece is spilling over into 
the rest of Europe, raising concerns the clashes could be a trigger for 
opponents of globalization, disaffected youth and others outraged by 
global economic turmoil.
Protesters in Spain, Denmark and Italy smashed shop windows, pelted 
police with bottles and attacked banks this week, while in France cars 
were set ablaze Thursday.
In Greece, protesters began handing out fliers listing their demands, 
which include having riot police pulled from the streets and the 
reversal of public-spending cuts that have heightened insecurity over jobs.
More demonstrations were set for today in Italy, France and Germany.






http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=6440121

Greek-Inspired Protests Spread Across Europe
Greek-inspired protests spread throughout Europe with help of Internet 
and blogs
By PAUL HAVEN Associated Press Writer
MADRID, Spain December 11, 2008 (AP)
The Associated Press

The word ?Killers? painted on the wall of the Greek Embassy in 
Copenhagen, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2008....
(AP)
More Photos
The unrest that has gripped Greece is spilling over into the rest of 
Europe, raising concerns the clashes could be a trigger for opponents of 
globalization, disaffected youth and others outraged by the continent's 
economic turmoil and soaring unemployment.
Protesters in Spain, Denmark and Italy smashed shop windows, pelted 
police with bottles and attacked banks this week, while in France, cars 
were set ablaze Thursday outside the Greek consulate in Bordeaux, where 
protesters scrawled graffiti warning about a looming "insurrection."
At least some of the protests were organized over the Internet, showing 
how quickly the message of discontent can be spread, particularly among 
tech-savvy youth. One Web site Greek protesters used to update each 
other on the locations of clashes asserted there have been sympathy 
protests in nearly 20 countries.
More demonstrations were set for Friday in Italy, France and Germany.







http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/3706849/Greek-protest-spread-with-arrests-across-Europe.html

Greek protests spread with arrests across Europe
Anger over the fatal shooting of a Greek schoolboy by a policeman has 
spread across Europe with protests as far afield as Moscow and Madrid.

By Nick Squires In Athens
Last Updated: 7:22PM GMT 11 Dec 2008

Demonstrations against the killing were seen in cities across the 
continent with left-wing radicals and other sympathisers taking to the 
streets.
In Spain, 11 protesters were arrested and several police officers 
injured when clashes took place in Madrid and Barcelona.

In Copenhagen, 32 people were arrested when their protest in support of 
the Greek protests turned violent.
In neighbouring Turkey, about a dozen left-wing protesters daubed red 
paint over the front of the Greek consulate in Istanbul.
Around 150 people belonging to a Danish underground movement took to the 
streets, throwing bottles and paint bombs at buildings, police cars and 
officers. In Moscow and Rome, protesters threw petrol bombs at Greece's 
embassies.






http://paper.standartnews.com/en/article.php?d=2008-12-12&article=26089

Greek Protests Spill over to Sofia


Friends and colleagues of Stoyan Baltov beaten to death in a Students 
Town disco will organize two commemorative processions in Sofia
Photo: BGNES
A wave of student protests will sweep Sofia. Bulgarian higher students 
take to the street to protest against the brutal murder of their 
colleague Stoyan Baltov demanding higher safety and more active police 
presence in the neighborhood. On late December 5, twenty-year-old Stoyan 
passed away after a violent drunken fight in front of a disco in the 
Students' Town in Sofia.
The students' rally will be led by the rectors of Sofia universities
The rally is organized by the colleagues of deceased Stoyan Baltov from 
the Medical University. "In memory of the dead boy classes will not be 
held in the Medical University," MU Rector, Prof Vanyo Mitev told The 
Standart.
Teodora Yolcheva







http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=99716

Bulgarians to Express Solidarity with Greek Protesters
Society | December 10, 2008, Wednesday

The Christmas Tree in front of the Greek parliament is burning after the 
clashes in central Athens. Photo by BGNES
A meeting to express solidarity with the Greek protesters over the 
police shooting that killed a 15-year-old schoolboy will be staged 
Wednesday evening in Sofia in front of the Greek embassy.

In a letter to media "a group of citizens" say that at 8 pm at the 
embassy they are to place flowers in the memory of Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos, who was shot dead in clashes between anarchist protesters 
and police in Athens.

