eviction of liomena squats in Thessaloniki, greece

The area known as liomena on the aristotle university campus in thessaloniki, greece has been squatted for over 7 years, on april 5 these squats were evited and destroyed by order of the universities authorities, together with a huge amount of police forces entering the university campus. This is the statement of the squatter after the destruction

Eviction of “Liomena” Squats at AUTH Campus (Thessaloniki, Greece)
During the last 7 years, “Liomena area” in the campus of Aristotle University has been occupied by groups of people whose main interest were self-administration and their denial in commercial exploitation of expression. Some were housing squats , while others where made for concerts, parties, studios, juggling workshops or just as places for people to hang out. During the last years the state has tried to repress all free places and squats all over Greece. Some months ago the Ministry of Education started to collect data of all the occupied areas on university grounds in order to evict them. Their final goal is to stop any radical left political activities.
The AUTH administration through its statements has discredited this area, and spread out different rumors about the date of the eviction. Finally at the 5th of April and under great secrecy Dean Manthos gave permission
to demolish the place. That day, at 08:00 about 200 policemen (Undercover and Riot Squids) surrounded the area. Meanwhile AUTH construction workers started to demolish the walls of the “blue squat” and then continued to brake walls of other buildings , leaving holes in walls, broken windows, even demolishing roofs of asbestos. They moved on demolishing “Tehtle Mehtle squat” while people where still inside and after people managed to get out of the building safe, workers started to loot the place. By that time a group of people arrived
in solidarity with the squatters and managed to stop the demolition of “Street Attack squat”. The D.A. who arrived at the place along with undercover cops, gave the squatters one hour to pick up their stuff, while she refused to show her ID, a warrant and the permission of demolition. Squatters and solidarities decided not to leave. When lawyers arrived, they found out that the D.A. did not have any legal papers for the eviction and demolition of the place and the police orders were to stay out of the university. Police forces and the workers left, only to come back in the afternoon to finnish their work. Around 4 riot squads marched in to the place, attacking the people who stayed in front of Street Attack, entering the place, searching and vandalizing.
We are not surprised by the Dean’s choice to let the riot squads into the campus, but this bastard continues lying: Buildings have been left half demolished, many asbestus roofs have been partly destroyed, and the carcinogenic
dust spreads all over the city. No cover protection measures were taken to seal of the buildings. Even worse the workers didn’t carry any protective gear. In these conditions these buildings are a hazardous threat to who ever passes by, as well as to the Kindergarden, the Hospital and the University facilities located in the surrounding area.
Seems like the only goal of the Greek state is repression, without any objections to it’s laws it demolishes squats and beats up who ever resists. Secondary the Deanery is trying to make the University’s image more lucrative to investors and in order to achieve that goal, they do not hesitate to tear down squats even to put peoples lives at risk.
Welcome to the University zofos.
Contractors and Deans your time has come.
Keep your hands off the squats cause this was your first and your last time.
We thank those who supported us, and mainly those who decided not to go on a holiday
but put themselves in front of the bulldozers.
the liomena squatters.

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