2021 Greek protests | |||
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Date | 4 February 2021 – March 2021 | ||
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Caused by |
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Goals |
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Methods | |||
Resulted in | Protests contained
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Parties | |||
Lead figures | |||
No centralized leadership
Contents |
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First term
Second term
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The 2021 Greek protests broke out in response to a proposed government bill that would allow police presence on university campuses for the first time in decades, [2] for which opposition groups accused the government of taking advantage of the COVID-19 lockdown to impose increasingly authoritarian measures. [6] Protests intensified in response to the hunger strike of the prisoner Dimitris Koufontinas, a former member of terrorist organization 17N, who had started the strike in December, demanding his transfer to a different prison after he had been forcibly relocated to a maximum-security facility in central Greece, [3] as well as issues relating to police brutality and specifically the DELTA Force motorcycle police. [8]
The prime minister condemned the opposition parties as having "exploited lockdown fatigue", which he blamed for the frequent rallies. [9]
On 4 February, university students and teachers took to the streets to protest against a proposed education reform bill that would allow for a renewed police presence on university campuses. 5,000 protestors demonstrated in Athens, while an additional 1,000 demonstrated in Thessaloniki. In defiance of the ban on public gatherings imposed by the lockdown, students organized weekly protests to continue against the new bill. [2]
On 10 February, the date of a scheduled debate on the education reform bill, clashes broke out with the police in Athens and Thessaloniki, during which police used tear gas to disperse protests and protestors threw bottles, rocks and molotov cocktails back at the police. [6] [10]
On 22 February, protestors occupied the principal's building in the University of Thessaloniki and, when police attempted to remove them, clashes broke out. This led to the arrest of 31 people and the issuing of €300 fines to 32 protestors, for violating the terms of the country's lockdown. [11] More than 5,000 people subsequently gathered outside a courthouse in Thessaloniki to protest in support of those arrested. [12]
On 23 February, people scattered leaflets outside the presidential mansion of Katerina Sakellaropoulou, to protest in support of Dimitris Koufontinas. [13]
On 24 February, a Koufontinas solidarity demonstration in Athens was dispersed by police using tear gas, stun grenades and a water cannon. [14]
On 1 March, the Greek government refused Koufontinas' demand of transfer to Korydallos Prison. By this point, Koufontinas' health had seriously deteriorated due to the effects of his hunger strike. Thousands of people held peaceful protests in Athens and Thessaloniki following the government's decision. [15]
On 7 March, the Athens police reported that when a police patrol entered Nea Smyrni to investigate reports of lockdown violations, they were subsequently attacked by a group of 30 people, injuring 2 officers, leading to the detention of 11 people. However, videos of the event emerged, showing peaceful protestors being thrown to the ground by the police and attacked with batons. Four hours later, more than 500 people gathered to protest the incident and were violently dispersed using tear gas and stun grenades. Pavlos Christidis of the Movement for Change denounced the incident, claiming that “It wasn’t an accident. The government and Mitsotakis wanted this.” [16]
On 9 March, 5,000 people gathered outside the precinct in Nea Smyrni to protest against the police brutality, during which young protestors threw stones and molotov cocktails at the police. The police responded with water cannons, tear gas and stun grenades, but during the clashes, a police officer was severely injured by protestors. Testimonies and videos show cases of police brutality even against journalists. [17] Among the videos published there exists one in which a police officer appears to throw a molotov cocktail to the protestors. [18] Another video shows police officers shouting among them "Let's go kill them!" (the protestors). [19] In total, 10 people were arrested on suspicion of participating in the riots, and some of them allegedly tortured. [20] The riots were condemned by both the government and opposition parties. [21] [22] The prime minister gave a televised address in response, during which he said: “Blind rage does not lead anywhere. It should serve as a wake-up call that the life of a young policeman was endangered. At this point everyone must display restraint and calm.” [23]
On 11 March, after the occupation at the University of Thessaloniki was ended by police, 8,000 people protested against the police crackdown. Protestors clashed with the police, during which firebombs and tear gas were exchanged, and multiple people were arrested. [24]
On 14 March, Dimitris Koufontinas ended his hunger strike after 66 days, as it had led to kidney failure. He thanked those that had protested in solidarity with him in his “fight against an inhumane power system.” [4]
Revolutionary Organization 17 November, also known as 17N or the 17 November Group, was a Greek Marxist–Leninist urban guerrilla organization. Formed in 1975 and led by Alexandros Giotopoulos, 17N conducted an extensive urban guerrilla campaign of left-wing violence against the Greek state, banks, and businesses. The organization committed 103 known armed robberies, assassinations, and bombing attacks, during which 23 people were killed.