The tragic death of Grigoropoulos sparked 5-day riots and violent 
clashes with police all over Greece. The shooting of the boy was the 
catalyst for the violence, but it comes along with plummeting popularity 
of the centre-right government against a backdrop of high youth 
unemployment, rising cost of living, and a widening gap between rich and 
poor.

As the protests became more political, the country's two largest 
syndicates announced on Wednesday their members were going to hold a 
24-hour strike demanding more social spending.







http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,595033,00.html

12/08/2008

PROTEST FALLOUT
Demonstrators Occupy Greek Consulate in Berlin
A group of 30 demonstrators has occupied the Greek consulate in Berlin 
to protest the killing of a teenager by police in Athens on Saturday 
night. The Berlin protesters are behaving peacefully.

DPA
Demonstrators on the balcony of the Greek consulate in Berlin waved a 
black and red flag and threw leaflets.
A group of demonstrators occupied the Greek consulate in Berlin on 
Monday morning in protest over the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy 
by Athens police on Saturday that triggered the worst rioting Greece has 
seen in 25 years.
Some 30 people pushed their way into the lobby of the consulate at 
Wittenbergplatz in western Berlin at around 9.40 a.m. local time, said 
SPIEGEL TV reporter Martin Heller, who is on the scene.
Around 120 German police cordoned off the area outside the consulate and 
negotiations are underway with the demonstrators, who were behaving 
peacefully and had made no demands, police said. At around 11 a.m., 10 
people wearing hats and scarves to mask their faces appeared on the 
balcony of the consulate and shouted: "Police Assassins" and 
"Alexandros, That Was Murder!"
The Greek embassy in Berlin, located in the east of the city, has not 
been occupied.
One of the demonstrators told the German news agency DPA that the 
demonstration was in protest against a Greek state that was responsible 
for the death of the teenager, identified as Alexandros Andreas 
Grigoropoulos.
The protestors removed the Greek flag from the façade of the consulate 
building and draped a banner from a window that named the victim and 
said "Murdered by the State."
Two police officers have been charged over the shooting -- one with 
manslaughter and the other as an accomplice.
A police statement said one officer fired three warning shots after 
their car was attacked by 30 youths in Athens' volatile Exarchia 
district. Police claim the teenager was hit by a richoteting bullet, but 
witnesses told Greek TV he took aim at the boy.
The shooting sparked violent protests in Athens and other Greek cities 
over the weekend that reflected growing public disenchantment with the 
government's economic policies.
cro -- with wire reports






http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_3857771,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-news-1092-rdf

| 08.12.2008 | 12:00 UTC
Protesters occupy Greek consulate in Berlin
Hundreds of students clashed with police in the northern Greek city of 
Thessaloniki on Monday in a third day of rioting. They hurled fire bombs 
and stones at police who responded with tear gas. The demonstrations 
were triggered by the shooting of a teenager by police in Athens over 
the weekend. The violence continues, despite the arrest of two police 
officers in connection with the incident. In Berlin, about 15 
demonstrators occupied the Greek consulate to protest the fatal 
shooting. German police said they had deployed around 130 officers 
around the building to guarantee access and security.







http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/dec2008/berl-d12.shtml

WSWS speaks with Greek protesters in Berlin
By our correspondent
12 December 2008

