Town hall of Nikaia, Athens is occupied after demo for the police killing
of Mohammad Atif Kamran; statement by the occupation’s assembly.

Mohammad Atif Kamran was a 25-year old migrant from Pakistan. On September
26, Mohammad’s house was raided by police who beat him, dragged him to the
local police station and tortured him. On October 10, Mohammad passed away
(more on his case here).

Today, a week after Mohammad’s death, a demonstration was called at
Nikaia, the Athens suburb where he lived, by anarchist groups. At the end
of the demonstration, some people entered the local town hall and occupied
– as of now (19.00 GMT) the occupation continues.

What follows is a rough translation of the assembly of the occupied town
hall.

—

STATEMENT FROM THE OCCUPIED TOWN HALL OF NIKAIA

Four-hundred demonstrators marched together today, October 17, on the
streets of Nikaia in a demonstration of rage for the recent assassination
of 25-year old Pakistani migrant Mohammad Atif Kamran, who passed away
following his torturing in the police station of Nikaia. The demonstration
had been called by anarchist collectives and a local assembly of the
neighboring areas.

We walked through the area’s main streets, passed by the house of the
assassinated Atif and headed toward the police station. The large numbers
of Riot Police (MAT) and motorcycle forces (Delta and Zita) that were
“accompanying” the demonstration parading in its front, back and side
streets, were highlighting the official stance of the now Socialist
Ministry of Public Order (now called Ministry of Citizen Protection!): To
cover up and support the torturers, assassins, the police occupation of
the area in face of the appearance of the world of struggle and
solidarity. After all, what happened will continue to happen: beatings,
torturing and ridiculing of detainees in all police stations across the
country.

During our gathering and for the largest part of the demonstration the
rain was falling heavy. And yet at the point of passing in front of the
police station of Nikaia it wasn’t just the rain drops. The unit
protecting the police station also took a rain of stones. The orderly
continuation of the demonstration and our retreat from that point was met
with the combined attack by Riot Police units in both the back and side
part of the demo. The people at the sides of the demo, chained up, held up
against the police attacks and locals watching from the pavements and
balconies were jeering and swearing at the police occupation force. Yet
in-between the mist of the tear gas and the attack of the Riot Police some
of us were isolated from the main demonstration and so, were detained by
police.

The police ended up at a specific area of Nikaia, as previously agreed.
Given the police detentions, a large part of those of us gathered there
occupied the Town Hall of Nikaia, to demand the immediate release of our
captioned comrades. Some of us who left in their vehicles were also
stopped at a nearby junction and detained, too. The exact number of the
detained is unknown (even if we do know some names for sure) but is
definitely a two-digit one, while some have already been charged. The new
state doctrine of “democracy and an iron fist” is here in its full glory –
as announced by the new minister of Polic Order himself – against all
those who revolt and resist. Same as in the gathering of workers and
unemployed of the shipyards of Perama on October 15 outside the Ministry
of Employment. Same as in Exarcheia, occupied for days now. Same as in the
charges against high school students occupying their schools. Same as in
the forthcoming mobilisation of the shipyard workers of Piraeus against
the selling-off of the port to the COSCO corporation, or the 1400 workers
threatened with firing at the shipyards of Skaramangas, in Attica.

Police barbarity is no more than the repressive version of the
state-capitalist barbarity: repression, exploitation, submission, death.

What the new political administration came to largely handle was the
social dimension of the crisis of our times: the expanded disobedience and
confrontation with the demands of the political and financial elites. No
illusions then. There shall be no change coming from the new government.
As always, after all. State terrorism continues and along with it,
continues the struggle for social and individual emancipation, for a free
world, without authority.

IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF THE DETAINED DEMONSTRATORS

DROP ALL CHARGES

IMMEDIATE RETREAT OF THE POLICE FORCE FROM THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF NIKAIA

AND AROUND THE OCCUPIED TOWN HALL

assembly of the occupied town hall of nikaia