Anarchists clash with police during students' rallies in Athens

June 28, 2006

A left-wing student group clashed with Greek police in the centre of Athens during a demonstration organized by university students against new laws which have been proposed by the Greek Minister of Education, Marietta Yiannakou.

The conflict occurred as part of nation wide student protest against the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) attempts to eliminate state funded universities in Greece.

The most serious incidents occurred near the Athens' Polytechnic and outside the Law School of Athens in the center of Athens where a small number of Anarchists wore masks, caused damage to cars, shops and private properties, and threw stones and Molotov cocktails at police.

Additional conflicts occurred outside the holiday resort of Lagonissi, around 45 kilometers south-east of central Athens, where the OECD is meeting.

Greek university students currently occupy more than 400 faculties across the country, including the two biggest universities of Greece, to protest the OECD's proposals for privatization of universities.