HOPELESS DREAMS

We must always have hope. Having DREAMS enrich our lives.

THREE DAYS OF HATE

Posted on the weblog "Harry' Place" on the Eurofest (Hatewave) Festival taking place in a few weeks here in Greece. Three days of hate, hate and music Despite objections from local authorities, Jewish groups and the Turkish government, white nationalist movements from all over Europe intend to gather next month in Greece for a three-day festival. "We're determined to go ahead with it," said Dimitris Eleftheropoulos, a spokesman for... Chryssi Avgi, or Golden Dawn. "No one can deny us our democratic right to assemble in public." Billed as Eurofest 2005 and backed by some of the Continent's leading neo-Nazi groups, the event promises "racial rock music," and "inspiring messages," according to the Chryssi Avgi Web site. It is to be held Sept. 16 to 18 in southern Greece. Members of the far right, including Udo Voigt, who leads the National Democratic Party in Germany, and Roberto Fiore of Forza Nuova in Italy, are to address the festival. A glance at the Eurofest website provides a reminder, for anyone who needs it, that being anti-capitalist, anti-globalization and anti-American is not the sole prerogative of the far Left. For comments on this post go here

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MORE IMMIGRATION HEADACHES

More bureacracy and headaches for immigrants wishing to become permanent residents in Greece. READ THE FULL STORY HERE

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BLOGGER COMMENTS

I have reverted back to Blogger comments because I was fed up with how Haloscan looks. It is not possible to import all previous comments to their correct places so I have put them all in this post. They are all general anyway. Apologies.

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TAKE ACTION

If you want to do more than just blog or read about human rights issues, you can at Amnesty International. Send letters and sign petitions online. ACT NOW Read the section YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE if you are in any doubt that your contribution can help.

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UPDATE ON JEAN CHARLES DE MENEZES

So here it is, as most of us already suspected... It has now emerged that Mr de Menezes: 1. was never properly identified because a police officer was relieving himself at the  very moment he was leaving his home; 2. was unaware he was being followed; 3. was not wearing a heavy padded jacket or belt as reports at the time suggested; 4. never ran from the police; 5. and did not jump the ticket barrier. FULL STORY:

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ANTI NAZI INITIATIVE

The Anti Nazi Initiative action alert against the pan-European Nazi (Hatewave) meeting in Greece. in Greek in English

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HATEWAVE UPDATE

ARTICLE FROM NEW YORK TIMES : Far-Right Festival in Greece Will Proceed as Planned By ANTHEE CARASSAVA Published: August 10, 2005 ATHENS, Aug. 9 Greece's far-right party refused Tuesday to cancel a September festival of European right-wing activists despite mounting opposition from local authorities, Jewish groups and the Turkish government. 'We're determined to go ahead with it,' said Dimitris Eleftheropoulos, a spokesman for the Greek party Chryssi Avgi, or Golden Dawn. 'No one can deny us our democratic right to assemble in public.' Billed as Eurofest 2005 and backed by some of the Continent's leading neo-Nazi groups, the event planned for Sept. 16 through 18 in southern Greece promises a 'unique gathering' including 'racial rock music,' and 'inspiring messages,' according to the Chryssi Avgi Web site. Members of the far right, including Udo Voigt, who leads the National Democratic Party in Germany, and Roberto Fiore of the Italian party Forza Nuova are set to address the crowds. Organizers said Tuesday that they were hoping for a surprise appearance by Jean-Marie Le Pen, the French far-right leader who once called the Nazi gas chambers a 'mere detail' of history. 'We're not releasing any further information at this time,' said Mr. Eleftheropoulos, citing security concerns. Tentatively set for Meligala, a sleepy hamlet 150 miles southwest of the Greek capital, the festival is officially described by Chryssi Avgi as 'a camping trip to Hellas, land of the heroes.' The event coincides with one of Greece's grimmest anniversaries: the 1944 massacre of 1,400 women and children by Greek Communist insurgents in Meligala. Organizers said the choice of dates for the event was intentional. Local officials are enraged, and the town's mayor has vowed to block the festival for fear of violence stemming from antiracism activists and anarchists considering counter-protests. 'For God's sake,' said Mayor Eleni Aliferi, 'our wounds from the civil war have yet to heal.' Government and police officials privately denounce the event. But to ban it, they say, may make the neo-Nazis into democratic martyrs. Opponents, however, are calling for government action. 'This is hair-raising,' said Moses Constantides, a Jewish leader. 'We've never seen any gathering of this scale being planned in Greece,' he said, referring to right-wing events. Critics argue that the real goal of Eurofest 2005 is to foster hate and racism and recruit a new following of far-right extremists in Europe. In addition, they say, the event, with the call 'Turkey, out of Europe' as one of its main slogans, may spell trouble for Greece's shaky relations with Turkey. Last month, days after Chryssi Avgi began advertising Eurofest 2005 on its Web site, officials in Ankara warned Athens that the gathering could spiral into an anti-Turkish hate-fest weeks before the start of its crucial accession talks with the European Union. 'At a time when Greece continues to support Turkey's bid to join the E.U., there would be problems if the said camp turned into an anti-Turkish platform,' a senior Turkish official said."

