text:
…about the uprising of immigrants on Thursday and Friday, 21 and 22 of May, in Athens…
Posted by clandestina on 31 May 2009
This a translation of a text we leafletted in Thessaloniki the last few days.
…about the uprising of immigrants on Thursday and Friday 21 and May 22 in Athens …
… background "snapshots" …
left: refugee camp in Samos …
center: Afghan refugee smitten by port police in Patras …
extreme right: riot police and "Golden Dawn"neo-nazis during their collaboration for terrorizing refugees, 10th of May 2009 …
left: teenage and children refugees in Patras port run behind trucks in order to board to Italy …
center: The 24 year old Mazir who was killed by falling into ditch in Votanikos area in Athen, most likely while chased by police near the Asylum Police in Petrou Ralli (as two more refugees in a few months) …
right: the religious debate has only started …
… and "perspectives" …
"It could have been something else, not the pages of the Quran …"
It could have been an old family photo. Or a crumpled piece of paper with the mobile phones of relatives and friends in Sweden, England or Germany on it. It could be some few folded banknotes – this, though, the cops would have seized, not torn. The cops, who are not supposed to treat immigrants as people; the cops, who are indifferent whether immigrants love those pieces of paper of theirs, the ones they move from one pocket to another, the same pieces of paper which count as many kilometers and borders as they themselves do. The "waste papers" of the"sans papiers".
Someone tore up a Qur'an volume and stepped on it. Symbolic violence. Violence confirming the real degradation, the crass devaluation immigrants are subjected to by the Greek State, violence imposed in a thousand ways, not at all "symbolic". By the Greek State, which permeates racist attitudes and rewards voluntary atrocity.
"It could have been nothing other than the Qu'ran …"
"It could have been nothing other than the Qu'ran, what could make immigrants take it to the streets" since « only religion» could make them confront collectively the cops of the "civilized world". Because "these people" are "pious". And only some insult to their religion could make them surface out of the rapidly growing ghettos in the center of Athens, in order to rally for something – for their religion, which is of course "absolutely respected" in tolerant Greece … as long as it remains in the basements and the back rooms of fast-foods. Which is also true for the lives of "these people", which are "absolutely respected"in Greece as long as they remain expendable among the urban waste. As long as they stay available for slavery and death…
"They rallied under the dictates of the imams", they are "steered", this is the convenient explanation and perspective for the holders of authority, either grand or small. Imams ,who try to keep and expand their "flocks"… Let the ones who want to become herdsmen see herds… We don't. What we see is people and communities from the devastated continents of the globe seeking refuge…
For the Qu'ran? Or for all the reasons of the world …
"Did you see what happened in Athens with the Qu'ran;". Indeed. What happened in Athens was the clash of cultures, discovered in Greece as well with the usual delay! … The opportunity should not be missed…
It is absolutely clear that the people in the photos enjoying the Greek hospitality, they are not immigrants, refugees, poor people, they are not even Iraqis, Afghans, Pakistanis …"Muslims, that's what they are"!
They are not reacting to the humiliations, the tortures, the detention-stables, the workplace-treatment, the deportations … No. They are doing this «because they are Muslims» …
… and those residents kept shouting to the firefighters in Patras "let them burn" during the recent fire in the refugee camp because…becasue they are Christians …
… and the landlords at Manolada shot migrant workers…
…and the Christian Ministry of Interior Affairs announced new detention mega-camps,creates a prison – warship, plans to limit even further the already negligible asylum rates …
… and the Greek State cooperating with both the Fortress Europe commissioners in Brussels and the neonazis in Athens…
…they all did and do so essentially on… religious grounds…
The only clash of cultures is the one
between freedom and exploitation.
Thessaloniki, May 24, 2009
Group of Immigrants and Refugees – «o Dromos», Baltadorou 7, Thessaloniki
http://www.clandestina.org
Posted in Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Group of Immigrants and Refugees / Clandestina Network Texts & Announcements, Publications, Long Reports, Analyses, Reviews & Research | Tagged: antiracism, Athens, immigrant abuse, Muslims, racism, religion, Thessaloniki | Leave a Comment »
Immigrants march again in Athens despite fascist counterdemo
This is a reproduction of a report by taxikipali at libcom.org.
On Friday 29 May immigrants and solidarity protesters marched to the greek parliament despite fascist counterdemo and media scaremongering.
Following the intensifying repression against immigrants, especially of muslim origin, across the country, and the greek police's failure to apologise for the public and humiliating destruction of a copy of the Koran during sweeping operations against immigrants in the coveted area of Agios Panteleimonas last week, thousands of immigrants and solidarity protesters took the the streets of Athens in protest against racism, police repression and parastate white terror. The protest march went ahead with no violence apart from a token destruction of the fascist party's (LAOS – Popular Orthodox Alarm) euroelection kiosk, despite a counterdemo organised by the Golden Dawn, the notorious neonazi organisation several members of which have been found guilty for attempted manslaughter against left-wing activists.
The fascist counterdemo, numbering less than one hundred parastate elements, was allowed to march in (a parody of) battle formation to the Parliament just before the immigrant march in order to lay a wreath to the unknown soldier monument in memory of the fall of Istanbul to the Ottomans in 1453. The Golden Dawn is primarily responsible for the mobilisation of extreme-right wing elements in the neighborhood of Agios Panteleimonas, forming lightly armed "self-defense" groups purging immigrants from the area's central square and attacking houses, burning down shops and community places of worship (mosques are illegal in Athens), smashing up public events, and targeting even the church of the parish, the largest in the country, which fell victim to fascist arson attack for providing support and supper for immigrants.
The night before the protest march local anarchists symbolically reoccupied the square of Agos Panteleimonas and broke the chains put by the fascists in order to keep the local playing grounds closed to avert "immigrant children polluting the greek". Nevertheless the area remains a fascist stronghold, enjoying the subtle backing of the majority of the bourgeois media which on the one hand present an endless spectacle of racist bigotry, and on the other hand cover up the involvement of the neonazis and their support by the police. It is characteristic that Kathimerini, the leading centre-right daily, in a recent long reportage of the situation only referred to the Golden Dawn once, to deny its involvement, although its members had attacked an editor of the newspaper covering the crisis only a few days before.
