89 Posts in City Life

More than 100 organizations of civil society are supporting WAD 2023, representing people with special needs, the LGBTQI+ community, the Roma, migrants, HIV-positive people, the elderly, people with mental disorders, and religious minorities, among many others. Unlike other years, organizers said, "this year we will not walk, we shall remain standing at the place we rally, as a protest against the lack of progress in human rights issues in Greece. We are immobile but standing up, holding high the baton of human rights, despite their trials." Every year WAD culminates in the awarding of the 'Tzanetos Antipas Anti-Racism Award' to an entity or individual, and this year it will be presented to the Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM), Greece's anti-discrimination and free-speech protection non-governmental organization since 1993. WAD 2023 is organized by the Greek Forum of Migrants together with the Racist Violence Recording Network (RVRN), the Hellenic League for Human Rights (HLHR), the PRAKSIS (Programs of Development, Social Support & Medical Cooperation) non-profit organization, the Transgender Support Association in Greece and Golden Dawn Watch.

Contemporary cities such as Athens are constantly seeking out meeting points and creative hubs for renewing ties with their citizens. This need is most pressing when it comes to playgrounds, which are the beating heart of neighborhoods and communities – a place to let off steam, join together, and connect. For children, they are a place for play and free time spent within a safe environment. For adults, they are a place for community interaction.

Protesters hurled gasoline bombs at a police cordon near parliament. Riot police responded with tear gas and sound grenades, during the brief flare-up of violence that disrupted large, peaceful demonstrations. There were no immediate reports of injuries or arrests. The strike grounded flights and extensively disrupted services, while large protests were also held in other cities across the country. Clashes between youths and police also erupted in the southern port city of Patras. The strike also kept ferries to the Greek islands at port, left public hospitals running with emergency staff, halted public transport services and led to class cancellations at state-run schools. Unions have rallied behind railway workers’ associations that have staged rolling walkouts since the head-on train collision in northern Greece on Feb. 28 that left 57 people dead and dozens injured. “This government has had four years to fix problems with the rail network, but instead of owning up to that responsibility, they are blaming everyone else,” Popi Tsapanidou, a spokeswoman for main leftist opposition party Syriza, told private Skai television. The main protests were held in Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city, and in the capital Athens, where thousands chanted “this crime will not be forgotten” as they reached a police cordon outside a private rail operator. Stores and banks lowered their shutters when the protesters filed past as the capital was brought to a standstill. A wide variety of labor associations — from those representing lawyers to delivery drivers — joined the strike. The government, which faces a parliamentary election before the summer, says rail services will restart on March 22nd and be restored gradually through April 11, with additional staff to monitor safety and mandatory speed reduction rules along sections of the track. Hellenic Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ center-right government has seen a strong lead in opinion polls reduced in recent weeks over its main rival, Syriza, with the two sides also locked in an ideological debate over how to reform Greece’s antiquated rail network. Mitsotakis has promised clearer boundaries between privatized services and the authorities overseeing them, seeking assistance from European Union experts in drawing up the changes. His political opponents argue that the poorly managed dismantling of agencies under state control has ultimately compromised rail safety.

In Athens, demonstrations related to the strike are scheduled at the Propylaia (Central Athens) at 11:30 a.m., in Klafthmonos Square at 11:00 a.m. and Syntagma Square at 11:00 a.m.  In Thessaloniki, demonstrations are planned at the Statue of Eleftherios Venizelos at 11:00 a.m.  Additional demonstrations are expected to take place throughout Greece during the day.   The following strikes are scheduled for Thursday, March 16, 2023 (12:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.), unless otherwise noted: The National Railway will be on a 24-hour strike. The Attica/Peloponnese Suburban Railway will be on a 24-hour strike Ferry and boat employees will be on a 24-hour nationwide strike. Air Traffic Controllers in all airports throughout Greece will be on a 24-hour strike. Taxis will be on a 24-hour strike. Buses in Athens will operate only from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Trolleys in Athens will operate only from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Athens Metro (Lines 2 & 3) will operate only from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Athens Green Line Train (Line 1) will operate only from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Trams in Athens will operate only from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Buses in Thessaloniki will be on a 24-hour strike.   Other organizations may decide to join the 24-hour Panhellenic General Strike for March 15, 2023 without prior warning.  Please monitor www.apergia.gr and local media for last minute strike notifications.   Actions to Take: Review your travel plans. Contact your airline or travel company for assistance. Avoid the areas of the demonstrations. Exercise caution if unexpectedly in the vicinity of large gatherings or protests. Monitor local media for updates. Keep a low profile.   Assistance: U.S. Embassy Athens +(30) 210-721-2951 AthensAmericanCitizenServices@state.gov https://gr.usembassy.gov   U.S. Consulate General Thessaloniki +(30) 2310-376-300   State Department - Consular Affairs (888) 407-4747 or (202) 501-4444

