Occupation in Town Hall of Nikaia

greece / turkey / cyprus | migration / racism | press release Sunday October 18, 2009 17:35 by assembly of the occupied town hall of nikaia

Against state and police brutality

Town hall of Nikaia, Athens is occupied after demo for the police killing of Mohammad Atif Kamran; statement by the occupation’s assembly.

Mohammad Atif Kamran was a 25-year old migrant from Pakistan. On September 26, Mohammad’s house was raided by police who beat him, dragged him to the local police station and tortured him. On October 10, Mohammad passed away (more on his case here).

Today (17 Oct.) , a week after Mohammad’s death, a demonstration was called at Nikaia, the Athens suburb where he lived, by anarchist groups. At the end of the demonstration, some people entered the local town hall and occupied – as of now (19.00 GMT) the occupation continues.

What follows is a rough translation of the assembly of the occupied town hall.

— STATEMENT FROM THE OCCUPIED TOWN HALL OF NIKAIA

Four-hundred demonstrators marched together today, October 17, on the streets of Nikaia in a demonstration of rage for the recent assassination of 25-year old Pakistani migrant Mohammad Atif Kamran, who passed away following his torturing in the police station of Nikaia. The demonstration had been called by anarchist collectives and a local assembly of the neighboring areas.

We walked through the area’s main streets, passed by the house of the assassinated Atif and headed toward the police station. The large numbers of Riot Police (MAT) and motorcycle forces (Delta and Zita) that were “accompanying” the demonstration parading in its front, back and side streets, were highlighting the official stance of the now Socialist Ministry of Public Order (now called Ministry of Citizen Protection!): To cover up and support the torturers, assassins, the police occupation of the area in face of the appearance of the world of struggle and solidarity. After all, what happened will continue to happen: beatings, torturing and ridiculing of detainees in all police stations across the country.

During our gathering and for the largest part of the demonstration the rain was falling heavy. And yet at the point of passing in front of the police station of Nikaia it wasn’t just the rain drops. The unit protecting the police station also took a rain of stones. The orderly continuation of the demonstration and our retreat from that point was met with the combined attack by Riot Police units in both the back and side part of the demo. The people at the sides of the demo, chained up, held up against the police attacks and locals watching from the pavements and balconies were jeering and swearing at the police occupation force. Yet in-between the mist of the tear gas and the attack of the Riot Police some of us were isolated from the main demonstration and so, were detained by police.

The police ended up at a specific area of Nikaia, as previously agreed. Given the police detentions, a large part of those of us gathered there occupied the Town Hall of Nikaia, to demand the immediate release of our captioned comrades. Some of us who left in their vehicles were also stopped at a nearby junction and detained, too. The exact number of the detained is unknown (even if we do know some names for sure) but is definitely a two-digit one, while some have already been charged. The new state doctrine of “democracy and an iron fist” is here in its full glory – as announced by the new minister of Polic Order himself – against all those who revolt and resist. Same as in the gathering of workers and unemployed of the shipyards of Perama on October 15 outside the Ministry of Employment. Same as in Exarcheia, occupied for days now. Same as in the charges against high school students occupying their schools. Same as in the forthcoming mobilisation of the shipyard workers of Piraeus against the selling-off of the port to the COSCO corporation, or the 1400 workers threatened with firing at the shipyards of Skaramangas, in Attica.

Police barbarity is no more than the repressive version of the state-capitalist barbarity: repression, exploitation, submission, death.

What the new political administration came to largely handle was the social dimension of the crisis of our times: the expanded disobedience and confrontation with the demands of the political and financial elites. No illusions then. There shall be no change coming from the new government. As always, after all. State terrorism continues and along with it, continues the struggle for social and individual emancipation, for a free world, without authority.

IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF THE DETAINED DEMONSTRATORS

DROP ALL CHARGES

IMMEDIATE RETREAT OF THE POLICE FORCE FROM THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF NIKAIA AND AROUND THE OCCUPIED TOWN HALL

assembly of the occupied town hall of nikaia