Protests by students and school pupils continued in Greece on Thursday. 
In Athens, students have occupied the polytechnic; another 15 university 
buildings have been occupied in the capital city and in Thessaloniki, 
Greece’s second largest city. According to police estimates, around 100 
schools have also been occupied by pupils in both cities.
At the same time, solidarity demonstrations outside Greek embassies have 
spread across Europe. Clashes between police and groups of protesters 
took place in Rome, Madrid and Copenhagen on Wednesday evening, with a 
number of arrests made. Protests have also taken place in Turkey.
The WSWS spoke to demonstrators who had gathered in Berlin on 
Tuesday—the day of the burial of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, the young man 
gunned down by Greek police last Saturday. The demonstrators had 
gathered outside the Greek consulate in Berlin to protest against police 
violence and the policies of the Karamanlis government.
In a peaceful rally, the demonstrators called upon the German public to 
express its solidarity with the Greek protests and stressed the 
significance of the events in Greece for Germany and Europe as a whole.
In a leaflet handed to passers-by, they called for support for a rally 
to be held in Berlin this Sunday. The leaflet stated: “There are good 
reasons for the protests in Greece. They are a reaction to the economic 
crisis, unemployment, the destruction of social gains and precarious 
living and employment conditions. All of Greece is making a stand.” The 
leaflet then went on to appeal for international support for the mass 
movement in Greece.
The WSWS spoke to Nikos, who studied journalism in Athens and now lives 
in Berlin. He stated that Greece had not seen this level of revolt and 
popular opposition since 1974. As a consequence, he was sure there was 
bound to be an increase in popular awareness.
“The killing of a boy from a wealthy family proves that the police have 
now become a general threat to society, and not just for the poor, 
immigrants, and the unprivileged,” Nikos said. “The Greek population has 
to try to grasp what is taking place because it’s not just vandalism by 
some extremists, but has its roots in doubts and fears for the 
future—the complete lack of the social and economic means for a 
reasonable future.”
“Greek society is suffering and has suffered in the past from a bad 
economic situation, low wages, low pensions, and low unemployment 
payments. At the same time, rents and the cost of living are 
continuously rising. The country’s welfare system is also being run down 
and is having a knock-on effect on the social security system and 
hospitals.”
Anthoula is a 22-year-old drama student from Athens. She told the WSWS: 
“The issues at stake in Greece go far beyond that of police brutality. 
There needs to be a general change of the society. It is the system of 
capitalism that creates inequality and state terror in many countries, 
and therefore people have to cooperate internationally to fight for a 
different political perspective.”
Of particular concern to the students taking part in the Berlin 
demonstration was a new law that recognises private universities, while 
at the same time cuts the funding for public universities. The result is 
the deliberate creation of an elitist education system.
All of those taking part in the demonstration agreed that the death of 
the teenager last Saturday was merely the spark that made a highly 
inflammable social situation explode. They expressed their concern that 
the media and political layers would seek to use the actions of some 
groups of anarchists to denounce the protests as the action of “extremists.”
A number of protesters also pointed out that police violence is not 
limited to Greece. Recently, the German newspapers have dealt with the 
case of two German policemen who were tried (and acquitted) in the 
murder of a black prisoner in Dessau. At the same time, the social 
issues which led to tens of thousands of Greeks taking to the 
streets—the devastating effects of the economic crisis, growing poverty, 
the dismantling of the welfare state, privatisation and 
unemployment—were issues affecting every European country and could 
precipitate similar popular movements.






http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100009_12/12/2008_102966

Internet spreads Greek protests
Outraged protesters in Spain, Denmark and Italy smashed shop windows, 
pelted police with bottles and attacked banks, in an alarming indication 
that the unrest that has gripped Greece for most of the past week could 
spill over into the rest of Europe.
In France, cars and a garbage can were set alight outside the Greek 
Consulate in Bordeaux yesterday, and protesters scrawled graffiti 
warning of a looming “insurrection.” More demonstrations had been set 
for today in Italy, France and Germany.
At least some of the protests appear to have been organized over the 
Internet, showing how quickly a message can be spread, particularly 
among tech-savvy youth.
Several Greek websites offer protesters real-time information on the 
location of clashes, where demonstrators are heading and how riot police 
are deployed around the city. Protest marches are arranged and announced 
on the sites, while word is also sent out via text messages on mobile 
phones.
In Spain, an anti-globalization website, Nodo50.org, greeted visitors 
with the headline “State Assassin, Police Executioners,” telling them of 
the hastily organized rallies in Barcelona and Madrid on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, reports about the protests and riots in Greece were quickly 
picked up online by citizen journalists, some of whom detailed seeing 
confrontations on Twitter. At the Independent Media Center, photos and 
videos of the demonstrations were uploaded and plans were listed for 
“upcoming solidarity actions” in London, Edinburgh and Berlin.
“What’s happening in Greece tends to prove that the extreme left exists, 
contrary to the doubts of some over these past few weeks,” French 
Interior Ministry spokesman Gerard Gachet told The Associated Press. 
“For the moment, we can’t go further with our conclusions and say that 
there’s a danger of the Greek situation catching on in France.”
In Italy, a group of protesters gathered in front of the Greek Embassy 
in Rome on Wednesday and some turned violent, damaging police vehicles, 
overturning a car and setting a trash can on fire.
In Denmark, protesters pelted riot police with bottles and paint in 
downtown Copenhagen at a rally late Wednesday. Some 63 people were 
detained and later released.
In France, protesters set fire to two cars and a garbage can apparently 
stuffed with flammable material outside the Greek Consulate in Bordeaux 
early yesterday and scrawled graffiti on the building threatening more 
unrest, Michel Corfias, the Greek consul, told The Associated Press. (AP)







http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-12-12-paris-unrest-greece_N.htm?csp=34

