Picture: Aldous Huxley VS George Orwell; all words from "Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Showbusiness" by Neil Postman... a book about the possibility that Huxley, not Orwell, was right.
Tuesday 16th March 2010
- Press Release for Marios Z. (pre-jailed since 11th March 2010, watch last update):
The investigator and the prosecutor decided that Marios Z. must must be raised in prison because he dared to participate in the massive strike demonstration on Thursday (11th March 2010) and had the misfortune to be in the action field of an uncontrolled, warm-head and liar police officer.
Marios was arrested on Panepistimiou Street in Athens, close to the placates of EEK (trotskistic party) and associations that were following, by a fully armed man of MAT team (Units of Order Recover) who suddenly attacked him from behind, excited as it seems by the victim's rasta and tufted hair and his casual appearance, in the sight of many other dozens of citizens participating in the demonstration and complaining for the arrest.
The cop who arrested Marios, with the usual professional warm-head attitude, after taking him to GADA (Central Police Offices of Athens) stated against him that he had his face covered, that he threw a Molotov against him and that he was endangered by fire.
Marios had the luck that the time of his arrest was filmed in videos and printed on many photographs, which were shown to the investigator and prove that his face was completely uncovered, that none Molotov neither fire were on the spot he was arrested or in the area around and that no clashes were taking place on the certain spot. None of the evidences above match with the police officer's statements.
Moreover, he relied on questioning dozens of eye-witnesses citizens, who were present at the event and offered voluntarily to testify the truth.
But the investigator and the prosecutor after listening to the eye-witness cops unofficially, ignored later the dozens of eye-witness citizens and the photographs and decided for pre-trial detention.
Pre-trial detention which takes place:
- under the "hoodie law", which is already illegal as a law in the consciousness of society, after the government announced six months ago to abolish it.
- even against the laws about pre-trial detention and moreover by disregarding, ignoring and violating openly the changes that were recently made to the relevant article of the law. According to the changes, a person can be pre-jailed only if she/he is suspect of escape or she/he has irreversible judge sentences.
The conditions above do not apply to the case of Marios.
Marios, who teaches swimming to young children at the Olympic Stadium working 7 days a week, is imprisoned and his children will lose their teacher who teaches them how to love the water.
And we will lose our faith in clear and obvious.
But we will not lose our faith in Marios and we will fight for establishing the truth, the release and discharge of him.
Communication: smpadeka@gmail.com
- 7,000 - 8,000 people demonstrated through the centre of Athens against the government's and EU's economical measures.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poIGYcIkShY
Photos: http://athens.indymedia.org/front.php3?lang=el&article_id=1144985
- 1,000 - 1,500 people participated in the demonstration that took place in the Thessaloniki for the same reason above.
- Since yesterday the majority of doctors and medical staff who work in public hospitals decided for job retentions:
ATHENS PIRAEUS COORDINATING MEETING - March 15, 2010
The representatives of assemblies of hospital doctors in Athens and Piraeus, consider that:
1. The stabilization program of the Government and the EU, as has begun, leads to the complete abolition of free public health care
- by the desired reduction in doctors on call (de: diensthabend) at -30%,
- by implementing more flexible working relationships for doctors in public hospitals,
- by suspensions in employment of doctors - nursing - paramedics staff in permanent positions,
- by reducing the salaries of hospital doctors below the survival levels,
- by reducing the operating costs of hospitals.
With this certain government policy is flagrantly circumvented (de: grob umgangen) the Working Collective Agreement between the state and the doctors and the relevant provisions of law 37511-3-2009, which is supposed to remain valid.
This will directly result the worsening of corruption and shadow economy in hospitals, which the government supposedly wants to limit, and the complete abolition of the universal access to public, free services of health and the Welfare State itself.
2. The hospital doctors are not prepared to sign the removal of free public health care, to consent in the function of hospitals with inadequate (de: knapp) and unsafe programs, with tragic lacks in nursing and paramedical staff, with bad payed health workers, below the levels of survival. Especially when we see that the over-invoicing and the underground economy in general on the drugs and materials continues smoothly, while the spending cuts are only on human resources. On the other hand, are continuing and expanding the outrageous contracts of insurance funds to the side of state-fed private sector.
We do not sign for the final shot against the National Healthcare System.
WE REQUIRE FOR:
1. Full implementation of the Working Collective Agreement.
2. No cut in - already marginal - on call (de: Bereitschaftsdienst) safe programs. The total budget for on call programs (391,000,000 euros) not only it is impossible to be cut cut but also should be increased by 100,000,000 euros to cover the basic needs.
