Highlights
– Demonstrations by immigrant groups turn violent in Athens
– Far-right extremists target mosque in arson attack
– Immigrant inequalities will fuel potentially violent protests in the near to medium-term
Athens police will face ongoing instability in the coming weeks following an alleged incident last week involving a Greek police officer and the defacement of a Quran. The row sparked a series of pro-immigrant protests in Athens that turned unruly, forcing tourists to take cover in nearby hotels. Protesters allege a police officer tore up and stepped on an Iraqi immigrant’s copy of the Quran during a routine identity check in Athens last week. The Iraqi immigrant recently submitted a lawsuit against the unidentified officer.
The recent flare up of violence presents an additional political challenge for Greek authorities, amid months of leftist activism and extremist attacks on police and businesses. Greece represents a major transit country for South Asian and African migrants en route to Europe. In recent years Greek authorities have noted an influx of illegal immigrants from Pakistan and Afghanistan, with a majority ending up in overcrowded apartments in poorer Athens neighborhoods. Greece appears less equipped to accommodate a constant influx of Muslim immigrants, as Athens is the only European capital without a proper mosque or cemetery for Muslim residents. The only operating mosque in Greece is located in the northeastern region of Thrace.
We believe tensions between immigrant groups residing in Athens and far-right groups will remain elevated in the near-term. As long as the economic downturn persists, Greek authorities will continue to face a sustained wave of potentially violent protests from far-right, leftist, and pro-immigrant groups in the near-term.
Clashes in Athens
The alleged defacement incident led to a series of violent protests in Greece last week.
• On May 21 more than 1,500 Muslim immigrants rallied in downtown Athens, prompting Greek police to fire tear gas and stun grenades. Police arrested an Afghan immigrant on suspicion of attempting to firebomb an Athens police station.
• On May 22, more than 1,000 leftist, immigrant, and anti-racism protesters marched to parliament. Protesters threw rocks and bottles at police, damaged nearby banks and smashed windows of a luxury hotel in central Syntagma Square. The protests led to the arrests of 46 people, the destruction of 70 cars, and structural damage to banks and nearby businesses. A prominent immigrant union, the Muslim Union of Greece, issued a statement on May 22 urging Muslims to refrain from committing acts of violence.
• On May 23, a group of suspected far-right assailants attacked and tried to burn down a makeshift mosque in Athens, injuring five Bangladeshi immigrants.
Earlier in May 2009, anti-immigrant protests escalated into violence after far-right extremists targeted hundreds of illegal immigrants living illegally in an old Athens courthouse building. Hundreds of members of the neo-Nazi group, Chryssi Avghi (Golden Dawn), clashed with immigrants and police in the ensuing demonstration calling for the “departure of foreigners from Greece.” Self styled anarchist groups responded with a counter protest, setting fires to trash bins and nearby cars in Athens.
Outlook
Despite a return to a relative calm this week, the current economic downturn in Greece will foster an environment vulnerable for protests from competing ideological parties. Far-right extremists, leftist groups, and an emerging group of disenfranchised Muslim minorities will continue demonstrations in downtown Athens for the long-term.
While far-right and leftist extremist elements are commonly linked to violent protests in Athens, we believe immigrant led protests for greater religious recognition and tolerance will increase in frequency in the long-term. Without an established mosque for Athens’ 300,000 Muslim immigrants, we assess immigrant inequalities will increasingly fuel civil instability in the coming months.
