Relato vindo directamente lá da frente de batalha em Patras

A somewhat hasty but hopefully rather accurate translation from the original: http://indy.gr/newswire/ma3c7airmata-ap ... in-patra-5 ]

To start with, I'd like to inform you that I'm a university student in Patras & what I report below is an eyewitness account of incidents I experienced & not somebody else's
narration/hearsay...

Unfortunately, Patras saw the resurrection of the "ghost" of '91, when Nikos Temponeras was murdered. In that case, the parakratikoi [the other-other hand of the greek state: the activist leg of the greek extreme right wing helping the greek state out in a time honored tradition going at least as far back as the '50s] counter-occupied [the already occupied schools] throughout greece after they had been incited to do exactly that by then-minister of education Vassilis Kontogianopoulos. In one of those [counter-occupations], Nikos Temponeras - a teacher - was killed [with a crowbar...] by the leader of ONNED [the youth organization of Nea Dimokratia - which party is ruling the country today, by the way] Ioannis Kalampokas.

Today, December 9, saw 2 demos in Patras. One of them at 11 in the morning with zero unrest. The other one at 3 in the afternoon. During this latter demo, extensive unrest was notable. I'd like to remark that no vandalism against small, privately-owned businesses took place. The targets were the Germanos [electronics chain store] & WIND [mobile telephony] stores. Nobody's property was damaged.

At some point, certain members of the well-known fascist organization Hrisi Avgi (Golden Dawn), together with plainclothes agents - & not infuriated citizens, as the mass media insist [on calling them] - started throwing rocks & chasing remonstrators with their clubs. For this reason, rudimentary barricades were put together in the streets around the University of Patras department [located there]. These barricades, though, were violated relatively soon with the help of the Riot Squad which kept throwing teargas at large.

When the barricades were torn apart, the people started retreating little by little. In the front, street fights between antiauthoritarians & neonazis-ONNED members. Behind them, members of student collectives formed an outer shell [typically called a "chain" & made up by people holding on to each other & to banners, with the rest inside it; much like a fence] in order to protect themselves. The neonazis were running with clubs & knives towards the demonstrators, while at the same time they were hurling rocks [at them].

When, eventually, the neonazis together with the ONNED members got way too close to the people, those people started running panic-stricken. The "infuriated citizens" were yelling slogans against immigrants, anarchists, & leftists. Slogans such as "Anarchists, sons of whores" etc., together with the fact that, later, they took to the direction of the immigrant shanty town & took out knives (a well-documented way of attack, as far as Golden Dawn members go) made it clear once & for all who these "infuriated citizens," as they are called by mass media, are.

There are even photos in indymedia patras proving that those damaging stores are the same with those chasing after the demonstrators. Here, I'd like to emphasize that those committing arson & causing damages have no relation whatsoever with either the antiauthoritarian circles or any left wing factions. They are mpahaloi [a specific subclass of people subscribing to some vague nihilist ideology - if they subscribe to any ideology at all - & in it for the excitement of wreaking havoc], agents provocateurs, & hooligans...

According to certain information (I haven't crosschecked it), a demonstrator was stabbed & carried to the hospital. As I'm writing this (3 in the morning), the center of Patras is chokefull of armed neonazis & plainclothes agents. Personally, I'm not sleeping at home tonight, because I can't get there...

For one more time, the shadow state acts with the police's blessings. Naturally, it's the government who's behind all this & who's the sole one responsible for this parade of shadow state antics & violence.

The only way to crush terrorism is mas demos... The government's aim is plain to see: to keep the people away from demonstrating by using violence & terrorism. If they wanted to catch the "hooded ones" they'd done it! The mass media play the role of the sycophant repeating inaccuracies...

To the streets, then, to crush terror...