Protest marches against state repression and fascist terror were also held in Salonica, Patra, Volos, Heraklion and Chania in Crete.
Posted in Action & Struggle Reports, Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Undeclared War news | Tagged: Aghios Panteleimonas, Athens, Chania, Crete, far right, immigrant abuse, Muslims, Pakistani immigrants, Patras, police, racism, refugee camps, surveillance & control, sweep operations, Volos | 1 Comment »
Call of the Initiative of Refugees, Immigrants and People in Solidarity for the 29th of May protest march
The tearing of the Koran on Wednesday, 20th of May, is the peak of the iceberg that has been growing for years:
With the humiliating treatment of the immigrants by the racist mechanisms of the state,
With their miserable and inhuman living and working conditions,
With the continuous pogroms of the police against them on streets and squares,
With the humiliations and the murders in the queue of Petrou Ralli,
With the land workers in Manolada,
With the thousands of drowned in the waters of Aegean and the thousands of squeezed in the immigrant concentration camps.
With the trample of the Koran on Wednesday, 20the of May, this iceberg has turned into a volcano.
The immigrants have come out on the streets, like they have done before in other western cities, have clashed with the oppression forces of the democracy, have claimed their trampled dignity.
We stand next to them, in solidarity with every struggle they give for dignity and emancipation.
Beyond any religious and national divisions,
Solidarity with the immigrants!
Initiative of immigrants, refugees and people in solidarity
Posted in Action & Struggle Reports, Calls to Action, Campaigns, Appeals & Petitions, Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Other Groups' and Organisations' Releases | Tagged: antifascism, antiracism, Athens | Leave a Comment »
Greek government announces pogrom and 'ghetto' for immigrants
We copy here the report, analysis and useful explanatory comments by the author taxikipali at libcom.org.
The Ministry of Public Order announced the launching of a post-euroelection massive pogrom of immigrants from the center of Athens, and their displacement in a huge concentration camp off the city.
The Minister of Public Order, Mr Makroyannakis, has announced the launching of a mass-scale pogrom of immigrants in the center of Athens after the euroelections. He pledged to "clean" the center of the city from immigrants and displace them in what he called "a ghetto" at the outskirts of Athens. The camp which will use the old NATO base of Aspropyrgos in the city's heavily industrially polluted rustbelt, is expexted to hold more than 2,000 'illigal' immigrants. The premises had been proposed in the past as a temporary concentration camp for immigrants, addicts and homeless people during the 2004 Olympic Games but the plan was abandoned after a huge public outcry. A wide range of social and political forces, as well as mainstream media, have been denouncing the new plans as nothing sort of constructing a concentration camp.
As part of the post-election plan of "cleaning Athens", the Ministry of Public Order has also announced mass sweeping operations against addicts, which will coincide with the closure of Athens' central methadone center, moving the facilities to hospitals.
Also the Ministry of Public Order announced that a third leg of the operations will include "sweeping operations" against anarchist and anti-authoritarian squats and social centers across the greek capital.
Public tension over issues of immigration has been accentuated by malicious media reporting on areas hosting immigrant workers, and especially the neighborhood of Agios Panteleimonas where fascist parastate groups have been imposing a reign of terror in the last weeks [Agios Panteleimonas is a down-town area of Athens whose local police station was found guilty a few years ago of torturing underage Afghan immigrants]. Locals claim that the neonazis with the backing of the police have been threatening anyone who does not take part in their anti-immigrant stunts. Even the priest of the local church has announced that he has received life-threats for his unwavering support of immigrants [The local church of Agios Panteleimonas, whose priest is supporting the local immigrants in defiance of fascist threats fell victim, to a parastate arson attack last night which destroyed its 'food for immigrants' resources. Fascist elements who are now permanently stationed in the square and enjoy the protection of riot policemen also exercised physical violence against a member of the Communist Party (KKE) when he tried to stop them from beating an immigrant. As of last week all public happenings in the neighborhoods square held by local groups (puppet theater, book presentations etc) have been canceled after attacks by fascist thugs who even locked the local playground so as not to let "greek blood be polluted by afghans". The wave of fascist terror in the area has reached its peak after the mobilisation of immigrants in response to a police racist incident the previous week which targeted the Koran.
The official repression of immigrants has been stepped up since December, due on the one hand to a general strategy of counterinsurgency and the imposition of a quasi-police state by a weak and staggering government, an on the other hand because of the participation of many immigrants in the uprising. In contrast to what the bourgeois media have been presenting, immigrants did not only partake in rioting and looting, but also engaged in a critique of the system, as evident in letters and articles featured in the three issues of REVOLT, the magazine published by the occupied Athens School of Economics during the uprising. As far as the unofficial or parastate repression of immigrants, there are several analyses of the stepping up of fascist racist attacks, which started to pass through the public attention threshold in spring 2008. Some analysts in the movement believe this to be a targeted attack of Pakistani and Afghan immigrants, especially ones politically involved in the left, as part of the Greek state's involvement in the war in Central Asia, and its secret 'war on terror' commitments. Others simply detect an opportunistic tour de force of the usual marginal fascist elements, enjoying the cover of a favorable government with a clear anti-immigration agenda. Others again believe that parastate attacks on immigrants and mass propaganda in Agios Panteleimonas forms part of an effort by so-called junta droplets and allied 'patriotic' elements in the so-called 'deep state' to create a social basis for organised fascism of the post-civil war type, i.e. semi-armed nationalist 'self-defense' groups enjoying a half-fearful half-profiting local consensus in strategic enclaves of the urban structure, thus providing with a reserve civil army for operations that the police cannot legally undertake, such as attack on university grounds, breaking up of strikes, attack on social centers etc. A simple but perhaps simplistic answer to it all often heard in Athens is that this is all part of a 'strategy of tension' badly designed and performed by a generally incapable regime.
Posted in Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Publications, Long Reports, Analyses, Reviews & Research, Undeclared War news | Tagged: Afghan immigrants, Athens, far right, immigrant abuse, Pakistani immigrants, police, racism, refugee camps, surveillance & control, sweep operations | 4 Comments »