Manolis Psarros, an employee of the State archaeological service, was beaten by an unidentified man with a possible accomplice in Athens last week and was left unconscious and bleeding in the street. The 53-year-old was taken to a State hospital in the Greek capital and is currently recovering at home. Archaeologists employed by the Culture Ministry staged a 5-hour work stoppage to protest what their association described as a “mafia-style attack.” Despina Koutsoumba, the head of the protesting archaeologists’ association, said Psarros has dealt with multiple cases involving alleged violations on Mykonos and had been called as a witness in the past in trials resulting from those cases. “He has no trouble in his personal life ‒ debts or anything like that ‒ that would justify anything like this. This was a professional attack,” Koutsoumba told The Associated Press. “He was struck from behind before getting into his car. He lost consciousness and was hit after that. He has broken ribs and extensive bruising.” The protest was joined by ministry employees in Athens as well as the national Association of Archaeological Conservators. They are seeking additional police protection for public officials involved in contentious inspections and will refuse to handle cases from Mykonos until the end of the month when they plan to visit the island. Planning permission in Greece is often subject to a veto by the local archaeological service, which is tasked with protecting the country’s ancient heritage. One of Greece’s best known holiday destinations, Mykonos was settled in ancient times and hosts an archaeological museum. It is located next to the tiny and uninhabited island of Delos, an ancient commercial, religious and political center that is considered one of Greece’s most important archaeological sites. “There are problems caused by the high level of tourism development on many islands, but Mykonos is by far the worst,” Koutsoumba said. The Hellenic Culture Ministry condemned the assault, while Mykonos Mayor Constantinos Koukas described the beating as a “criminal and brazen attack that has shocked us all.”

The demonstrators also demanded punishment for those responsible for the head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train that killed 57 people Feb. 28. Police said that more than 8,000 people in Athens gathered outside Parliament to protest on Sunday. The protesters later marched to the offices of privatized train operator Hellenic Train. The company, which has been owned by Italy’s Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane since 2017, isn’t responsible for the maintenance of the railway network. State-owned Hellenic Railways is in charge of upkeep. Authorities shut down four subway stations on 2 lines running through central Athens because of the protest. The rally was organized by civil servants, a pro-communist union and university students. In Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city, about 5,000 people demonstrated, listened to speeches and shouted slogans, such as “we will be the voice for all the dead.” Sunday’s rallies, which passed off without serious incident, weren’t as well-attended as similar events earlier in the week, when more than 30,000 had turned out in Athens and more than 20,000 in Thessaloniki. Police said four people were detained in Athens. A memorial service was conducted for 12 students of Thessaloniki’s Aristotle University, Greece’s largest, who were killed in the train crash. An inexperienced stationmaster accused of placing the trains on the same track has been charged with negligent homicide and other offenses, and the country’s transportation minister and senior railway officials resigned the day after the crash. Revelations of serious safety gaps on Greece’s busiest rail line have put the center-right government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the defensive. He has pledged the government’s full cooperation with a judicial inquiry into the crash. Elections are due later this spring and opinion polls released over the past week have shown the ruling conservatives’ lead over the left-wing opposition shrink almost by half compared with polls published before the crash.  

The move is due to a protest march carried out by student associations, regarding last week's train accident in Tempi. Panepistimiou (University Street) is closed at this time. In relared news, railroad employees said they will continue their strike action through Friday, they said on Wednesday, a decision that will suspend national and  suburban railroad schedules. Representatives of the national federation of workers at railroad and fixed-track transport means (POS-MST) said in a statement it demanded safe, high-quality, and public train service. They also added it will table its proposals to restart train services at their meeting on Thursday morming with Minister of State responsible for Transportation & Infrastructure Giorgos Gerapetritis. Railroad employees have been on strike after the deadly collision of a passenger train with a freight one late at night on February 28th. At least 56 people died in the accident and dozens were injured. The incident has led to rallies, protests, strikes, and calls for investigation and punishment of those responsible. Following the end of the strike, the POS-MST members said, "we will redetermine our stance, since our struggle to find those responsible and for transporation safety does not end here: we owe it as the least tribute to all our fellow-human beings who perished at the tragic accident." 