3. Direct support for public hospitals with permanent medical and paramedical staff.
4. Immediate improvement of working conditions and scientific activities of hospital doctors to decent levels.
WE ARE HEADING TOWARDS:
- Mass job retentions in response to the delay in repayment accrued in December 2009 and January 2010 (in many cases also from previous months) which will show all the claims described above.
- We support the decisions of hospitals' assemblies which decided to deposit programs of 4 on call termins (on average until today 3.15) and condemn the tactics of "ordering" from the side of the state to deposit the programs of the next 15 days, much more now, when the payment of these programs is undermined.
WE SUGGEST:
- To the hospitals' assemblies to decide for a working stoppage on Monday 22nd of March from 11:00 to 15:00 and protest in front of the Ministry of Health at 12.00. We urge the leadership of ADEDY (syndicalist confederation in public sector) to continue and escalate the struggle against the government's measures with new pan-workers' strikes emphasizing separately the issue of public health care.
We decide for our participation in the Panhellenic Assembly of Base's Associations on Sunday 21st of March in the National Metsovian Polytechnical University and informing all employees about what is happening in the Healthcare sector.
WE CALL:
1. The presidents of our Unions not to agree in any way directly or indirectly with any action that violates the rights of people for free health care, that violates the Working Collective Agreement of hospital doctors.
2. We call the coordinators directors, Scientific Councils, the Directors of Medical Service, not to accept any reduction in safety programs.
WE WARN:
1. The hospital administrations and each service agent that the cut for safety programs directly exposes patients at risk; and as such will be denounced with any syndicalist and legal action.
2. The Government, even at the last moment, to realize that the stability program and public health care are incompatible, especially at a time when thousands more of our fellow citizens use public hospitals every day, because they are deprived of any other possibility.
Wednesday 17th March 2010
- Mr Panagopoulos, leader of GSEE (General Confederation of Workers in Greece), tried to use the law against three persons who threw yogurt and coffee on him guring the strike demonstration in Athens on the 5th of March. This professional and well payed syndicalist prefers to defend the rights of the bosses and industrialists instead of the rights of workers. Letter of one of the persons who is aimed by the law for attacking him and clashing his bodyguards:
Letter - Answer to the Mass Media
I am one of the three persons aimed by the "parrots" of security agences (journalists M.Triantafyllopoulos, G. Souliotis and others), as liable for the "working accident" that happened to the president of GSEE (General Panhellenic Workers' Confederation) Mr Panagopoulos during the strike demonstration on 5th of March.
Journalists say that the prosecutor has announced the following blames against me:
Bodily Harms Without Any Reason: Let us listen from the mouth of Panagopoulos what he has done, except covering bosses and business contractors, for thousands of workers who daily get serious body harms inside the consentrative camps of payed slavery and for the dozens of dead workers on the altar of capital profits. Anyway, his role was clearly shown during the events that followed the murderous attack against Konstantina Kuneva, while all the syndicalist leaders were involving with the mega-business-contractors and were covering through their actions and omission the status quo of slavery and terrorism prevailing in the areas of work, particularly in the area of cleaning. Do not forget that the contract for the cleaning of GSEE's building is signed with one of these companies. (note: Konstantina Kuneva was attacked with acid (de: Säure) on her face because of her syndicalist actions)
Disturbing Public Peace: I am an anarchist and do not accept any peace between exploited and exploiters, oppressed and oppressor. The state and capital have long ago declared war against society and in this war I have taken side against them. In this social-class war Panagopoulos is a salaried servant of the bosses. A professional trade unionist, a prospective parliament member, worth for the replacement of Mr Protopappas and Polyzogopoulos, who have received several state and party offices as a reward for selling off the workers' struggle. Anyway, GSEE is absolutely not a "Confederation of Workers" but a subsidiary company of Greek Industrialists' Association that tries to block all the social struggles and legalize the orders of the bosses. Their role was proved for one more time during the Revolt of December 2008 when GSEE canceled the planned demonstration, while not announcing either a strike in solidarity with the thousands of revolting people. I have upset the "public peace" many times. One of these was the December 17th 2008 when we, the revolting workers and not only us, occupied the central building of GSEE and kicked Panagopoulos out of his luxurious office and down of his leather arm-chair.
Insulting (de: Beschimpfung): I think that all these professional unionists are nothing more than
"CREEPS - MAFIA - WORKERSDADDIES" (de: PENNER - SCHMUTZ - ARBEITERVÄTER).
P.S. I am an anarchist and because of this I have chosen - beside my other political actions - to participate in the "Waiters - Chefs Association and other employees at the Food Sector", because I believe that only through self-organized action from the workers on their own can the system of exploitation and oppression be overthrown. The only relationship that me and my association could have with the sold out, regime's syndicalism of GSEE is only and only hostile.
