ATHENS (Reuters) - Thousands of immigrants marched in Athens on
Friday to protest police sweeps and a rash of racist attacks in Greece
as the country struggles to pull itself out of a huge debt crisis.
Greece is a major gateway for mostly Asian and African migrants trying
to enter the European Union. They face increased hostility as the
country struggles through its deepest post- World War Two recession and
record unemployment, propelling the ultra-nationalist Golden Dawn party
to parliament for the first time since the fall of a military junta in
1974.
About 5,000 protesters marched to parliament holding banners reading
"No Islamophobia" and "Neo Nazis out!" in one of the biggest anti-racism
marches in Athens in recent years.
Tensions between immigrants
and Greeks have risen sharply in recent months and the demonstration was
held a day after police detained hundreds of undocumented immigrants in
the western city of Corinth as part of a nationwide sweep and held them
in a former army camp.
The move enraged local authorities and
residents who rallied outside the army camp to protest against its
conversion into an immigrant detention center.
"We will do
everything possible to prevent such a disaster," Corinth's mayor
Alexandros Pnevmatikos told Skai TV. "We don't want the camp, which is
in the centre of the city, close to densely populated neighborhoods, to
become a holding center".
Far-right protesters and supporters of
Golden Dawn clashed with police at the entrance of the camp on Thursday
and hundreds of protesters, including small groups of
ultra-nationalists, returned to protest on Friday. Some hurled bottles
of water at a conservative deputy visiting the camp.
Police this
month launched a sweep operation called "Xenios Zeus" after the ancient
Greek god of guests and travelers. They have so far arrested hundreds of
illegal immigrants.
Racist attacks against immigrants have
increased in Greece since the economic crisis flared in 2009, according
to pro-immigrant groups which accuse the police of turning a blind eye.
Human Rights Watch said in a report last month that it had interviewed
59 people who suffered or escaped a racist incident between August 2009
and May this year. But the advocacy group added that the true extent of
xenophobic violence in Greece was not clear given many victims do not
report the crimes.
(Reporting by Renee Maltezou; Editing by Jon Hemming)
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