Asylum seekers in Netherlands to be extradited back to Greece
Less than a year has passed since a Dutch Court had blocked the return of refugees to Greece under the Dublin agreement because of the mess of the Greek Asylum (rejection) System (see here about other countries whoch had already done so). Now, although things are even worse, the Dutch authorities say they will return refugess to the Greek horror. "Humanism" is provisional in Fortress Europe.
The source of the following article is this.
Asylum seekers to be extradited back to Greece – Over 1,000 asylum seekers will be sent back to Greece in the following months.
The Netherlands – The Netherlands will resume the extradition of asylum seekers who entered the European Union via Greece.
In the coming months 1,100 people will be sent back to Greece, following a Council of State decision that doing so is legal, Deputy Justice Minister Nebahat Albayrak told reporters in Rome.
Earlier this week, Albayrak offered to help Greece with its asylum policy while on a visit to Athens.
Following a meeting with Greek officials involved in monitoring the border, the minister said it is important for European countries to work together to combat illegal immigration.
In an interview with Dutch public broadcaster NOS, she said: "If we do not invest in cooperation with countries on the southern European border, we will never solve our own migration problem.
A mission of asylum experts made up of Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Department (IND), the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) and the Repatriation Service, will travel to the southern European country to share their knowledge on the matter, reports press agency ANP.
The Greek authorities plan to use a cruise ship to pick up asylum seekers who arrive on the Greek islands in small boats.
Albayrak said the key issue is to determine whether an asylum seeker is entitled to protection or whether the person is an economic migrant.
Refugees from Northern Africa regularly cross the Mediterranean on rickety vessels to land in European coastal countries such as Italy and Greece. The refugees then travel on from their landing spot to other EU member states.
Radio Netherlands / Expatica
Posted in Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Undeclared War news | Tagged: asylum, deportations, Dublin Regulation, legislation & policies, The Netherlands | Leave a Comment »
Act of immigration war "Thracia 2009"
The military exercise "Thracia 2009" has ended
The military exercise "Thracia 2009", which the Agency "Frontex" organized on the Bulgarian-Turkish border and the Greek-Turkish border, has ended, announced the Ministry of the Interior. The exercise was designed as a training session for the coordination, which "Frontex" has for its groups for Rapid Border Interventional Team (RABIT). "Frontex", the EU agency based in Warsaw, was created as a specialised and independent body tasked to coordinate the operational cooperation between Member States in the field of border security. "Frontex" complements and provides particular added value to the national border management systems of the member states. In the course of a week 40 members of RABIT from 20 member-countries of the EU "helped" the Bulgarian and Greek border police in "make believe" situations, connected with migration pressure. The boundary between Bulgaria and Turkey is one of the "hottest" points of the outer boundary of the EU. The same is true of the Greek-Turkish border, where the migration pressure is even stronger. This was said by the Deputy executive director of the agency Hill Arias at a briefing in front of Bulgarian and Greek journalists at the "Capitan Andreevo" border check-point.
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No to racism from the baby's cot… the first child born in Greece to migrants to be registered so she can gain Greek nationality
Kukua Williams, born in Athens to Ghanaian parents 17 months ago, yesterday [Sunday] became the first child born in Greece to migrants to be registered so she can gain Greek nationality. The Municipality of Kaisariani attempted to highlight the gaping hole in the country's legislation, which effectively leaves such children with no legal status, during a public registration yesterday. The ceremony was of symbolic nature and Kukua faces a battle to gain full citizenship.
Kathimerini Article
Below is the invitation to the event by the United African Women Organization – Greece (http://uaworg.wordpress.com/)
CAMPAIGN "NO TO RACISM FROM BABY'S COT" INVITATION
Under the initiative of the Municipality of Kaisariani and in collaboration with the campaign "No to racism from baby's cot," an unusual event is before us!
In fact, on Saturday 23 May at 7 o'clock in the afternoon in the central square of Kaisariani an event will take place, a symbolic ceremony, the registration of a child of an immigrant from Africa in the municipality's registrar. The child is a 17 months old girl, born in Kaisariani, that cannot be registered in Municipality Roll and as a result it is essentially non-existed, as it is deprived of its rights and does not have a birth certificate neither in Ghana, nor in Greece. This is a well known fact for all immigrants' children born in Greece. The symbolic registration will be made by the Mayor of Kaisariani, Spyros Tzokas.
The symbolic ceremony that will take place under the campaign "No to racism from baby's cot" seeks:
to reveal the problem of immigrants' children born on the Greek territory who cannot be registered in the municipality, and as a result they are deprived of elementary citizen rights deriving from this registration.
to inform and sensitize the Greek public opinion and develop a feeling of solidarity with the big human and social problem of hundreds of thousands of immigrants and their children, who, while living among us in the cities and the neighbourhoods, are deprived of the most basic rights.
to reveal the long-term unwillingness of the Greek State to grant the rights that each citizen in the country enjoys, to our immigrant neighbours.
to show that the citizens themselves and some democratic institutions have decided not to be fatalistic and wait until the State decides to include the immigrants in our society, and thus they begin to carry out exemplary initiatives.
to start the campaign at the level of local government in order to terminate this scandal towards the immigrants who remain without any rights.
Moreover, this campaign aims at protecting and supporting the immigrants in this period of economic crisis, which may even get worse. With the use of the economic crisis and its sweeping consequences, the first that will be called (by the state and by the political establishment) to pay for it will be "obviously" once again the immigrants and, particularly, their children who remain unprotected due to lack of legislation.
Consider participating in this event, an initiative of the Municipality of Kaisariani and the campaign "No to racism from baby's cot."
There will be a cultural program and celebration with music and dance from migrant groups after the ceremony.
Our demands are:
1. Attribution of Greek citizenship to immigrants' children born in Greece or having completed three years in the Greek education system.
2. Attribution of residence permit of indefinite duration to all children and youth born or to be born in Greece or having attended the Greek education system, independent of the status (legal or not legal) of their parents.
