Mass anti-imperialist demonstrations honoured the 37th anniversary of the Polytechnic uprising

The participation of thousands of workers, employees, small and medium tradesmen and students in the mass anti-imperialist mobilizations all over the country, demonstrated their decision to keep alive the message of the uprising of the Polytechnic students and the working people of Athens against the junta in 1973. The Mass Media admitted that they were the largest anti-imperialist demonstrations in recent years. In Athens and in Thessalonica the demonstrators marched to the American embassy and consulate respectively.

In Athens, tens of thousands participated in the blocks of PAME, the Students’ Front of Struggle, PASEBE, PASY, The Coordinating committee of the struggle committees of the Schools of Athens, and despite the rain marched along the central streets, shouting the slogan “ Worker, without you the cog cannot turn, you can do without the bosses”. At the head of the demonstration was a banner with the slogan “Anti-monopoly alliance for the overthrow of the anti-people policies, for people’s power” written on it. Behind it were the federations and unions which belong to PAME, and the workers with flags in their hands shouted “The law for us is what is in the interests of the workers and not the profits of the capitalist”.

Next in line was the Women’s Union of Greece, led by a banner with the following slogan “Steady on the road of November” and after them the association of the self-employed headed up by PASEBE. Behind them were the school students, with the banner of the Coordinating committee of the struggle committees of the Schools of Athens singing popular revolutionary songs, while the Students’ Front of Struggle (MAS) added dynamism to the rally shouting slogans “ The games must end, Capitalism cannot become humane”. Young conscripts marched in their uniforms this year again with MAS, sending the message that the armed forces cannot be used against the people’s movement, as happened during the period of the junta. The Association of Prisoners and the Exiled during the junta had a special presence.

The slogans did not stop during the march “ European Union and NATO, the syndicate of war” was heard outside the offices of the EU, when the demonstrators approached the American embassy the message was heard loud and clear “ Struggle-Rupture-Overthrow, history is written with disobedience”, “Our future is not capitalism, but the new world, socialism”.

The march yesterday was yet another response of the workers to the anti-people measures which have been imposed, and also against the imperialist organizations of NATO and the EU.

The CC of the KKE stressed in its message on the 37th anniversary of the Polytechnic uprising that “The people have another way forward apart from that of the monopolies. No sacrifice for their profits, for their crisis. Capitalism, now in its old age, cannot be changed or corrected. The contemporary rights of the people can only be achieved in a Greece, where the monopolies and all the large businesses become the property of the people and operate under the control of the workers and the people, without the chains of the EU and NATO.”

A.Papariga : “ NATO will take dangerous decisions in Lisbon”

The GS of the CC of the KKE, Aleka Papariga, who participated in the march, made the following statement to the media: “In two days the NATO summit will take place in Lisbon, Portugal and the decisions that will be taken there are exceptionally dangerous. One aspect has to do with the anti-missile shield which will be installed in the Aegean, on Turkish soil and more generally in the Middle East. This will worsen the situation in relation to Greece’s Sovereignty. The Greek government has agreed to all this under the table and in public claims that this is not true”.