Protesters also went to the headquarters of the Hellenic Railways Organizations (OSE) at Metaxourgion, where they threw rocks at riot police and the latter responded with teargas and flash bangs. Moreover, the Hellenic Red Cross, on the occasion of International Women's Day (March 8), honored the female volunteers of all its Corps. Women volunteers, despite the difficulties they face every day, are constantly and uninterruptedly at the forefront of the offer, wherever the need arises. In the 146 years of march, the volunteers of the E.E.S. have played a decisive role so that the largest and oldest humanitarian organization in Greece can stand by the needs of society and successfully implement programs and actions aimed at improving the lives of the most vulnerable groups and people.   Through a video created by the Hellenic Red Cross, it honors the women of all its Corps.   The President of the Hellenic Red Cross, Dr. Antonios Avgerinos, said characteristically: "We sincerely thank all the volunteers of the E.E.S. for the enormous humanitarian work they carry out. We must not forget that the admirable and inexhaustible soul of the Greek nurse, especially in the epic of the 1940s, wrote golden pages of sacrifice and became synonymous with heroism and self-sacrifice. Today, the volunteers of the E.E.S. they continue with unparalleled zeal to offer their services on a daily basis, demonstrating a high sense of responsibility, self-denial and self-sacrifice as well as inexhaustible reserves of mental endurance. We admire them, we cheer them and we applaud them loudly."

Their union is also asking for the immediate hiring of more staff and raises in employees’ salaries.           A protest rally is being planned at 11 this morning in front of the Labor Ministry in Athens.

Entering the Garden from the entrance of L. Amalia, the natural environment is enriched with the works of the exhibition Seeing The Invisible. Seeing the Invisible requires its free application (https://seeingtheinvisble.art/app/) on the visitor's mobile phone (with a minimum of 4GB memory) or iPad, tablet. After connecting to wifi, the proposed route appears on the app's map and the works hidden scattered throughout the Garden are revealed. The experiential and one-of-a-kind exhibition is presented in the National Garden of Athens and at the same time in ten botanical gardens around the world. For its Athenian edition, the Greek department of Outset (founded in 2012 by Elina Kountouri) collaborated with the municipality of Athens. The eponymous exhibition began as an initiative of the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens and in its first phase, in 2021, was presented simultaneously in twelve gardens around the world, in collaboration with the contemporary art organization Outset Contemporary Art Fund (founded in 2003 based in London) and the support of the Jerusalem Foundation. "The theme of the exhibition is a reference to climate change and the loss of biodiversity. It adopts models of sustainable practices from outside and places these digital experiences inside the gardens, highlighting the importance of the flora and fauna of the area and keeping the carbon footprint to a minimum" emphasizes Artemis Stamatiadis, director of Outset Greece. The National Garden of Athens hosts thirteen augmented reality works by renowned international artists as well as a commission from Outset Greece to a Greek artist, Loukia Alavanou, with the result that the National Garden is the only participating Garden with 14 works. Loukia Alavanou's project "Nea Zoi" was co-created with Roma children from Nea Zoi Aspropyrgos, who transformed with their paintings a dystopian original landscape into a green flower-strewn place, as they would ideally like their neighborhood. Unseen works scattered throughout the National Garden await visitors. Between them is a huge circle that forms zero, a symbol of peace, solidarity and coexistence, according to Persian scholar theory. The project was originally designed for the United Arab Emirates, home of participating artist Mohamed Kazem, who invites the viewer to traverse the circle that embodies universal values, as if starting from equal ground. As the day progresses, the light, shadows and reflections above the digital structure change, further enhancing the connection between work and natural environment. The same applies to the cave-temple of artist Timur Si-Qin - originally from China and based in Berlin. Through a portal the viewer passes through rooms with designed walls and constellations on the ceiling. The project proposes a new secular faith in the face of climate change, global pandemics and the collapse of biodiversity. The impressive colorful tapestry of soft drink caps, a combination of aesthetics and commentary on post-colonial history, racial discrimination, consumerism, is the work of sculptor El Anatsui, which he constructed together with the Ghanaian community. Refik Anadol's surrealist work from Turkey combines creation with artificial intelligence and other interesting works are revealed in the Seeing The Invisible exhibition, which runs until September 2023. More information at www.seeingtheinvisible.art

They are also calling for a mass protest gathering at Syntagma Square at 11:00 on the day, all in relation to the fatal train crash at Tempi. Although this mobilization was announced as a 24-hour strike, the unions -which include train drivers- clarified that metro train services in Athens will only be partially paused, that is from shift's start in the early morning until 09:00 and from 16:00 until the end of shift, to facilitate the transportation of protesters from 9am to 4pm, it was stressed in the announcement.

Children dressed up for the carnival and meet Looney Tunes and Disney characters, who greeted them along with entertainers on stilts, magicians, face painters, and jugglers. The Philharmonic Orchestra of the City of Athens performed light music, while Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis dropped by. Zappeion events started at 11:30 and continued to late afternoon. Other cities hosted events as well, with one of the most colorful being the "Junior Parade" for children in Patras.