Paris protesters block Champs-Elysees
Posted 12/12/2008 1:54 PM | Comment | Recommend

PARIS (AP) — Demonstrators are blocking Paris' most famous avenue after 
gathering in protest at the Greek embassy.
The protesters on the Champs-Elysees are shouting: "Police pigs everywhere!"
Traffic has been halted on part of the avenue that is adorned with 
Christmas lights, and riot police with shields raised are moving down 
the broad street in the wake of the demonstrators.
GREECE UNREST: Demonstrators riot for seventh day
At least one car window has been broken.
The protesters had called the gathering to demonstrate their solidarity 
with Greek youths who have been rioting for seven days to express deep 
discontent with the government and poor economic prospects.






http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Greece-Protests-Spread-To-London-As-Five-Arrested-Outisde-Greek-Embassy-In-London/Article/200812215175101?f=rss

Greece Protests Spread To London
9:05pm UK, Monday December 08, 2008
Five men have been arrested in Britain after the Greek protests over the 
shooting of a 15-year-old by police spread to London.

Two protesters are ushered away by police in front of the Greek embassy
The Metropolitan Police said the men were being held in custody for a 
variety of public order offences.
They were detained after taking part in a 40-strong protest outside the 
Greek Embassy in Holland Park, west London.
There was also trouble in Berlin, where protesters raised an anarchist 
flag above the Greek embassy.
Rioting has continued across dozens of cities in Greece for a third day 
following the death of the Athens teenager on Saturday.
The London protest began at 10am and had dispersed by 3pm, a Met 
spokesman said.
"It involved up to about 40 protesters and there have been five arrested 
for a variety of public order offences and they remain in custody," he said.
He could not confirm the nationality of those arrested and he said 
nobody was thought to be injured.






http://www.euronews.net/2008/12/11/greek-protests-go-global/

Greek protests go global 11/12/08 13:51 CET
Demonstrations against the response of the Greek police have spread well 
outside the country’s border. In Italy, police blocked off roads around 
the Greek embassy as protestors tried to gather. The Greek police have 
been violent and cowardly said demonstrators from the Italian communists 
and some anarchist parties.
Five Italian police officers and a soldier were hurt in the 
confrontations. In Madrid and Barcelona it was a similar scene. A police 
station in the Spanish capital was attacked. Demonstrators broke windows 
and injured several policemen. In Barcelona, 800 mostly Greek protestors 
had tried to break through a police cordon. A bank was destroyed.
At least 32 people were arrested in Copenhagen when their demonstration 
in support of Greek rioters turned violent. Around 150 people belonging 
to a Copenhagen “underground” movement took to the streets, throwing 
bottles and paint bombs at buildings, police cars and officers.







http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/12/10/Protest-vandalism-hits-Greek-embassy/UPI-36961228935701/

Protest vandalism hits Greek embassy
Published: Dec. 10, 2008 at 2:01 PM
NEW YORK, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Political uproar in Greece spread to New York 
early Wednesday following the breakage of a window at the Greek embassy 
and a message about a police killing.
"Alex was here" and "Murderer" were scrawled on the building on the 
Upper East Side in Manhattan, Newsday reported. Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos, 15, was shot and killed last week by police in Athens, 
triggering demonstrations and riots in the capital and around the country.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said that the vandalism is being 
investigated as a bias crime.
Investigators were checking for fingerprints around the broken window 
and trying to determine if security cameras caught anything, Kelly said.






http://www.ana-mpa.gr/anaweb/user/showplain?maindoc=7122632&service=142

Protests in Manhattan, US Italy over 15-year-old boy's death
The Communist Party of Italy and the CGL Syndicate along with college 
students clubs organised a protest outside the Greek embassy in Rome on 
Wednesday demanding an in-depth investigation of the circumstances 
surrounding the shooting death of 15-year-old pupil Alexis 
Grigoropoulos. Similar protests were held outside the Greek consulate in 
Naples.
Another rally took place outside the Greek consulate in Manhattan on 
Wednesday. Protestors held a black flag and expressed their solidarity 
to Greek demonstration against police violence, as they said.