3. We demand the amendment of the Greek Nationality Code from the ius sanguinis principle (law of bloodline, current foundation) to a ius soli principle (law of soil) for all individuals born in Greece or for any minor who completes three years in any level of the Greek education system (and with the possibility of reaffirmation of the demand by the claimant when reaching adulthood).
4. In any case, institution of the residence principle as a base for the acquisition of citizenship, founded not on origin or place of birth, but on the person's special bond with the place where his domicile and work are situated.
5. We demand both the article 27 of Greek Nationality Code and the article 14 of the Municipal Code's amendment so as the acquisition of status as a member of the municipality will be dissociated from the acquisition of Greek nationality and will be linked with the reality of the permanent residence. The immigrants' affiliation to their municipality should be established independently of nationality status (see the examples of Spain, Finland, Slovakia).
6. We demand the establishment of Local Immigrants Councils with a consultative role in the municipal decision and policy making.
7. Attribution of voting rights to municipal elections for anyone who can prove a 5-year legal residence in Greece.
Laureta Macauley: 693-8387351/ Sonia Mitralia: 693-2295118,
site: www.kounia.org
Posted in Calls to Action, Campaigns, Appeals & Petitions, Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Events, Other Groups' and Organisations' Releases | Tagged: African women, antiracism, Athens, citizenship, Kaisariani, racism, second generation | Leave a Comment »
Police campaign to intimidate struggling immigrants and communities in Chania, Crete
The two-day event by the Forum of Immigrants in Crete was a succesful one, allowing for the voicing of various issues in the pro-migration, antiracist movement and for the networking and coordination of initiatives. One of the campaigns launched during the event was the intitiative for the utilization of a deserted public service building for the needs of homeless people in the city of Hania and various other community uses. This was met with a furious reaction by the police, who attempted to embed a feeling of insecurity, xenophobia and apathy in the community, by launching a campaign of prosecution against immigrants. The action of the Forum of Immigrants in Crete since last November's hunger strike is obviously disruptive for the cemetery silence and intercommunity violence the authorities want to cultivate.
This is the translation of an announcement of the now forming initiative in which the Forum of Immigrants in Crete participates and a call for a demo in the Town of Ηania.
Recently in the town of Hania we have been witnessing an increase in the levels and the intensity of police "surveillance". It is plain that the Police have adopted the approach of pointing the finger towards enemies instead of pointing out solutions to the problems affecting us all; it has also assumed "wholesale" the role of the conversant with the local community. A community that, despite finding itself increasingly cooped up, has reacted, asserted, claimed. In the face of this community, in the face of us all, intense attempts to impose new mores have been taking place; the more inspired by the panopticism of the infamous – for his ethos and friends – minister of order enforcement Markogiannakis. By raising the specter of economic crisis, a crusade has been launched to convince the public that for unemployment the immigrants are to blame.
Thus, when the society of Hania claimed the conceded by the pertinent ministry Markopoulos military camp, the police forces came to the festivities to demand that the raising awareness panels be taken down from the yard's wall… When the workers celebrated the Labor Day, police squads were sent to the spot to observe. When immigrants called the local community to join a celebration of solidarity and claim the deserted IKA building for the homeless of the town, his special forces came in all their oppression equipment to hand out ultimatums asking the dissolution of the event.
More generally, what is taking place is an intense effort to turn into a routine the heavy and disturbing presence of the police force, with dozens of policemen in uniforms and jeeps roaming furiously the city center with no apparent reason, with consecutive degrading "stop-and-search"controls of Greeks and immigrants.
The most worrying about their logic and intentions is the systematic terrorizing of the most precarious among us, the economic migrants who live in this town, especially the ones most active in the struggle for equal rights. They are the ones disrupting the police's work. Having been denied the the opportunity to crush on a ridiculous pretext the day of the celebration (17th of May 2009) outside the old IKA building, organized by the Forum of Immigrants in Crete, the police leadership has launched a vengeful campaign of targeting and terrorizing immigrants, by attending them outside their houses, arresting them and threatening them with deportation. The police now leaves no room for misunderstandings of their intentions: they present the arrestees with photos featuring them during the hunger strike and asking them about their reasons for taking action and joining the solidarity campaign.
Those in power hope that their logic of repression against every reaction to their power, every protest, every claim for a decent life will be tolerated or go unnoticed if applied first to the most vulnerable of us. They forget, however, and thereby fill us with anger: what they forget is that these people are now our own people. These people won our hearts with all their struggles of the recent period; they earned themselves respect and solidarity. The police forgets that the local community as a single body supported their magnificent struggle in November, the harsch but victorious hunger strike 15 of them subjected themselves to, to be able to live a life with dignity, against the perverse desire of those who want people amidst our communities to suffer from being "illegal".
The new mores of these wannabe-Masters with all their questionable morals do nothing more disrupt life in our communities and provoke us. They won't be tolerated, they will not pass. For as long as it is necessary while our society goes through increasingly difficult times, we will not leave no one struggling for a better future unprotected. We will not allow this perverse logic that wants a man in uniform above the head of each and everyone of us to be embedded.
SOLIDARITY WITH THE PROSECUTED IMMIGRANTS
WE WANT THE POLICE OUT OF OUR HOMES, OUT OF OUR STREETS
SOLIDARITY MARCH, Thursday 28 May, 18:00, MARKET SQUARE, HANIA, CRETE
Posted in Action & Struggle Reports, Calls to Action, Campaigns, Appeals & Petitions, Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Other Groups' and Organisations' Releases, Undeclared War news | Tagged: antiracism, Chania, Crete, deportations, detention, immigrant abuse, police, sweep operations | Leave a Comment »
"The growing threat of radical Islam […] encroaching also on the Western Balkans" said the Chief of Greek para-state administration in warmongers exchibition
This is a Kathimerini article. More to the point, as regards "terrorism" and "illegal migration", this is the State Department talking. And this is a war, a war proper. This article has it all, both " innovative ""green projects", and restructuring of the nation's defence industry"..
