Interview with Aliki Papadaki Citizens Committee Member of Ag.Panteleomonas (central Athens District)
Introduction
Between 2000 and 2008 the square in Ag Panteleomonas was occupied by a multitude of migrants from every quarter of the planet but primarily from Albania, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan. The square was divided into various ethnic squares where each ghetto went about their business, ie drug dealing, gambling, boozing, sexual activity at night, urinating, defecating etc. The situation became so bad that citizens of the area felt under siege as they couldn’t go about their daily business. Citizens on an individual basis complained to all official bodies in person or in writing from the local councillors, to the police, to their MP’s, to the political parties present in the area. No one listened and they organised themselves in a committee which had a majority of women.
Women bore the brunt of the situation as they were either robbed for their handbags or sexually molested whilst going near or around the square. As the migrants were many and operated as such individual resistance was futile as one was outnumbered. Particularly obscene was the victimisation of old people and targeting their pensions from ATM machines. Anyone who witnessed first hand the situation could not but feel for the plight of Greek citizens.
For a two year period there were demos after demos, counter demos by the so-called anti-racist fake left and the square received national prominence in particular as this was the area that led to the electoral growth of Golden Dawn and the teargassing inside a Church of citizens who continued to protest against becoming a minority inside their own country and being unable to operate as they had before. The economic crisis of course hadn’t fully arrived but the arrival of continuous numbers of migrants. The square became synonymous nationally with everything that was wrong with uncontrolled migration and remains imprinted in the national political psyche in particular now that migrants have been dumped in tens of areas around Greece and protests against their presence has occurred almost everywhere.
The fake Left having abandoned Greeks to their fate has written its own death warrant as a political force and it will suffer the same fate as all the other political forces that tied their economic coattails to mass migration and cheap labour, let no one be fooled. Allowing an economic free for all in any type of migrant to arrive and live against the citizens of the country without their advance knowledge or even minimal approval is a recipe for civil war.
Van Gelis
Committee of Citizens in Ag. Panteleomonas
What issues gave rise to the creation of a citizens committee in Ag Panteleomonas?
After the fall of the Soviet U immigrants started arriving in Greece. After 2000 many migrants started to live in the square. All day long they were in the square, the Albanians had created a ghetto and the square was nicknamed Tirana square and they played on wooden boxes and they gambled with dices. Many had taken out Greek OGA (Organisation of Agriculatural Development) pensions being declared fake Greeks from Northern Ipirus (Southern Albania). The Polish were workers, but many spent all day drinking and fighting and there were no public toilets in the square and they smelled of urine. It was impossible to make criticism of Albanians as they said we are 5k people and we will cut you down. In the meantime many houses were burgled and in particular as there were many unemployed and in Crete where I gathered olives every season robberies were immense as everything was stolen.
At the time we had dogs but the Albanians bought pit bulls and they had dogs which fought for money and drug dealing and many shootouts amongst their community. There were also many fights amongst Albanians and Georgians (initially women arrived to look after older people) and deals that went wrong. Drugs were mostly in circulation and all types of drugs controlled by gangs from all of these ethnic groups. A mini USA in an Athenian square which boasted one of the largest Orthodox Churches in Greece.
The priest in the main church on the square gave to the Georgians a small side church facing the square (old believers in Orthodox Church) and another ghetto was created around the Church as a focal point, they started to open their own shops with special dispensation for (illegal) migrants who can set up shop in one day as opposed to a Greek who takes up to six months.
Most of the shops don’t even have a VAT receipt and if anyone rings the Greek tax office they only turn up for Greek owned shops as they don’t bother with migrant stores.
Most Greek women who crossed the square had their bags stolen and my mother had her money stolen from the ATM at least three times when she went to take her pension. A few days ago a man was fixing his sign outside his shop and migrants climbed up his ladder when he wasn’t looking and entered the flat above and robbed it and left by the entrance as gentlemen. All Greek women were harassed sexually. What led to the Committee being created were two incidents that were beyond the pale:
The First Incident
The situation deteriorated when Pakistanis and Afghanis arrived as they had weird traditions mostly being famers and many being gay and the story is they brought live sheep for their Ramazan festival, slept with them and then killed them on the roof (arab style) and they ate them. They used to throw the rubbish from the balconiesin black bags which split and rotted leading to a health situation and people took photographs and took it to the local council.
In the square the on one side the Afghani, Pakistani and Bangladeshi muslims had taken over a part and had turned it to their own special UN ghetto and it was impossible for a Greek woman to enter. They would touch up every woman as she passed, and during this period there is a famous video of Greek women during New Year celebrations in Sindagma square being sexually abused and manhandled.
The Second Incident
At the time an Albanian girl was raped at the age of 14 by what appears to have been a muslim of Pakistani, Afghan or Bangladesh origin as recounted by the girl. The state did not take any reports or interviews from the Albanians. A few of them came to our committee and reported they would handle the matter internally ie. take measures against the Afghani Pakistani and Bangladeshi people in the area. Inter ethnic ghetto conflicts ensured.
