Yesterday afternoon, a demonstration took place in the city of Thessaloniki, denouncing the parastate bomb attack against the free social space “BuenaVentura”. The demonstration was called with main slogans “Their bombs do not save a bankrupt system” by the assembly that was held after the incident and “We are all BuenaVentura” by neighbors. It moved through the central streets, passing also through the neighborhood of the social space.
Paintballs were thrown at the bureau of L.A.O.S. (Popular Orthodox Alert – Far-right party) and many slogans were sprayed all around the city regarding -amongst others- the trial of the imprisoned anarchist Ilias Nikolaou and the day 6th of December.
On another front, Ilias Nikolaou is an anarchist that was arrested in January and held in jail (pretrial detention) since then, accused for an arson attack against the municipal police of Evosmos (West Thessaloniki). The police searched his house, the house of his father and grandmother in the countryside, and also the working place of Ilias, without managing to find a single piece of evidence. He has sent a few letters explaining his view, from inside the jail. Until now many solidarity actions (demonstrations, gatherings, posters, attacks) have taken place in many cities. The last events are:
27th November: Demonstration in the central streets of Thessaloniki
1st December: demonstration with motorcycles, cars and a bus, which went to Diavata prisons (outside Thessaloniki), were Ilias Nikolaou was transferred the same day
Next event: 2nd December- 9am: solidarity gathering outside the court – Free our comrade now!
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The trial of Ilias Nikolaou started yesterday and is continued today. The cop that arrested him said many contradictions an no other clues have been shown. The anarchist does not accept the charges, and the prosecutor suggest that he is guilty. Updates, as they come…
The following is a solidarity communique published by the co-workers of Ilias Nikolaou (translation from: http://libcom.org/news/solidarity-march-salonica-imprisoned-anarchist-trail-28112009):
HANDS OFF OUR CO-WORKER ILIAS NIKOLAOU
On 13/1 our co-worker Ilias Nikolaou is arrested by Salonica’s police, accused of an arson attack against the municipal police of Evosmos. He is badly beaten by the plain clothed cops resulting in two breaks on his arm, but not a single wound on a policeman. The police will claim “resistance upon arrest” (As if there was any chance of them to speak the truth…). AS workers we have ears and eyes. We refuse to enter the bog of stupidity and of course we will not believe the truth of the police. For the truth of the police says that flower-pots raise and beat students, and that Korkoneas shot [Alaxandros Grigoropoulos] as a warning. Our co-worker was led with minimal procedures to the prison of Amfissa, and the police realised its desire to jail Nikolaou. In the last year we have seen cinematic tranfers-abductions every time Ilias has demanded his release. As far as we are concerned, we must say we are on his side.
“When Mousaka threatens order and security” (or…police paranoia in special mission)
The day after his arrest another wonder-plan of the police unfolded. Plain-clothed police invaded Nikolaou’s house and the findings were restricted (of course) to NOTHING. The scattered and mutilated books on the floor prove the deep love and respect of the police to written discourse…A few hours later they invaded the place where we work and forced us to prove in paper who each was, before starting to search everything. As they found no AK-47 in the rice, no bomb in the custard, no corpse in the cellar, their findings were (of course) restricted to NOTHING. To their insistent questions regarding the reason of their search we were informed that a very serious crime had been committed. If a broken window in the municipal police is a “serious crime”, we can imagine if the situation was more serious: they would hang us from trees or parade us with placards on our necks. Amongst all the ridiculous things they did was check the papers of the customers whose crime was to have chosen to eat soup…And when we protested “gentlemen you have checked the cupboard thrice” the answer was inspired by the very democratic principles of Korkoneas: “if I feel like it I will search it 15 times over” (It is fortunate that Nikolaou did not work in the National Telecom in which case they would have to check the papers of 1000 workers and search the building for a couple of days…)
“When an 80 year old woman threatens National Security” (or how to construct new Korkoneas)
Simultaneously with the invasion of Nikolaou’s workplace, 30 policemen invaded his granny’s place in a village out of Kozani, upsetting and terrorising her. There too the findings were restricted (of course) to NOTHING. We wonder which dark mind sent 30 policemen to an elderly woman’s house. We wonder if a single one of them was ashamed, if a single one of them refused to perform the horrible search. OF COURSE NONE! One question remains unsolved: what were the policemen really searching? Probably the slightest thing, so that “the story stands”, this repeatedly badly manufactured police story…the old craft holds strong. In a time that the police is trying to mend up for Korkoneas types’ atrocities it should be expected that they will target not only Nikolaou but also his friendly, family, work, and comrade environment. Just as they have done.
We are publicly denouncing the totally cowardly invasion of the Kozani police in Nikolaous parents and granny’s houses.
We are publicly denouncing the effort of terrorising us and the police invasion in our workplace.
We are denouncing the effort to upgrade a broken window into a “serious crime” just so that the police can show off its productivity.
We are calling on anyone who is really thinking freely and whoever is sick of seeing policemen in this city behaving like serifs in the wild west, to come and support our co-worker Ilias Nikolaou at the court on 2-12-09.
We will be on his side.
The co-workers of Ilias Nikolaou
Thessaloniki 27-11-09
Ilias Nikolaou is convicted to 7,5 years. The court claimed that he is guilty for explosion with danger for a human life!(?!?!)
The decision is totally irrational and everybody’s rage is more than just.
Democracy doesn’t smile, just shows it’s teeth… Ilias, we are with you…
Free Ilias!
When the insurrection of December 6 happens, a good strategy would be to break all the prisoners out of the prison where he is so they can join the struggle.
for a rupture that never closes!
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