Director of Greece's National Intelligence Service (EYP) Ambassador Ioannis Corantis speaking on the threats of international terrorism and illegal immigration.
ATHENS– With international terrorism thriving, Greece should be prepared to tackle new and more potent forms of terror, exchanging intelligence information with other nations and combating illegal immigration, Greece's Director of National Intelligence said Friday.
Ambassador Ioannis Corantis made the remarks during an unprecedented conference staged on the sidelines of Athens International 2009, an exhibition focusing on defence, security, energy and civil aviation in Southeast Europe.
"Terrorism remains the main international threat, but it is continuously evolving, with new methods of operation that require new means of response," Mr. Corantis said. "Greece must be prepared to react [because] the magnitude of prospective attacks may increase."
The head of Greece's National Intelligence Service (EYP) did not elaborate, but he underscored the growing threat of radical Islam spreading across Europe, encroaching also on the Western Balkans, including Bosnia, Albania, Serbia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
He said there were growing trends of European-based militant jihadists returning to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq for training, while radical religious leaders in Europe and the Internet were facilitating the growing reach of religious extremism.
"The Internet has become an ideal means for spreading radical Islam," Mr. Corantis told an audience of Greek and foreign diplomats, defence officials and politicians. "It is a cheap and undetectable tool terrorists use to disseminate their propaganda."
With growing numbers of people fleeing Iraq, Afghanistan and the Caucasus, Mr. Corantis stressed the need for Greece to grapple with the rising tide of illegal immigration.
"We are doing everything to guarantee that those coming in are nothing more than what they claim to be: illegal refugees seeking a better life," he said. "It's not an easy task. But that Greece remains safe and untouched by radical forms of Islam bears proof of our hard and effective work."
Earlier this month, the US State Department expressed concern over the "drastic increase" of illegal immigration, suggesting that Greece "could become a transit route for terrorists traveling to Europe and the United States."
Mr. Corantis said Greece was open to exchanging intelligence information with allies but denied any existence of Al-Qaeda terror cells in the country.
"The concern may be there, but there is not a single kernel of proof, that militant Islamists have either entered the country or that Muslims residing here are turning radical."
Last year, more than 140,000 illegal immigrants arrived in Greece, mostly via Turkey, up from 118,000 in 2007 and 96,000 in 2006.
Thousands more are said to arrive undetected.
Once caught, however, undocumented migrants are fingerprinted, held for a few days in overcrowded detention centers and then released with orders to leave the country within 30 days.
Most, though, end up in the Greek capital because Turkish officials no longer respect a bilateral agreement to return illegal refugees, according to Greek police officials.
"We need a concerted effort of cooperation among various agencies to grapple with illegal immigration," Mr. Corantis told the conference.
Organized in cooperation with the Constantine Karamanlis Institute for Democracy, the Andreas Papandreou Institute of Strategic and Development Relations (ISTAME) and the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP), the conference touched on a range of security and defence-related issues.
A keynote speaker, Deputy Defence Minister Yannis Plakiotakis underscored the need for regional cooperation in Southeast Europe.
"The Balkans are no longer the powder keg of Europe," he said. "Still, the state of affairs in the region is fluid and volatile."
"We believe that regional cooperation and joint action operations can afford tangible solutions to a string of problems plaguing the region; it can help countries focus on a host of issues that unite rather than separate them."
Earlier, Louka Katseli, the shadow finance minister of the socialist opposition PASOK party, warned of the need for "qualitative government reforms" to safeguard stability, security and development in Greece.
"The need for quality government is so much more pronounced now within this period of economic turmoil," she told the conference. "Swift and efficient government intervention is the only way out the crisis… enabling social cohesion and promoting social prosperity."
Mrs. Katseli also called for measures to improve Greece's competitiveness, including investments in innovative "green projects," and restructuring of the nation's defence industry.
"With the necessary planning, Greece's defence industry can focus on new and select activities and markets that can guarantee financial gains and a competitive edge," she said.
Drastic spending cuts and a new regulatory system in defence procurement projects were also required, Mrs. Katseli said, to increase spending in social security, education and investments.
Held at Athens International Airport's Metropolitan exhibition center, Athens International comes at the height of Greece's 2006-15 military procurement programs.
Defence spending in Greece runs at around 3 percent of GDP, one of the highest levels in the EU and NATO, partly because of a policy to keep an arms balance with neighboring Turkey.
Though both NATO allies, Greece and Turkey remain at odds over air-and-sea boundaries and flights in the Aegean Sea.
Despite longstanding differences, relations between the two countries have improved significantly in recent years, cementing strong energy links with the creation of the Greece-Turkey-Italy Interconnector, a project that entails the creation of a pipeline that will transfer natural gas from Caspian countries to Western Europe, Minister of Development Kostas Hatzidakis told the conference.
Athens International kicked off last year focusing almost exclusively on defence. It has since then come to encompass Greece's key infrastructure industries, including energy, security and civil aviation.
The exhibition runs until Sunday
Posted in Content Reproductions/ Adaptations/ Translations, Publications, Long Reports, Analyses, Reviews & Research, Undeclared War news | Tagged: intelligence services, military, Muslims, sans papiers | Leave a Comment »
Gas attack on Athens Muslim prayer centre injures three
Athens – At least three people were hospitalized in Athens Saturday morning with breathing problems after unknown assailants ignited a gas canister and threw it through the window of a store that doubles as a prayer centre for Muslim immigrants.
Media reports said none of the injured was in mortal danger.
The attack came a day after serious clashes between Muslim protesters and Greek police. Those clashes were prompted by Muslim allegations of police brutality and charges of desecrating the Koran.
According to Athens Indymedia the injured are 5 immigrants from Bangladesh. This certainly looks like "retalliation" work by fascists for muslim immigrants' reaction to the last weeks "sweep operations" and the desecration of a Quran by police.
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text:
У Шосткинському районі Сумської області на обліку перебуває 3 пам'ятки архітектури.