The Popular Association – Golden Dawn, usually shortened to Golden Dawn, is a far-right neo-Nazi ultranationalist criminal organisation and former political party in Greece. Golden Dawn rose to prominence during Greece's financial crisis of 2009, becoming the third most popular party in the Greek parliament in the January 2015 election. Its support since plunged, and it failed to enter parliament in the 2019 election. The criminal trial against the leaders, frequently described as the largest trial of Nazis since the Nuremberg trials, lasted more than five years.
Korydallos Prison Complex is Greece's largest jail and contains the country's main maximum-security prison, housing both maximum-security men and women. It is located in Korydallos, Piraeus. Famous detainees include members of the anarchist urban guerrilla organizations Revolutionary Organization 17 November, Revolutionary Struggle and Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei. Korydallos prison was also used as the place for the Greek junta trials in 1975, and contains a special court in its basement.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) rights in Greece are regarded as the most advanced in Southeast Europe and among all the neighboring countries. Public opinion on homosexuality in Greece is generally regarded as culturally liberal, with civil partnerships being legally recognised since 2015 and same-sex marriage since 16 February 2024.
Human rights in Greece are observed by various organizations. The country is a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights, the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the United Nations Convention Against Torture. The Greek constitution also guarantees fundamental human rights to all Greek citizens.
Anarchism in Greece traces its roots to ancient Greece but was formed as a political movement during the 19th century. It was in the ancient era that the first libertarian thoughts appeared when philosophers based on rationality questioned the fundamentals of tradition. Modern anarchism in Greece emerged in the 19th century, heavily influenced by the contemporary European classical anarchism. Because of the Bolshevik success in the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the rise of the Communist Party, anarchism faded after the first decades of the 20th century. The collapse of the military junta put an end to the monopoly of the political power from the Right, whereas the dissolution of the Soviet Union diminished the allure of the Communist Party of Greece allowing anarchist groups to gain pace in Athens and other cities.
The Hellenic Police is the national police service and one of the three security forces of Greece. It is a large agency with responsibilities ranging from road traffic control to counter-terrorism. Police Lieutenant General Dimitrios Mallios is Chief of the Hellenic Police. He replaced Lazaros Mavropoulos. The Hellenic Police force was established in 1984 under Law 1481/1-10-1984 as the result of the fusion of the Gendarmerie and the Cities Police forces.
The 2008 Greek rebellion started on 6 December 2008, when Alexandros Grigoropoulos, a 15-year-old Greek student, was killed by a special officer in Exarcheia district of central Athens. The killing of the young student by police resulted in large protests and demonstrations, which escalated to widespread rioting, with numerous rioters damaging property and engaging riot police with Molotov cocktails, stones and other objects. Demonstrations and rioting soon spread to several other cities, including Thessaloniki, the country's second-largest city, and international cities in solidarity. Newspaper Kathimerini called the rioting "the worst Greece has seen since the restoration of democracy in 1974".
The Athens Polytechnic uprising occurred in November 1973 as a massive student demonstration of popular rejection of the Greek military junta of 1967–1974. It began on 14 November 1973, escalated to an open anti-junta revolt, and ended in bloodshed in the early morning of 17 November after a series of events starting with a tank crashing through the gates of the Athens Polytechnic. It is believed that approximately 40 people were killed by the Greek army on that day, and more than 2,000 were injured. This was the first event in a series of political crises that ultimately led to the fall of the junta in the summer of 1974, just a few months later.
