To: Hörður Torfason

CC: HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANISATIONS

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thousands of people from all over Greece participated in the protests against the adoption of the medium-term fiscal program by the parliament. These peaceful protests took place at the Syntagma Square on the 28th and 29^th of June, 2011. The protesters awaited a very strong police force including groups of riot police and DIAS teams both of which took over the area of the parliament.

Starting on Tuesday, June 28, 2011, masked strangers, who did not belong to the thousands of peaceful protesters, began throwing stones to the police leading to outbreaks of violent clashes between them and in turn the police started throwing tear gases and other chemicals, however, NOT towards the masked rioters, but on the side of the peaceful protesters.

As shown on television, as proven by photographs and eye-witnesses on the spot, the hooded rioters were executing commands by the police in order to provide an excuse for the police to break up the peaceful protest and blame the protesters for these incidents. The MAT (riot police) showed great zeal in the intervention and suppression of the demonstration beating seniors who were certainly not masked, women without masks nor hoods, mothers holding their children, and men who had their hands up showing to the police that they had no involvement in the violence, as shown by the video, begging not to strike, nevertheless, the police was beating them on their heads creating wounds and victims out of innocent protesters. On the same day, as shown on video, the police escorted the masked people (their companions) to safety in the precincts of parliament.
On June 29, 2011 the demonstration had more people than the previous day and was again peaceful with dances and songs, until shortly before the voting of the medium-term program.
The rioters, then, who initiated the incidents the previous day, started again throwing stones at policemen, burning shops, beating and stabbing peaceful protesters, which again led the police to throw chemicals in amounts that, are impossible to believe. To begin to comprehend the amount of chemicals used, press reports stated that the police spent 900,000 Euros for chemical weapons. 

During the second day, the police, once again, started beating people who were demonstrating peacefully, from all age groups, they “bombarded” with chemicals even the temporary clinics that were set up in Syntagma Square, as per the official complaint of doctors and the president of pharmacists who were there to provide assistance to injured protesters, along with the reports that speak of thousands of wounded people. Proof of everything we say can be found all over the Internet.
Apart from the battered people and the use of large amount of unnecessary chemicals, these events are also a major blow to our democracy. Since the first loan which was literally forced to the occupied Greece by Germans and Italians, until this day, the corruption scandals, financial and political, of the majority of governments in power, proven and exposed one after the other, have brought Greece and Greeks in a difficult position. The future of our children and our own is uncertain and we have no way to express ourselves to fight our nonviolent fight, because against us stands a violent and cruel government.
We turn to you, the guards of human rights, the organizations with the human soul, please, make the truth known, please support our nonviolent fight for dignity, justice and true democracy.
This report is signed by Greek citizens who do not belong to any party or religious organization and our first concern is our country, our fellow human, and the future of our children.
Thank you

Margarita Kamilieri

Katerina Detoraki

Tilemachos Karachalios