The state, cops and university lackies decided on 31 December 2021 to realize an eviction that has already been announced the previous months. After unofficial threats for an upcoming eviction of the Biologica squat during the previous years, in September a project agreement was signed and assigned to a contractor, with the aim of “remodeling” and “utilizing” the spaces on the ground floor of the Biology building where the squat used to be. In the plans, of course, they included the squatted area with the intention of demolishing the surrounding walls and turning it into a secretariat room and a waiting room. In New Year’s Eve as in the long gone 1992 – at that time they built the door of the squat – the university campus is surrounded by police forces while underground cops are moving towards the area of the squat. They invaded our liberated ground and after conducting a thorough search, while destroying anything that was in the squat, they took pictures of their “grand” findings and they gave the space to the workers to finish off the first stage of their plan, the demolition of the walls. [Read More]
Thessaloniki: The eviction of the Biologica steki won’t go unanswered
Open Assembly in solidarity with the Biologica steki, friday 31 december at 3:00 p.m. at the first student restaurant.
Today 31 december, on new year’s eve, the state and the cops evicted the occupied Biologica steki, surrounding the area around the campus, with an increased presence inside the university. The storming and eviction of the steki was chosen to take place at dawn (6:00 am) as they would not face any form of resistance at this time. We do not consider the eviction of the steki to be an exception, as part of the political methods of the state in the form of control and repression to silence any mode of expression and action that deviates from the dominant one. [Read More]
Thessaloniki: 34 years are not enough. Hands off our squat! Solidarity week with Biologica squat
Dear comrades
We are reaching out to fellow squats, collectives, autonomous groups and comrades, to inform and raise awareness about the current situation concerning the recent squat eviction wave in Greece, as well as the new “anti-education” laws that allow policing in public education institutions.
As you may already know the “occupied space at Biology school of Thessaloniki”, one of the oldest squats in Greece, is threatened with eviction. We take this threat seriously, as it is based on solid information, that has been published by the Greek Ministry of Digital Governance and is about to be completed within 16 months (from September 16th, 2021), starting with the demolition of walls within 4 months (until January 2022). As christmas holidays are around the corner, in combination with recent targeted statements, by the vice minister of education Mr Sirigos, we consider this period, dangerous for possible eviction and immediate demolition of the internal walls of the squat. In the past, we have witnessed evictions taking place during holidays, as it is a known government tactic to act, when many students and comrades are away from big cities, in order to avoid resistance. [Read More]
Athens: Call for participation in the defense of the Squatted Community of Prosfygika
Hello comrades,
We address this call to collectives and individuals from all around the world to join the combative defense of Prosfygika against the imminent repression. The attempted evacuation of our neighborhood must be turned into a central event of resistance and a victory against political power and the gentrification of our neighborhoods in the metropolis.
WHAT WE INVITE YOU TO DEFEND:
The building complex of Prosfygika was built in 1933 for the refugees coming from Asia minor.
In the conditions of the time, a vibrant working class neighbourhood with communal characteristics emerged. Today,it is one of the biggest building complexes in the center of Athens, which is still not gentrified and exploited by big investors or the state. It is a place of strategic significance, since it is located between the two ‘pillars’ of authority – the Supreme Court on one hand and the Police Headquarters on the other.
Within this socio-spatial frame, some militants, who were already living in the neighborhood as squatters, decided to organize. In 2010 they initiated the Community of Squatted Prosfygika, having as its central decision-making political organ the Assembly of Squatted Prosfygika (SY.KA.PRO.). A communal body for everyday life and political struggle. [Read More]
Athens: Theater Embros resquatted
A very large and enthusiastic meeting of Embros on Sunday 23 May decided to continue the defense of the Free Self-Managed Theater. The attempt of the police and the Public Property Company to reseal the Embros on the morning of Monday 24 May was met by the lawyers of the movement and the people of the struggle, the united solidarity forces and the works were stopped. We start today Monday 24 May and every day from 5 pm a week of Art and Freedom in front of the building and collective works to repair the damages caused by the eviction.
On Saturday 29 May, we call for a nationwide Day of Action of artists, neighbourhood assemblies and social centers in every corner of the country to defend not only Embros but all liberated spaces. The power of self-organization can stop the destruction of our neighborhoods and nature threatened by the tide of exploitation and the insolence of obscenity.
The weekly program of events starts now! It will be enriched daily with new entries. We invite art groups to present their ideas and work during the day outside the building. [Read More]
Athens: on the side of the Embros Theatre
The chronicle of a repression announced for 10 years was completed yesterday with the eviction of the Embros theatre. A space that began as a response to the capital’s overthrow of iconic urban landmarks is sealed off to be overpowered.
The occupation of the Embros Theatre was the appropriation of a decaying cultural tool and its true utilization by people of art, politics, and the neighborhood. All these masses of people who passed, the participants and producers of another culture testing its grips, can attest to this but also reflect on what its loss signifies.
In the midst of the pandemic, in the most gentrified area for the capital’s small and large tourist capital, Embros was a thorn, not only for its political flavour but also for constituting an agitated and agressive voice at the centre of the tourist product. Something like a stronghold a few meters from the tables of the occupied city held parties, theatre performances, speeches, events, concerts, seminars, collective kitchens, festivals… For free. Organized horizontally. And without discrimination, neither ethnic, nor racial, nor, unfortunately for gentrification. [Read More]
Athens: Theater Embros evicted
Today 19/5, early in the morning, at 7:30, after a prosecutor’s order, an evacuation and sealing operation of the Free Self-Managed Theater EMBROS took place, in the presence of the police and representatives of ETAD (Public Real Estate Company), the company which the historic building of Embros (first printing house in Greece, characterized as a modern monument) belongs to. The operation took place without the permission of the Ministry of Culture which is responsible for these buildings or with its resounding absence and silent complicity.
