ANOTHER DEATH

From Kathimerini A probe has been launched into claims by Afghan migrants that a 15-year-old fellow national was beaten by coast guards at the port of Patras and that a 21-year-old Afghan subsequently died of shock, authorities said yesterday. The two young men were part of a group of Afghans who tried to sneak into a truck due to board a ferry to Italy on Sunday evening but were spotted by coast guards who then chased them and beat the younger man, members of the group testified. According to the migrants, who have been living in a camp near the port, the 21-year-old died of shock upon seeing the alleged beating of the youngster. The Port Authority refuted the beating charges and said the boy had sustained his injuries after jumping off some railings during the chase. A coroner said the 21-year-old died of natural causes and the boy’s injuries were the result of “impact upon a hard surface.” There have been many stories of police and coast guard brutality towards immigrants over the years. An investigation has been launched but I doubt anything will be discovered. Who are the authorities going to believe in this case? A group of illegal immigrants or the men in uniform? Whatever the truth is, another young man is dead. While we continue to treat immigrants like criminals and worse, like animals, more people will be beaten, killed, rounded up, imprisoned in containers, stripped of their basic human rights and forgotten. And we call ourselves civilised?