http://www.thinkspain.com/news-spain/15963/greek-riots-reach-spain

Greek riots reach Spain
By: valencialife.net , Thursday, December 11, 2008
The violence that is currently shaking Greece appears to have spilled 
over in Spain, where two hundred people protesting the death of 
fifteen-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos rocked both Madrid and Barcelona, 
with the worst incidents taking place in Madrid, where a police station 
on Calle Montera was attacked.
Demonstrators injured several policemen and broke windows before nine of 
them were arrested, and in Barcelona, some eight hundred demonstrators 
tried to break through a huge police cordon, during which garbage 
containers were overturned, public benches and bus stops damaged, and an 
office of the La Caixa bank was almost completely destroyed.
Two people were arrested, as it was revealed that the majority of the 
demonstrators were Greek.





http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/414711.html

solidarity action in newcastle for greek riots
patty | 09.12.2008 15:03 | Repression | Social Struggles
solidarity action in newcastle for greek riots
On Monday 8th December at 4pm, more than a dozen protestors gathered 
outside the BBC Centre in Newcastle, to demonstrate against state 
violence in Greece and around the world, and to show solidarity with the 
thousands of people who have been on the streets in Greece, since the 
police murder of a 16 year-old boy on Saturday evening.

International media coverage has failed to take seriously the extent of 
police violence in Greece, of which this is certainly not the first 
instance, focussing instead on the responses of the protestors. So as 
well as raising awareness of events in Athens and around Greece, we 
wanted to highlight the need for independent media coverage, in a world 
where investigative journalism is often replaced by copying and pasting 
articles from country to country.

Passing car drivers sounded their horns in support of the protest, and 
local people were keen to show support and discuss the issues. Protests 
continue in cities across Europe.
patty






http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/415196.html

Cardiff- Police station attacked in solidarity with greek rioters.
Alexis | 12.12.2008 17:16 | Repression | Social Struggles
In the early hours of this morning (12/12/08) individuals visited a 
police station in the Canton area of Cardiff. Slogans in support of the 
Greek rioters, in memory of Alexandros and anti police were painted on 
the front of the building. Two Police vans outside the station were also 
painted and covered in paint stripper.

In the early hours of this morning (12/12/08) individuals visited a 
police station in the Canton area of Cardiff. Slogans in support of the 
Greek rioters, in memory of Alexandros and anti police were painted on 
the front of the building. Two Police vans outside the station were also 
painted and covered in paint stripper.

We stand in solidarity with the rioters of Greece and with the poor 
oppressed of the world. For every action they take to repress us we will 
answer with a millitant attack.

We must fight to oppose this death machine. THE SOCIAL WAR CONTINUES.
Alexis
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Additions
in russia things are also getting hot
12.12.2008 20:24
On the December, 10 a molotov cocktail was thrown to the Greek embassy 
in Moscow and set it on fire.

On the December 12, anarchists hold ACAB demo in Moscow which started 
from the notorious police station Sokolniki (where at spring 2008 
torches of anarchists took place) to the Greek embassy. About 100 people 
participated the demo with banners, pyrotechnics, shouting anti-cops 
slogans on the way attacking banks with paint bombs and making anti-cops 
graffiti on the walls. Nobody was arrested.
kronstadt

That is a link to video of the solidarity ACAB action in Moscow on 
Decemeber, 11:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOZs-Qk7YDo

Translation into Russian of the callout of the occupied Athens 
Polytechnic is here:
http://ru.indymedia.org/newswire/display/21306/index.php

http://athens.indymedia.org/front.php3?lang=el&article_id=943985

PS
That was a typo, solidarity action took place in Moscow on December, 11th.
solidarity






http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/12/11/world/main4662086.shtml?source=RSSattr=World_4662086

MADRID, Spain, Dec. 11, 2008
Greece-Related Riots Spread In Europe
Violence Sparked By Greek Teen's Shooting Erupts In Spain, Denmark And 
France

The front door and the facade of the Greek consulate in Bordeaux, 
southwestern France, are seen after they were set on fire, Dec. 11, 
2008. (AP Photo)

(CBS/AP) Unrest that has gripped Greece for the past six days showed 
troubling signs of spreading across Europe, as violence erupted in 
several cities.

