25/11/17

Support of the Sappho Square Refugees

Lesvos Coordination Movement for the Support of Refugee and Immigrants 
Saturday November 25th at 12:00 at Sappho Square
you are all invited to join the protest in
Their just fight has been taking place on site at Sappho Square for over a month now and is a direct result of the inhumane living conditions that the government of SYRIZA-ANEL have been imposing on over 8000 refugees and immigrants that are currently trapped on Lesvos island.
Their life is in fact a living hell and they have every right to demand the opening of the borders so that they may continue their journey to their initially intended destinations. They state that they are refugees and not criminals and that they are only fighting for their self-evident right to freely leave this island.
Their struggle for life and liberty comes up against the wall of anti-refugee policies of the EU and of the Greek government, as well as, the EU-Turkey deal that have resulted in the entrapment of thousands of refugees on the eastern Aegean islands.

Apart from all else, this anti-refugee governmental policy of determent has cultivated fertile land for all kinds of fascists and self-proclaimed patriotic saviors.

The “protest public assembly” that was organized on the Square by the Mayor on Monday the 20th of November has given spark to the unprovoked attacks that were directed towards both the Sappho Square refugees and all standing in solidarity by them in the following to this event days.
Those that have been downplaying or even worse, have been covering up for the criminal character of several far right wing constructions (Golden Dawn among them) are surely to blame. Police and government have been keeping them under their wing. The Prefecture Head of East Aegean, Christiana Kalogirou, the Mayor of Lesvos, Spyros Galinos, the elected Parliament Member of New Democracy Party, Charalambos Athanasiou, in collaboration with the government of SYRIZA-ANEL are directly responsible for the fascistic attacks against the protesting refugees and against the solidarity movement as they have been facilitating and working hand in hand with all state mechanisms, choosing to “caress” the fascists of the Golden Dawn leaving them room to breath, move and act across the town of Mytilini. The neonazis of the criminal gang of the Golden Dawn in collaboration with other far right elements, are currently trying to resurface and take their place under the spotlight spreading their racist venom and hateful preachings on our island. Their attempts will not bear fruit. They will receive the response they deserve from us.
And all this while the Greek people are under the fiercest of attacks after the implementation of the most reactionary laws regarding work, education and health. It has been a conscious attempt to disorient the public about who is in fact behind this deep financial crisis. The neonazis and their followers are using the refugees as scapegoats so the Bankers, the Shipowners and the Capital will be left unscathed to continue increasing their profits despite the financial crisis. They purposely spread their racist poison against the refugees who are in fact victims so the attention of the public will deviate from those that should in fact be held accountable for poverty and impoverishment in our lives.
The actions of the Police are Unacceptable, Illegal and Condemnable. They have turned Sappho Square into a strange sanitary zone where any type of peaceful demonstration is forbidden and is denied access to. The recent backdrop of conflict of the past few days that is being established on Lesvos will not find support among the people of Lesvos. 
We explicitly condemn the fascist/racist attack that was directed yesterday Wednesday the 22nd of November towards a reporter that was covering the events as well as towards all acting in solidarity to the refugees that were being attacked. 

We the people of Lesvos have proven all these past years that we have only unconditional solidarity and humanity to exhibit and we will not allow a handful of nostalgic followers of Hitler to use the island as base of operations for racist attacks. Lesvos is and will remain an anti-fascist island, an island of solidarity for all refugees! Public squares belong to all struggling people, irregardless of nationality, color and religion and not to the forces of repression. 
We invite all democratic citizens of the island to isolate all sorts of fascistoids and to join us in our struggle to cease the imprisonment of any and all refugees at Hotspots, to raise our voices so that the hellish detention center of Moria is forever closed, that necessary documentation be facilitated and granted to all that wish to continue their journey and last not least, to demand the immediate removal of NATO and FRONTEX from our peaceful island.
We are organizing a protest on Saturday the 25th of November at noon at Sappho Square to fight for the following:

• Immediate satisfaction of all demands of the protesting refugees of Sappho Square
• The shutdown of Moria detention center
• Cancellation of EU-Turkey deal
• Truly humane living conditions for all refugees and immigrants
• Granting of all travel and identification documents necessary for the refugees freedom of movement
• Stop of all deportations to Turkey
• Stop all imperialist interventions in Asia and Africa that continue to beget thousands of refugees.
• To stop any and all anti-refugee and anti-immigrant policy of the EU