I have been following the news on Greece for the past few weeks, hoping that their government, which has failed to protect the interests of the Greek people, would fall. On Wednesday, the Parliament passed (155-138) the midterm plan which contained controversial austerity measures and agreement to privatize national assets. These measures were required by the IMF, EU, and ECB (the "troika") as a condition for Greece to receive bailout money.
For more on why the austerity will only lead to economic ruin, I recommend Mark Weisbrot and Michael Hudson .
A protest movement against the government began on May 25 at Syndagma Square, before the Parliament, by protesters known variously as Indignants, modeled after the protesters in Spain, and, as they recently began referring to themselves, the Decided. They have been occupying the Square every day since then. People of all ages and from all walks of life would come to this Square. Political banners were not allowed. However, banners with slogans and flags from many nations, as a show of solidarity, were abundant. There were many references to Argentina, including a chant that described the magical night in Argentina when the leader (who was also imposing austerity measures) had to flee by helicopter. They seemed quite idealistic, confident that the right would win in the end, that now that they were "awake," as they put it, they would be able to prevail. Concerts and talks were given. They seemed very well organized.
Apparently, they were unwanted on Syntagma Square, especially on the day of the vote in Parliament. In this video, the police are chasing the protesters out of the Square, and throwing what I understand to be tear gas bombs. The people are running into the Metro Station, where the police have them trapped. At about minute 2:18, the officer strikes a man who is out cold on the head with his club:
Here is the URL in case I did not embed properly:
Metro video
As I understand it, there was also a Red Cross station set up at the Metro, and the doctors and patients were trapped inside, forced to inhale the toxic fumes dispersed by the police at both Metro entrances.
Before I started closely following this story, I had thought that the police in Greece were a model of restraint. Based on my limited knowledge of history, I believe there has to be a pretense of restraint by the police so as not to awaken people's memory of the junta, which ruled from 1967-74. All the images I had seen of them were when so-called "hooded youths" would throw objects and explosives at them, and they would simply shield themselves, or throw tear gas. I am now convinced that the restraint was because at least some of these hooded youths, whom no one seemed to know (they typically wear covering on their face even when there is no tear gas), are working for the police. The rest, I believe, are hooligans, but they suit the purposes of the police. They provide the excuse for police brutality. These hooded ones only came to the Syntagma Square protest on three days of the over 35 days of protest. All of those days were when people power was at its height, with massive strikes and protests. The result, especially Wednesday, the day of the vote, was to cause the police to throw tear gas, in amounts so great that central Athens was covered in a thick cloud, forcing the protesters to flee, gasping for air. Wednesday, the police also went on a rampage in surrounding areas of the city. It resembled a war zone.
Here is a video that supports the suspicion many have in Greece that the hooded ones are working with the police. The hooded ones, including one carrying an iron bar, are seen talking to police in a familiar manner and later are allowed behind the barricade around the Parliament, where civilians are not allowed:
Link to agents provocateurs video
Please note the police seem to have a very high rate of success in arresting elderly men. Although seeming to be a model of restraint when explosives are hurled at them by the hooded youth, they become brutal when a bookish type young man demanded that the "Get out of the Square."
Link brutality
I wanted to end on a note of optimism, with this video clip of Manolis Glezos , a hero of the Greek resistance, who says that the foundations of a new democracy, a direct democracy, are now in place.
Link is here
For anyone interested in learning more about the real story of the Greek debt crisis, see the excellent documentary Debtocracy .
For people who speak Greek, I recommend Zougla radio . They have been doing a great job covering recent events, exposing police brutality, and they have live feed of Syntagma Square.
I apologize in advance for errors in this diary-- it is my first one.
[UPDATE] There is an investigation to determine if the police used chemical weapons, prohibited by international law during wartime, against the protesters.
[UPDATE] For more videos, including one showing police throwing tear gas into a restaurant where people are eating, please see an excellent article by Jerome E. Roos .