Angry youths smashed shop windows, attacked banks and hurled bottles at 
police in small but violent protests Thursday in Spain and Denmark, 
while cars were set alight outside a consulate in France. Protesters 
gathered in front of the Greek Embassy in Rome on Wednesday and some 
turned violent, damaging police vehicles, overturning a car and setting 
a trash can on fire.

Authorities say the incidents have been isolated so far, but acknowledge 
concern that the Greek riots - which started over the police killing of 
a 15-year-old on Saturday - could be a trigger for anti-globalization 
groups and others outraged by economic turmoil and a lack of job 
opportunities.

"What's happening in Greece tends to prove that the extreme left exists, 
contrary to doubts of some over these past few weeks," French Interior 
Ministry spokesman Gerard Gachet told The Associated Press. "For the 
moment, we can't go farther with our conclusions and say that there's a 
danger of contagion of the Greek situation into France. All of that is 
being watched."

A Greek court has ordered two policemen to be held in jail pending trial 
for the teenager's fatal shooting. One officer has been charged with 
murder while the other has been charged as an accomplice. No trial date 
has been set.

As Europe plunges into recession, unemployment is rising, particularly 
among the young. Even before the crisis, European youths complained 
about difficulty finding well paid jobs - even with a college degree - 
and many said they felt left out as the continent grew in prosperity.

At least some of the protests appear to have been organized over the 
Internet, showing how quickly a message can be spread, particularly 
among tech-savvy youth. One Web site that Greek protesters have been 
using to update each other claims there have been sympathy protests in 
nearly 20 countries.

"We're encouraging nonviolent action here and abroad," said Konstantinos 
Sakkas, a 23-year-old protester at the Athens Polytechnic, where many of 
the demonstrators are based. "What these are abroad are spontaneous 
expressions of solidarity with what's going on here."

In Denmark, protesters pelted riot police with bottles and paint in 
downtown Copenhagen at a rally late Wednesday. Some 63 people were 
detained and later released.

And in Spain, angry youths attacked banks, shops and a police station in 
separate demonstrations in Madrid and Barcelona late Wednesday that each 
drew about 200 people.

Some of the protesters chanted "police killers" and other slogans. 
Eleven people - including a Greek girl - were arrested at the two 
rallies, and two police officers were lightly injured.
Quote
We're encouraging nonviolent action here and abroad. What these are 
abroad are spontaneous expressions of solidarity with what's going on here.
Konstantinos Sakkas, protester
The Barcelona daily La Vanguardia said the protests had been convened 
over the Internet.

Daniel Lostao, president of the state-financed Youth Council, an 
umbrella organization of Spanish youth groups, said young people in 
Spain face daunting challenges - soaring unemployment, low salaries and 
difficulty in leaving the family nest because of expensive housing.

Still, he said he doubted the protests in Spain would grow.

"We do not have the feeling that this is going to spread," Lostao said. 
"Let's hope I am not wrong."

In France, protesters set fire to two cars and a garbage can apparently 
stuffed with flammable material outside the Greek consulate in Bordeaux 
early Thursday and scrawled graffiti on the building threatening more 
unrest, Michel Corfias, the Greek consul, told The Associated Press.

"It was a very, very intense fire," Corfias said, adding that it 
severely damaged the building's front door.

Graffiti sprayed on the consulate's garage door read "solidarity with 
the fires in Greece, the insurrection to come," he said, and the word 
"insurrection" was painted on the doors of neighboring houses.

Corfias said police suspect the attack is linked to events in Greece, 
and that it might have been carried out by youths unhappy with 
globalization and economic difficulties in France.

"The events in Greece are a pretext, in my opinion," he said. "The 
events in Greece are a trigger."

Elsewhere in Europe, more than 15 people occupied a Greek consulate in 
Berlin on Monday, hanging a banner out the window with the dead Greek 
teenager's name and the words, "Killed by the State." Youths clad in 
black appeared occasionally at a consulate balcony, exchanging chants 
with more than 50 protesters gathered on the street below.

About 100 people protested outside the Greek consulate in Frankfurt on 
Tuesday evening and minor violence was reported on the peripheries of 
the demonstration, including the breaking of a bank's window.