Up to 300 migrants, mostly from North Africa, are currently on hunger strike in the two main Greek cities of Athens and Thessaloniki. As of 5 March the migrants had been on hunger strike for 40 days. This means that the critical threshold beyond which health damage is non-reversible has been crossed. So far 100 protesters have been hospitalised, with many now refusing to drink water. Many are on the brink of death.
Their demands are simple:
- The immediate legalisation of the 300 undocumented workers on hunger strike
- The legalisation of all undocumented workers
- The abrogation of the Dublin II Regulation which puts the lives of migrants in danger by turning immigration detention in some countries into warehouses where all types of violence and human rights violation are commonplace (Under the Regulation asylum seekers can be returned by other countries to the first EU country they entered. Due to its geographical location, Greece is commonly a first country.)
History of exploitation
The migrants have lived and worked in Greece for up to seven years. According to The Guardian ‘They picked olives and oranges, they looked after the old and the sick, they worked on building sites and orchards for a fraction of the minimum wage. After years of exploitation and humiliation, they are now told they are no longer wanted because of the economic crisis. They must go back voluntarily or be deported. Immigrants are the double victims of boom and bust in Greece. Now they are deemed to be surplus to requirements, to be disposed of like refuse.’
Solidarity grows amid police intimidation
The Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) Greek government has stubbornly refused to meet the protesters’ demands and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dimitris Droutsas not only denied the government bears any responsibility at all for the situation, but insisted that it is those people standing in solidarity who should be held accountable for putting the migrants’ lives in danger. Many Greek citizens, appalled at the conditions of the migrants and inspired by their struggle, have taken to the streets in solidarity. Demonstrations in Athens have taken place, most recently on 1 and 4 March, with protestors facing brutal attacks by riot police. Eight members of the ‘Initiative for Solidarity to the 300 Hunger Strikers’ have been arrested and accused of human trafficking and the police have interrogated doctors and nurses at the hospital where some of the migrants are located.
This state oppression has not stopped the determination of many Greek people to express their solidarity with the hunger strikers. Occupations of state buildings have taken place, including interventions and demonstrations on TV and radio stations nationwide. Many Greek workers, facing drastic cuts as the government seeks to deal with the capitalist crisis and pay off its debt to the European Union (EU) (See FRFI 218) have come to realise that the migrants’ struggle represents a fightback for all workers. The migrants are in the front line and are leading by example; this is why the Greek ruling class and government are seeking to quell their struggle at all costs.
The Greek government claims it supports human rights but the treatment of migrant workers shows this to be a lie. In January the European Court of Human Rights held that sending refugees back to Greece from other European countries amounted to torture and inhuman and degrading treatment because of the appalling conditions of detention in immigration camps.
The racism of the European Union
Although the European Court of Human Rights has condemned Greece, the EU has refused to do so. European leaders have turned a blind eye to the brutality of the Greek state, pleased that it is policing Europe’s border with Africa. As the people of North Africa have risen up against their own oppressive regimes we must also support their struggles against racism in European countries too. This is not a just a fight for the workers of the oppressed countries, it is a fight for all workers seeking to end the exploitation and injustice of the imperialist system.
Justice for the hunger strikers!