What problem could the Greek Ministry of Culture have, after all, that a modern monument was cemented since they gave permission to cement the most important of the ancient ones, Acropolis!
What problem could the Greek Ministry of Culture have, after all, that a theater was sealed since throughout this difficult period of the pandemic they devalue Art and insult artists in the worst way, leading them to despair and extinction. [Read More]
Athens: Zizania, new squatted social center in Victoria
Welcome to Zizania, a squatted social center in Victoria, at the corner of Fylis and Feron streets. May it be a neighbourhood space for self-organisation, social interventions, collective resistance and community building. Let’s meet in this space for sharing thoughts, food, coffee, clothes and whatever else we can imagine. For freeshops and free haircuts, for caffeneios and screenings, for learning and reading, for workshops and assemblies. Let’s celebrate it as a step towards the liberation of more public spaces, let’s make the best of this opportunity, as we are the ones who shape and take on our own struggles and shouldn’t rely neither on other people, designated institutions, nor better circumstances to do so.
With Zizania we foremostly aim to create a breathing space from the racist, sexist, capitalistic violence of the state and society. We envision a space of interaction and exchange between people of different backgrounds, origins, identities and ages, who speak different languages and have different opinions. These are conditions we must create and concretise together, through meeting each other, strengthening relationships inside and between our communities and connecting our struggles. For too long we have only been dreaming about something like this – surely we weren’t the only ones – and now we want to take action. In that spirit, we invite you to bring your issues, ideas, initiatives, and struggles to discuss how we can shape this space together. [Read More]
Greece: New Year’s Notes under Lockdown
At this time, we are reminded of our comrades through banners and graffiti, through brief encounters under the guise of getting exercise between curfews, and through the courageous actions of those who turn to the night to act as the day becomes too dangerous.
The anarchist movement in Greece is among the largest in the world, proportionate to the population. However, we are now experiencing unprecedented repression as a result of the pandemic and resulting political opportunism. We remain stagnated in lockdown, overwhelmed by the reign of the right and its defenders. Ecocide, social control, new crackdowns on universities, and general repression of those excluded from or deemed enemies of the Greek state continue to expand in the shadow of COVID-19.
We will highlight a few recent incidents of concern relating to the solidarity efforts essential for the global anarchist movement. We sometimes struggle to write these updates, not wishing to simply present a monthly bulletin on depression from Greece. We write from a perspective that many people here share, best summarized by this comment that captures the theme of so many interactions here: “Some days good, some days bad. Just feel stuck, and not even sure what I’m waiting for.”
During this enforced pause in our lives, those who hold power are rushing through policies and automation disguised as pandemic response. This is part of a broader effort to gentrify Greek society. [Read More]
Thessaloniki: The Struggle Through the Eyes of Terra Incognita Squat
This interview with members of Terra Incognita Squat reaches us by submission. The squat was invaded by the police on August 17, 2020, equipment confiscated, and the squat sealed off. Comrades issued a call for international support. This interview goes into further detail about the work and political objectives of the nearly two decade project.
Question: What is the goal of Terra Incognita squat? When did it establish its presence?
Answer: Comrades, greeting from the distant grounds of the western metropolitan areas. 17 years ago, our squat and political assembly found their roots in the results of the anti-globalization movement with the demonstration against the session of G7 during the summer of 2003 and the defense of the 7 arrested comrades after the events of the anti-session. The positive results of the struggle for the release of the arrested revolutionaries finds the anarchist movement of Thessaloniki in a moment of peak which seeks the territorialization of our anarchist ideology through the creation of stable reference points of expressing and referring to radical perceptions and choices of fighting against the state and the capital. Terra Incognita is the result of the need for a stable center of organising and supporting the struggle with all means, a choice that we would like to believe was consistently supported during these 17 years. [Read More]
Athens: Notara 26, five years of solidarity and resistance
The story has been told many a times now. We have heard, witnessed, and lived it in the past five years. In 2015, with the onset of mass migration and what was called the “refugee crisis” we saw the political, social, and urban landscapes of many places change—including Athens, Greece. The events touched and affected the public and private lives of many. The beginning of Noara26 points to one of those moments. A time when a group of people, with ideals and politics of self-organization, collective action, and solidarity were moved to occupy an empty public building in the city’s downtown and to create a place of shelter and safety for thousands of refugees who were abandoned in the streets of Athens.
This September marks the fifth year of our squat’s existence. It is true that we can mark this date in our calendars and remember it as a day of creation and celebration. But the lessons we have learned, the joyful moments we have created, the memories and lives we have shared, the challenges and struggles we have faced and overcome as community are unmeasurable and exceed the limits of time. [Read More]
Athens: Call for international solidarity for a trial on September 18
On September 18, the trial against two comrades from Berlin and two comrades from Athens will take place in Evelpidon Court in Athens. On November 26, 2017, the four persons were arrested during the eviction of Gare Squat, in the Athens district of Exarcheia. Among other charges, they are accused of trespassing, attempted serious bodily harm, refusal of forensic identification and possession of explosive materials and explosive bombs. This eviction was the first of three in which the four comrades were detained for 4 days. They were released on conditions or bail and now, almost three years later, have to appear in court. [Read More]
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