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DETENTION CONDITIONS

Appalling detention conditions in Samos Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM) highlights translated excerpts from an article in today’s issue of the Athens daily Avghi by MP (Left Coalition) (and medical doctor) Thanasis Leventis on the detention facility for illegal entrants in the island of Samos. Leventis has just visited the facility with the local authorities. "It is in the center of the city of Samos and there were 95 detainees. "Almost all are under 20, most are minors aged 15-16 yrs. Although young many mentioned they are married with 2-3 children. Detention conditions are really squalid. They are packed in cells. Only about 1/4 have beds. Some have mattresses, but most have just a blanket on the floor, without pillows. There is no electric light in the cells or the corridors which are dark even in midday when we visited. Toilets are in a miserable shape. There is no possibility to wash oneself individually unless with water through a hose in an open toilet. Many had mosquito bites. The high temperature (38 degrees during our visit) aggravates the problems packed in an old and not well maintained facility. They come from poor countries of the third world (Afghans, Somalis, Algerians, etc.) but are detained in fourth world conditions. The state budget per person is 6 euros per day which is very inadequate even for a poor meal. It is inhuman not to allow them to go out to the facility's yard some 200 sq.m. This can happen only when there are enough police officers available. It is irrational to hold for three months so many people mostly minors. We left the facility with a feeling of shame for our country and our civilization."

THIS IS NOT MY COUNTRY UPDATE

Thank you to EllasDevil for your comment. "After reading your blog and this thread specifically, I've gone and bought the book you're talking about. It looks very interesting." A write up on the book in Greek can be found here SPREAD THE WORD Thank you also to the SeaWitch for the words and encouragement to keep going. Much appreciated.

UPDATE ON ROMA EVICTIONS

Appeal to the Mayor of Athens to Stop the Forced Evictions of Roma residents In a letter sent on July 29 2005 and addressed to the mayor of Athens, nine NGOs urged Greek authorities to withdraw plans to forcibly evict approximately 70 Albanian Roma families currently living in squalid conditions in three communities in the area of Votanikos, Athens, and to undertake measures to ensure their adequate housing. No plans to avoid their homelessness had been made available. Earlier, Amnesty International had called on the authorities to stop the evictions of Roma families living in the area of Patras. For full letter download here

EXPLOITING THE DEAF

Police appear to be have uncovered the local arm of a Europe-wide criminal gang that smuggles deaf immigrants into Greece and forces them to work as street vendors under the threat of violence, authorities said yesterday. Police arrested a deaf Ukrainian couple on the island of Corfu who were thought to be responsible for bringing tens of deaf people into Greece to peddle goods at outdoor cafes and restaurants on the country’s islands in summer. The couple, police said, would give the illegal immigrants false documentation and force them to work, threatening them and their families with bodily harm if they failed to do so. Each month, the vendors would pay the couple 400 to 500 euros, of which two-thirds would be handed over to a fellow gang member and the head of the operation, believed to be based in the Ukranian capital, Kiev. The network is thought to have spread into Italy and Spain, with the gang using Ukraine and other ex-Soviet states as a source of deaf street vendors. Police seized 7,500 euros and forged documents from the Ukranian couple’s apartment yesterday.