D.V.
(after the letter above was published, people started publishing openly their full names and stating that they also attacked him or that they would like to do it in future ...)
Thursday 18th March 2010
- Squatted the Biochemical school of the University in Larissa town. The students condemn the pigs' attitude in the town who arrest people because of their political ideas and blame them with heavy crimes. The building will remain squatted until next Monday, day of the next students' general assembly.
- Looting mechanism explosion at the Ministry of Culture & Tourism offices at Soultanis Street in Athens, at 6:00 in the mourning.
- Students of State's Conservatory University squatted the building asking from the government solutions for the economical problems of their University. The Conservatory will remain squatted until Monday, day of the next students' assembly.
- Intervention in Komotini town in solidarity with Marios Z. The offices of PASOK ("socialistic" party in government) were squatted for a few hours and a placate was hung from the balcony, reading: "The guilty persons are inside the parliament and not on the streets".
Friday 19th March 2010
- Very strong bomb explosion in the offices of Golden Dawn (neo-nazi party) at Sokratous Street in Athens. A phone call to the offices of a newspaper took place several minutes before the explosion, so the cops could evacuate the area. After the phone call the cops were fast enough and nobody was harmed. To remind about the actions of Golden Dawn: Beside the murderous attacks against leftist and immigrants, the certain organization is very active in heroin dealing, women prostitution, mafia circles etc. Many members of them are active in the police authorities and Mr Michaloliakos, leader of Golden Dawn, is active in the State Secret Agencies. The organization became more active after the pan-European meeting of ultra-right-wing organizations in 1997.
Photos from their bombed offices: http://athens.indymedia.org/front.php3?lang=el&article_id=1145365
- A child, 1 year old, lost his life in Ippokrateio Hospital of Thessaloniki because of lack in children-care doctors in the towns of Kozani, Ptolemaida and Veroia where his/her parents were traveling around to find a public hospital that could take care of their baby.
- Responsibility announcement by Patrols of Revolutionary Memory urban guerrilla organization for the looting attacks in Athens, to:
- two diplomats' vehicles,
- one vehicle of Telecommunication Organization of Greece,
- one Ford agency company,
- the offices of Ministry of Culture & Tourism.
- Responsibility announcement by Alchemists for the Chaos urban guerrilla organization for the looting attacks against "Scientific Research Companies" in Ioannina, which cooperate with Universities but mostly in order to make profits and enforce a "scientific" way of research which helps for gun dealing and other "scientific" decisions against humanity.
- Members of PAME entered the hotel auditorium where the pan-Hellenic assembly of GSEE (General Confederation of "Workers" in Greece) used to take place and tried to stop the meeting. (About the "syndicalist" action of GSEE watch above and older updates)
- Marios Z letter from Korydallos jailhouse:
From Sector A of Korydallos' prison
19.03.2010
On Thursday 11th of March, I was arrested by the repressive police forces. Any sense of freedom and the right to demonstrate was canceled with rage and violence by armed MAT (Greek riot police) forces, since they have the freedom to do so. The occasion of my arrest was participating in a demonstration to defend the rights of the working -or not- citizens, having a weird haircut and a backpack. The real reason was to set an example.
During the military junta, they used to tear with whips the faces of the young students in and out of the Law School. In our days, with a consistent barbarism, the "socialist" government, using all means tears and stigmatizes the lives of people of burden, those that suffer and those that resist and are not afraid to merely exist, with the violence of economic and terrorist policies. The political responsibility of my irrelevant arrest must be claimed by the State. The massive political response expressed through this wave of protest, proves that society resists. And this is even more important for me, since I have consciously selected to remain uncommitted-unintegrated. The State demands our inexistance and has a dread of our existence. It isn't just my pre-trial imprisonment case, but all the well-known cases of police perjury and frame-ups, that bring out and prove the State's attempt to terrorize and intimidate whoever stands by his/her rights, to discourage any others that dare to support them, setting up chinless societies that won't protest not assert their rights.
I am thankful to all those fighting for my release either from the very beginning, or joining in during the fight, from a sincere care, away from any political and party interests, either by means I agree with or not, since I don't think what is sensible to do now is to discuss the various ways to manifest our solidarity, but to sit the State itself in judgment for its practices.
Freedom to all prisoners, to all fighters for the liberation of all prisoners and of the spirit. From GADA (Athenian Police Headquarters) prisons, written on the yellow walls, next to prisoners forgotten for days and nights in awful conditions. Golden cage, humid cage, little matters to the bird.
Marios Z.
PS. "Of all the things which wisdom provides to make us entirely happy, much the greatest is the possession of friends" - Epikouros
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