The murder of Gramoz Palushi took place on September 4, 2004, at Tsilivi village in Zakynthos, Greece, when the 20-year-old Albanian Gramoz Palushi, who was celebrating the victory of the Albania national football team against the Greece national football team, was killed by a drunk Greek during a fight that broke out after the match.
Leianokladi railway station is a railway station situated between Lamia and Leianokladi in Phthiotis, Greece. The station opened on 8 March 1904 It is situated at the junction of the main Athens-Thessaloniki line with the branch line to Lamia and Stylida. It is served by intercity trains between Athens and Thessaloniki and by local trains to Stylida.
Gate 9 is a Cypriot Ultras group that supports PAC Omonia 29M and the non-football departments of AC Omonia.
Maria Elena Kyriakou is a Greek-Cypriot singer best known for winning the first season of The Voice of Greece under the mentorship of Despina Vandi. She represented Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with her song "One Last Breath".
Ioanna-Maria Gertsou is a representative of the Greek guide dog movement, through "Lara Guide-Dog School" a non - profit organisation that she co-founded in 2008. She is visually impaired due to retinopathy of prematurity. She is mostly known as "Lara" is the first guide dog related organisation of Greece. She is an activist, promoting human diversity, guide dog access, physical and electronic accessibility and animal rights.
The anti-austerity movement in Greece involved a series of demonstrations and general strikes that took place across the country. The events, which began on 5 May 2010, were provoked by plans to cut public spending and raise taxes as austerity measures in exchange for a €110 billion bail-out, aimed at solving the Greek government-debt crisis. Three people were killed on 5 May in one of the largest demonstrations in Greece since 1973.
Arete Kosmidou is a Greek singer. She participated in the television show "The Voice of Greece" in 2014, finishing as a runner-up.
Events in the year 2021 in Greece.
The 2004 Greek Cup final was the 60th final of the Greek Cup. The match took place on 8 May 2004 at Nea Smyrni Stadium. The contesting teams were Panathinaikos and Olympiacos. It was Panathinaikos' twenty sixth Greek Cup final in their 96 years of existence and Olympiacos' thirtieth Greek Cup final in their 79-year history. The final was originally scheduled to take place at the Pampeloponnisiako Stadium in Patras, but at the last minute the approval for its performance was not given after the refusal of the Achaia Police Department, for fear of provoking incidents by the fans of both teams and even a few months before the Olympic Games, and Patras was among the Olympic cities. Finally, following recommendations from the Minister of Public Order, George Voulgarakis, that the final should be held within the Attica Basin for the best possible policing, it was decided to take place at the Nea Smyrni Stadium, as the Olympic Stadium, due to upcoming games, was in the final phase of its reconstruction. Initially, the mayor of Nea Smyrni and president of the amateur Panionios, George Koutelakis, expressed his opposition and refusal to concede the stadium and for security reasons the number of tickets available for sale was limited.
The arson of a branch of the Marfin-Egnatia bank in Athens took place on May 5, 2010, during anti-austerity demonstrations. A group of unidentified perpetrators threw molotov cocktails to the bank while 25–30 clerks were inside. Most of the employees managed to escape from the building or they were rescued by firefighters. However 3 people were trapped inside the building and died from asphyxia. In 2013, bank officials were convicted for the negligent homicide of three employees, the bodily harm of another 21 employees, and multiple failures in fire safety measures and staff training.
On 28 February 2023, a head-on collision occurred between two trains south of the Tempe Valley in Greece, about halfway between the Greek villages of Tempi and Evangelismos in the Thessaly region. The collision, involving the InterCity 62 (IC62) passenger train and an intermodal freight train, killed at least 57 people, with an official number of 342 passengers and 10 onboard railway staff on the passenger train and 2 staff on the freight train totalling 354 people on both trains. It is the deadliest rail disaster in Greek history. It was discovered that the IC62 passenger train had been allowed to proceed on the wrong track and pass signals at danger despite the presence of the freight train on the same stretch of track.