Джерела
Пам'ятки Сумської області

Шосткинський район
Шосткинського району

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text:
'I'm no sad victim, I've seen and survived the darkest side of life'
March 10, 2008 ~ Rachel Bell
Published in The F-word on 10 March 2008
View the published article here
A groundbreaking new scheme is helping women who've experienced sexual violence by pairing them up with a volunteer with similar experiences. Rachel Bell finds out how the Amina scheme isn't just giving women a chance to get their power back, it's turning their perceived 'victim' status on its head.
It's well documented that one in three women will be a victim of male sexual violence in her lifetime. Men and boys inflict violence on more than three million women in the UK every year. Child sex abuse, sexual harassment, sexual exploitation, stalking, domestic violence, trafficking, forced marriage and honour crimes are daily hazards for girls and women. Britain has long been living with a rape epidemic. A rape is reported to the police every 34 minutes. And how does our 'civilised' society guard against the normalization of male violence? Does our government send a clear message that abusing and raping girls and women is not acceptable? Does it send a clear message that it will look after the millions of women with shattered selves, suffering the same symptoms as veterans of war and victims of torture?
'It's to our shame as a nation that we do not have a national 24 hour rape crisis helpline,' says Denise Marshall, director of Eaves and founder of the Amina scheme. 'I just can't believe we don't have enough rape crisis centres, I find it appalling. There's one rape crisis centre in the whole of London, in Croyden, and that's it.' The Eaves charity comprises Eaves Supported Housing, Eaves Women's Aid, the Poppy Project, the only government funded anti-trafficking project in the UK, and the Lilith Project, which deals with all other forms of violence against women. The Amina scheme is part of Lilith. Denise Marshall is outraged at the paucity of services, saying, 'I'm a really big fighter in what I do. I've fought and I've argued for trafficked women, I've fought and argued for domestic violence. But for rape and sexual assault, we've got nothing, it's less than nothing.'
A look at Map of Gaps and it's easy to share Denise Marshall's anger. Compiled by the Child and Women Abuse Studies Unit (CWASU) at London Metropolitan University, the report tells us that unless you're lucky enough to be raped in one in five local authorities at a particular time of day, you can forget getting help if you're a victim of gender-based violence in the UK. The shameful services are not the only thing that compelled Denise Marshall to set up the Amina scheme. The trigger came within her post as Chair of the Independent Advisory Group for the Sapphire Unit of the Metropolitan Police, where Denise was disturbed by the way a particular 'victim' was being used. 'A woman who'd been raped sat on the committee and with the best will in the world, I felt it was very tokenistic,' Denise Marshall says. 'She wanted to do something positive with her horrific experience, but because she wasn't an agency or a professional, she wasn't listened to, or given any opportunity to do so. It was a case of lets hear about her rape and how grateful she is for the help she got. It wasn't a real appointment.' Denise encountered the woman again at a National Conference on Rape and Sexual Assualt. 'It was like she was 'wheeled on' as this token of 'universal victimhood'. It didn't give that woman any credit, or any strength or any ability to take back her life. I found that exploitative and not the best use of a woman's resource.'
Denise Marshalls's work has brought her into contact with countless victims and she says, 'It's like if you're a victim, you don't get taken seriously, you're emotional. The women I meet are not emotional, they're angry, and they want to make sure that the next woman it happens to gets the right services, gets justice, has someone to tell them things like, actually the CPS doesn't work for you, it works for the State and yes you may end up with a man when you're medically examined and it sucks but I understand how you feel and I'll be there for you.'
Last summer, a group of women who had experienced sexual violence of all levels came together to be trained as the first Amina volunteers for the pilot scheme. Some had been through unspeakable things, unimaginable hells. All had come out the other side. Strong, driven, sensitive, kind, clever women. Women with interesting careers, families, students, some with experience in the sector already – a bunch of ordinary women with something extraordinary to give. Training was provided by Liz Kelly and Maddy Coy at CWASU, giving it feminist framework, and included seminars on the report to court process, the normalization of pornography, understanding issues such as self harm and honour violence and a workshop on support skills delivered by South Essex Rape and Incest Crisis Centre (SERICC) Visits to courts and the London's three Havens – which offer victims of sexual assault forensic examinations, health checks, counselling and help deciding if they wish to report – were also part of the training. Each volunteer now commits to two hours a week to meet up with another woman who has experienced sexual violence. The volunteers call themselves 'peer supporters'- women who draw on their own experiences to help other women rebuild their lives. They can help women understand what to expect from police and the justice system should they wish to report, accompany them to court appearances or medical appointments, help them revisit areas, or things, they find uncomfortable, help them regain self-confidence by trying new activities, support them in accessing housing advice or just meet for a coffee and a chat after a heavy day at work.The peer supporters are there to give recognition to and listen to women's experiences and needs. The volunteers are not counsellors or an emergency service. Their gift is their understanding of the damage of male sexual violence, and the strength of women. Of how just a little of the right help, the right kindnesses, can make all the difference to a woman's chance at recovery.
No one else has offered such a scheme. The positive way in which Amina draws on women's experience and resource to practically and emotionally help other women makes it groundbreaking. It's about volunteers drawing support off each other, too – examining their experiences, sharing their strengths and using them for good. Frances Brodrick is Manager of the Research Development team at Eaves and supervises the development of the Amina scheme,' she says. 'Amina has clear benefits for both the volunteer and the women receiving the service. It sends out a message to society about women working together and supporting each other and sharing their experiences. I think the whole sisterly thing is a really positive element of it.'
Another benefit is the equal relationship between peer supporter and client. As Frances Brodrick says, 'Lots of women that we come into contact at Eaves have support workers, mental health workers, police officers and professionals who are paid to look after them – and that inevitably has a power dynamic. There's always a clear boundary when one person in the equation is a paid professional. An important aspect of Amina is that it lessens that feeling of 'them and us'.'
Often the first time or only time women recount their experience is in the form of a police statement, or having a conversation with a professional. Frances Brodrick says, 'I've sat in on police interviews and felt awful to see how it's clearly re-traumatising the woman, having to respond to really blunt questioning, even by experienced police officers. Their priority is getting evidence, not the support needs of the woman. And while London's three Havens are an absolutely fantastic service for victims of sexual violence, they simply don't have the resources to offer the kind of ongoing aftercare and time consuming support that many women will need following an assault. Amina gives women time to process and talk about her experiences at their own pace, in a more holistic framework.'