In what way were women a catalyst in setting the agenda of reaction to the presence of multitudes in the public square of Ag Panteleomonas
Greek women started the protests in the Ag. Panteleomonas area to regain control of the square. They were under total attack and had never encountered such behaviour in their lives and in the trolley bus women would be manhandled at all times and raise their middle finger. Women from the ages of 40 to +70 were involved in the committee. We decided the situation was under total disarray we couldn’t leave our flat and we couldn’t enjoy the square which in the summer (+40c in flats) means we became prisoners in our own homes. In many flats there were flying body lice which became an issue for the whole area. People couldn’t put their clothes out to dry. In many buildings there were over 300 people in a three story building and when we took a reporter there we saw two people sleeping in the small space above the bathroom where the hot water boiler is kept. An unheard of situation for post-war Greece.
We went to complain to all the official bodies, Mayor, Council, Police, Health service etc. and this led to nothing. So we decided to hold weekly meeting and then public demonstrations and the first person that came against us was Petros Konstantinou of KEERFA who threatened us with the migrants of Afghanistan and Pakistan who started to pray on the square and they started to throw stones and burn dustbins. Up until then GD did not exist in the area. In the first demo all the Greeks in the area turned up for the demonstration. Confronting them was KEERFA.
Looking back at the situation it appears KEERFA’S arrival was pre-ordained to defend illegal migration and the subsequent arrival of GD to taint the area as being ...nazi. There is a possibility they were working together as before 2008 Golden Dawns presence was less than 0.9% nationally and over a two year concerted campaign by KEERFA every protest against the arrival of migrants or turning squares into migrant dumping grounds led to Golden Dawn appearing to be the force that was against ...migration. It’s funny as their star candidate turned MP who had a shop near the area Panagiotaros has left the area and moved to wealthier areas by the sea and wants nothing to do with the area. Politics in Greece is a just a career which opens doors to self promotion.
Which forces in society were you up against during the protests in the square?
At the time no one was with us from the major political parties and none of the Left were concerned. KEERFA<1> organised many support structures for the muslim migrants in the area and many were involved in the drug and sexual favours trade in the main square and they exchanged goods for sex.
KEERFA is a front for illegal migration in close cooperation with bosses.
Both New Democracy and PASOK encouraged mass migration into Greece and sought to arrest the collapsing rate of profit by employing migrants with no insurance in a range of industries: farming, tourism and industry. In no sector of the Greek economy is their presence not felt.
Throughout the early part of the 2000 decade a mass propaganda campaign occurred by the so-called anti-racists filling up all public walls with the slogan ‘the bosses promote racism’ when in reality we must have had the most anti-racist bosses on earth as they exclusively recruited migrants. When enough were recruited these slogans disappeared and they became chasing ...nazis. In the meantime Greeks became a minority in many workplaces and anyone opposing the unlimited arrival of migrants was now branded a ..’nazi’ whilst Parliament pushed through anti-racism laws banning the criticism or talk about migrants in anyway whatosoever.
How do you explain the rise and fall of Golden Dawn in the area?
As all the parties had one line a political vacuum was created. Let us remember before 2008 they didn’t exit. What existed was LAOS a splinter group from New Democracy which allegedly took on board issues of migration. GD came to the square and used its appearance for electoral promotion. They no longer have an organisation in the area and the day GD’s MP Kasidiaris last arrived in the area is the day Rouvikona and other NGOs arrived with their ...antifascist banners. They essentially go round the square targeting any young Greeks who might happen to be visiting the area or passing the square but have insignia on them with the Greek flag. Not long ago these same NGO’s as reported in the press targeted a Cypriot tourist unbeknown to them, who was in Exarchia with a Greek flag and beat him up so badly he ended up in hospital. We are dealing with globalist neoliberal scum who hate anything in relation to Greece as a nation.
What is the situation now like and how do you see it developing?
The situation is critical and I believe they will be a conflict. It is much worse and Greek houses are being repossessed and now migrants are filling up houses and their rent is being paid and they are being paid to squat. It is being organised by PRAXIS from the Mayor of Athens Kaminis. They are given a card to use in supermarkets. An indirect way to support big business.
No Greek card for the unemployed has been given. My friend who was fired and replaced by Pakistanis in the kitchens was paid in supermarket vouchers as compensation. No health checks are carried out when they recruit migrants. Its anything goes as it’s a perpetual race to the bottom.
Houses near have been rented for Euro 3000 in an area where the cost of the actual flat is about Euro 10000 if it can be sold and they have placed around 20 people who smoke all day and do nothing. Allegedly 1400 flats have been taken over by migrants and if this situation continues migrants will no longer be in the squares but inside every building which has unrented property. No health and safety over the issue in relation to the overuse of dwelling space. In the building next door to mine over two flats have more than 30 people in them and taking into account many come from villages living in concrete buildings leads to a massive health and safety issue where fire could become inevitable.
All the new migrants are 110% muslims, mostly 99% men and they have one woman with a child as a front to pretend they are from war ravaged communities. The agenda the government have is impossible to impose what they think is possible ie. replace Greeks in totality in their own country. It’s basically a race against time us versus the new world order globalist agenda. Now the issue has gone national many will remember our battles, hopefully learn from them. One notices even today hesitation by governments of any political direction in allowing the squares to become giant squatter camps as before. The state is trying to avoid conflict, but conflict will not in the end be avoided.
KEERFA- Anti racist anti fascist committee of Greece
No comments:
Post a Comment