Source >> Labour Campaign for Free Movement
In Kalamata, the 102-104 surviving refugees from the shipwreck are housed in a warehouse awaiting to be moved to one of Greece’s refugee camps.
Contrary to BBC reports, there are a great mixture of refugees, many speaking Arabic.
I have been talking to many local people and some political activists. All in support of the refugees. All asking the same question: “how if the location of the boat was known and that it was in distress, could this happen?”
The former Prime Minister Tsipras was here this morning. The details of his response are still awaited.
There is a mixture of anger at the EU and UK leaving Greece in the lurch of taking the bulk of the growing flow of desperate refugees. But also a degree of apology for Greece’s response: “what can Greece do when the rest of Europe do nothing?”
After the recent election which the left (Syriza) lost, there is a low morale. But the anger with what happened over the past two days is huge.
There is a certain degree of cynicism about the incoming government’s response. About whether an enquiry will reveal what the Greek border police’s responsibility is.
The faith is not with politicians, but more with relief and sea rescue agencies. Several times I heard “we need human solidarity”, “solidarity between people”. They are right, but we can’t let politicians off the hook. We need a political campaign across Europe for free movement.
And that can’t be a campaign for passing the buck but of doing immediate relief and political action, as much as we can, everywhere. No refugee turned back or left to die. No leaving of Greece or any country to carry the weight. This horror must be stopped.
See also: this account from the Alarmphone initiative, which attempted to raise the alarm after passengers on the boat contacted them before the capsizing. Alarmphone explain how the Greek coastguard’s violent policies push people on the move in the Mediterranean to take more dangerous routes as they attempt to escape the brutality.
Art (60) Book Review (128) Books (114) Capitalism (69) China (81) Climate Emergency (99) Conservative Government (90) Conservative Party (45) COVID-19 (46) EcoSocialism (66) Elections (87) Europe (46) Fascism (72) Film (49) Film Review (69) France (77) Gaza (65) History (44) Imperialism (104) Israel (133) Italy (48) Keir Starmer (59) Labour Party (117) Marxism (50) Marxist Theory (47) Palestine (191) pandemic (78) Protest (158) Russia (352) Solidarity (158) Statement (50) Trade Unionism (145) Ukraine (356) United States of America (143) War (376)
The Anti*Capitalist Resistance Editorial Board may not always agree with all of the content we repost but feel it is important to give left voices a platform and develop a space for comradely debate and disagreement.
Latest Articles
- 2027 French presidential Elections
2027 Presidential Elections: an anti-fascist front, for the victory of the radical left – united and revolutionary! A statement from the NPA-A - Avoid disablist language
Disablist language both upholds and perpetuates disablist structures. It matters in as much as any artefact of subordination matters: it symbolises oppression, and acts as a value-signifier argues Kavana Ramaswamy.. - Encoding the Moral Panic
The Telegraph’s coverage of a gallery exhibition does more than report a controversy. It reorganises familiar concerns about children and public space into a wider argument about queer culture writes Simon Pearson. - Anti‑war coalition ignores Putin’s war on Ukraine
Central Hall Westminster was full with around 3,000 people attending an international conference against war on Saturday 20 June. The Stop the War Coalition, established in 2001 in response to the invasion of Afghanistan and then Iraq, was the main organiser. Fred Leplat and Liz Lawrence discuss how this anti-war conference failed to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine. - Social media for leftists
Social Media is indispensable for leftist organising, but we need to move away from platforms owned by billionaires and capitalists who are the main targets of such organising, argues Kavana Ramaswamy