Cat Whitehouse, the Sexual Violence Resource Worker at The Lilith Project, has been promoting the Amina scheme. Referrals for Amina have been coming in from London's Sapphire units and London's three Havens, who were the first to be briefed about the scheme. Cat Whitehouse says, 'We're not surprised that most referrals have come through the Havens or the Police Sapphire units, they understand that women who come to them in crisis often need support they just can't provide. There are so many GPs, social services, women's groups and homeless agencies that it's probably going to take a lot longer for them to hear about the scheme and begin to refer women.' Once the scheme is more widely known, Cat Whitehouse anticipates more self-referrals. Amina sees its service users covering a wide demographic, including women with language issues, women with domestic violence issues, women who might have been trafficked, and Black, Minority Ethnic and Refugee (BMER) women. Training will soon begin for the next round of volunteers and will be focused for BMER women.
It's clear that Amina is close to Denise Marshall's' heart. She describes the volunteers as 'fabulous', that they've all been 'blown away' by them from the off. She's furious that they're not paid. I ask Denise what her hopes for the scheme are. 'I want it to be a fantastic service, I want it to be funded so it's open to all women to do as a job. I want women to be able to get the service across London. We spend huge amounts in this country on complete nonsense and then we don't fund services for women who get raped and sexually assaulted. One of the things that worries me is that women who've been raped, are talking to police or going through the system are not getting the information, you know that someone thinks it's easier to send them to Victim Support. I'm not having a go at Victim Support, but they're not specialists. For me, it's really important that women get access to the best tailor made service. I do not want some 21 year old who is raped not having anybody to talk to, at any time, day or night. It should be just a given that there is someone out there who can help and support her. That is her right, that's what she's entitled to.'
An Amina volunteer on why she joined the scheme
'When I escaped from the men who raped me, I had no idea what else was coming or that it would last so long. I am an extremely rare case, I put two rapists away. I was a 'Good Victim'. I went to the police the next day, the rapists used a weapon, I had bruises, hell even a red line on my throat, I was a nice middle class white girl, I was sober, covered up and I was not dating the rapists. No-one could argue that alcohol, sexy clothes or having fun raped me. The rapists didn't get put away for long enough but getting justice did help me recover. I know I was lucky to get it. But justice is such a small part. The aftermath is when the deepest pain took hold of me. My confidence was shattered. The rapists took my joy, my mojo, the person I was, and that loss filled me with anger and grief. I was easily disturbed, easily panicked, and had nightmares too terrible to repeat. My hurt was made far worse by reactions of friends and family – my mum said, 'Oh my god, I thought you were going to tell me you're pregnant,' while one close friend never even acknowledged it happening and has said nothing at all. If something horrific happens in the movies, there's always someone to make it better afterwards. I ached for someone to love me better and it never came. On a bad day, Rape Crisis weren't open when I needed them so I resorted to The Samaritans. The woman was shocked when I told her what had happened to me. I had to reassure her. Her over-the-top-reaction just made me feel lonelier. It would have helped me immeasurably to tell my story to someone kind and close to me. But no one asked. They didn't want to know. Rape is everywhere but it has no place in the office, at dinner with friends, in the pub. People don't want to mention it, they'd say they didn't want to upset you by bringing it up. They don't have the tools or the words to talk to you. They can't say 'rape'. Rape should be an issue for the community, instead it becomes taboo. My story, who I was, was like I secret that I carried like a burden. I acted my way through life, through work, feeling detached, displaced. My sadness, anger, frustration, the total absence of recognition or understanding, the sense of being displaced from the world, it overwhelmed me so much, I was afraid of going mad. I came to understand why a person would want to commit suicide, I could see the relief in death. Going from report to court, one person, a male doctor, was kind to me. I will always remember him and value his small kindness. I remember the other doctor, the nurses and the judge who did not treat me like a human. Many years later an old friend and I had an opportunity to talk and she made it easy for me. She made it clear she was happy to listen. I love her for what she did. Finally, I sought help from a psychoanalyst and paid for therapy to get rid of what the rapists left me – a heaviness in my body, that was me, yet stopped me being me and would never ever budge, a heavy cynicism weighing me down. The rapists or the government should have paid for that, not me. Every day I am angry that I live in a country, like most, that doesn't give a shit that its 'ordinary' boys and men are violent, think they have entitlements to women's bodies and are raping girls and women. I'm no sad victim. Rapists are the shameful ones. I've seen and survived the darkest side of life. I'm more aware, emphatic, politicized and passionate and I meet people like me now. I feel strong, I do work that fulfills me, I have friends that I love, I have the dream boyfriend. I was extraordinarily lucky to get justice – my right. I think about what it must be like for the millions of women who do not, for the millions of women who are raped by men they know, men who are in their families and social circles, men who are allowed to walk the same streets as them. I admire women so much. I want to help them get themselves back, show them that it's possible. I know what a difference small kindnesses or just recognition for fuck's sake, makes. And I know what a momentous difference it would have made to me if the opportunity to talk to that friend had happened sooner. This volunteering gives the rape meaning.'
Amina is a support scheme for women who are living with experiences of rape or sexual abuse. If you are interested in using or referring a woman to the Amina Scheme, please contact Cat Whitehouse or Frances Brodrick on 020 7840 7959 or email amina@eaveshousing.co.uk
Posted in Male Violence, Published	Amina schemeraperape victim supportsexual violence
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Port of Tianjin, ship was moored alongside. The wharf was an 'L' shaped along the channel. The scenario was that a small Chinese coaster proceeding down the channel to sea and a panamax vessel entering the channel.When the panamax vessel was crossing ahead of the moored vessel to enter the channel, this caused the moored vessel to come under the blind sector for the Chinese coaster who has altered course to port to avoid colliding with the panamax vessel.
As soon as the panamax cleared the bow of the moored vessel, the Chinese coaster was surprised to see the huge vessel moored in front of her. It was too late, but still the Master of Chinese vessel tried his best by going full astern and dropping the anchor. The Chinese vessel collided with the vessels port bow resulting in a hole of 4m x 4m on the bow plating. It took nearly 15 days to complete the repairs and to sail out, and the coaster's owner had to bear all the costs resulting in a heavy loss for him.


