| We experienced this in the middle of summer! Scenes of incredible racist hatred and violence against innocent and guilty people, which shocked the entire nation. Persecutions against an entire community of Albanian migrants, 150 people, because one of them clashed and injured locals! We witnessed the collective racist delirium of the citizens’ assembly in the Baths of Lesbos, which decided to expel all Albanian men, women, and children from the village and their homes without exception. We heard threats against employers to force them to dismiss workers and saw guns pointed at innocents. We lived through scenes of apartheid on Greek soil and felt ashamed. Furthermore, as if all this were not enough, we heard insults against Justice for the supposedly lenient sentences it imposed, we saw the court being besieged by “indignant citizens,” who ultimately decided to take the law into their own hands.Thus, they uprooted 150 people from their homes and literally threw them onto the street. Otherwise, “we are not racists,” declares the Local Council of the Baths and calls for the “good” to return, in an attempt to gather the unmanageable. What is certain is that even if there were some rational and sensitive people in the area, I hope their voices were not drowned out in the chaos and mass hysteria. “It is those who opened Greece’s borders who are to blame…” said the Prefect of Lesbos regarding what happened in his area of responsibility, while he did not hesitate to insult those who condemned the racist pogrom. The mayor of Mytilene was on the same wavelength. The stance of this local political leadership partly explains the tolerance and inaction of the Police, as well as that of the competent prosecutor. As for the position of the clergy in the area, we learned nothing relevant. Does it not concern them? The most unpleasant surprise, however, came from the President of the Republic, who publicly explained that what happened in the Baths was merely “an expression of reaction and indignation.” Perhaps in this way, the President simply wanted to downplay the atrocious events that “do not fit and do not honor the cultural level of our people,” as the government officially stated through its spokesperson. The President’s absolution certainly cannot serve as a baptismal font for the Baths of shame. Especially since the Federation of Lesbian Associations of Attica condemned the events in a statement and called on organizations and intellectuals to take a stand in honor of this! What happened in the Baths is neither unprecedented nor unique in our wonderful new world. Worse events have occurred in Europe, such as in El Ejido, Spain, about a year ago, where there was a backlash against all migrants when someone murdered a local. There was also Dover in the UK, where 68 Chinese migrants tragically died inside a refrigerated truck. These two incidents are recorded in the darkest terms in the history of migration in Europe. In Greece, until the first waves of migrants arrived after the end of the Cold War, we proudly proclaimed that we were the land of Xenia Zeus, clearly referring to wealthy Western tourists, who were not very different from us, either in color or culture. However, in the last decade, when persecuted and unhappy people from all races began to arrive, transforming Greece from a sending country to a receiving country for migrants, things changed drastically. Difficulties began for those who safely declared themselves anti-racists. On one hand, they realized that the cheap labor of migrants was beneficial, while on the other hand, mingling with the different caused discomfort and triggered xenophobic reflexes. Is it inaccurate to say that Greece, according to two studies by the European Monitoring Centre on Racism, ranks first in xenophobia? In this adverse development for our country, it is certain that the media have played a role, with their emphasis on the crime committed by foreigners, as well as statements from hierarchs, who generally show disdain for anything that might alter our “purity,” whether national or religious. Unfortunately, the revival of religious intolerance and the official reintroduction of the triptych “Patriotism – Religion – Family” essentially foster hatred for the different and a lack of respect for fundamental freedoms and human rights, regardless of race, national origin, or religious belief. Truly, what happened to that remarkable anti-racist Christian message, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female…”? Did it also end up in the dustbin of history along with Xenia Zeus? |
Article by Anna KARAMANOU, MEP of PASOK, Chair of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality 21. 08. 2001