Today I Uploaded 20 digital imageries as well as each are in high resolution version. From different photo in Hanging foyer lights pictures, you might have Foyer Design Images with decor. Anyway, if you don't appropriate with concept, you can still take a look concept. Even so I recommend you can use as an aspiration decor, although along with has appealing decoration ideas. Don't forget for share this Hanging foyer lights oblong rectangle long stainless steel chandelier light lamp fabric entryway furniture ideas to family or your neighbors. So they are would probably get plus to improve they Foyer Design Images. I am delighted can share along with along with to you all. Perhaps you could find which all this time are you look for.


ING Buy Vaults Capital One to Fifth Largest Depository in U.S.
The Federal Reserve issued an order approving Capital One's acquisition of ING Groep NV's U.S. online bank, which indirectly includes ShareBuilder Advisors and ING Direct Investing, both of Seattle, WA.
The Fed said upon consummation of the proposal, Capital One would add approximately $82 billion in deposits and become the fifth largest depository in the U.S. with consolidated deposits of approximately $210 billion. With the addition of $92 billion in assets, Capital One would become the 20th largest depository in the U.S. measured by asset size with total consolidated assets of about $292 billion.
The deal is the first the Fed reviewed under a provision of the Dodd-Frank Act, which requires the central bank to consider whether mergers will result in "greater or more concentrated" risk to the financial system. ING was ordered by the European Union to sell the U.S. unit as a condition of its government bailout during the financial crisis.
The Fed noted in its statement that a significant number of commenters opposed the proposal, requesting that the Board only approve the proposal subject to certain conditions, or expressed concerns about the impact of the proposal on the financial stability of the U.S. banking or financial system.


Extends deadline to appeal mental illness determination under certain circumstances.
House Feb 18, 2019: Public Hearing scheduled.
House Feb 18, 2019: Public Hearing held.
House Feb 25, 2019: Work Session scheduled.
House Feb 25, 2019: Work Session held.
House Mar 5, 2019: Second reading.
House Mar 6, 2019: Third reading. Carried by McLane. Passed.
Senate Apr 15, 2019: Public Hearing held.
Senate Apr 24, 2019: Work Session scheduled.
Third reading. Carried by McLane. Passed.


Welcome to the link party! I hope everyone enjoyed celebrating the men in your life on Father's Day. We had a great time strawberry and bunny picking. 🙂 Isn't that baby bunny the cutest?
Features from last week's party will be up this week! If you're new to this party, I'm so glad you stopped by. The Tutorials & Tips Party welcomes all of your original tutorials, craft projects, room reveals, recipes, furniture makeovers, as well as your decorating, cleaning, & organizing tips. If it makes our lives beautiful, easier, cleaner, or yummier, we want to see it! I look forward to seeing your creations.
Thanks for hosting Beth, have a great week!
note to self….get a bunny!
Strawberries and a bunny! Such a great photo! Thanks so much hosting again this week.
What a cute photo! Thx for the party, Beth!
Awww – I've NEVER seen a bunny that tiny – that's just too cute for words !!!
Beth, that really is the cutest baby bunny ever! Was it in your yard? We have baby bunnies galore this time of year, but I have never been close enough to touch one. They always scamper off 🙁 Thanks for another fun party!
The bunny is so tiny and so cute! Thanks so much for hosting!
What a precious bunny. It really pops with the strawberries. Glad you all had a fun day! Thanks for hosting.


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Pacific Life 150th Anniversary - Accident, Disability, Illness, Old Age, Death? No Problem!
"Poor fellow," noted this ad for the new policy, "he must have done business with some company whose stock of umbrellas should be classified as antique."
Finding income protection against accidents, permanent disability, sickness, old age and death was fairly easy, if a little bit cumbersome, in the 20th century. All a prospective customer had to do was find one or more insurance companies that sold each of the policies. None covered all five policies in one contract—until Pacific Mutual.
Pacific Life developed an advertising campaign to help promote the combination policy, which quickly became known by the tagline "It Pays 5 Ways." Immensely popular with agents and with customers, the policy was an ongoing success.


text:
package akashic.storage.service

import java.io.InputStream

import akashic.storage.auth.GetCallerId
import akashic.storage.service.Acl.Grant
import akashic.storage.{HeaderList, auth}
import akka.http.scaladsl.server.Directives._
import akka.http.scaladsl.server.{Directive, Directive0, Directive1}
import akka.stream.scaladsl.StreamConverters

import scala.collection.immutable

trait Directives {
  val entityAsInputStream = akashic.storage.entityAsInputStream

  def withParameter(name: String): Directive0 = parameter(name).tflatMap(a => pass)

  val optionalBinaryBody: Directive1[Option[Array[Byte]]] = entity(as[Array[Byte]]).map { a =>
    if (a.size == 0) {
      None
    } else {
      Some(a)
    }
  }

  val optionalStringBody: Directive1[Option[String]] = entity(as[String]).map { a =>
    a match {
      case "" => None
      case a => Some(a)
    }
  }

  val extractMetadata: Directive1[HeaderList] =
    extractRequest.map(a => a.headers
         .filter(_.name.startsWith("x-amz-meta-"))
         .map(a => (a.name, a.value))
         .foldLeft(HeaderList.builder) { case (acc, (k, v)) => acc.append(k, v) }
         .build
      )

  val extractBucket: Directive1[String] = path(Segment ~ (Slash | PathEnd))

  val extractObject: Directive[(String, String)] = path(Segment / Rest).tmap {
    case (bucketName: String, keyName: String) => (bucketName, encodeKeyName(keyName))
  }

  private val extractGrantHeaders: Directive1[immutable.Seq[Acl.GrantHeader]] =
    extractRequest.map(a => a.headers
         .filter(_.name.startsWith("x-amz-grant-"))
         .map(a => Acl.GrantHeader.parseLine(a.name, a.value))
      )
  val extractGrantsFromHeaders: Directive1[immutable.Seq[Grant]] =
    extractGrantHeaders.map(_.map(_.makeGrants).flatten)

  def authorizeS3v2(resource: String, requestId: String): Directive1[String] =
    extractRequest.map { req =>
      val authKey = auth.authorize(resource, req)
      GetCallerId(authKey, requestId, resource)()
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub