Rights Group Says Greece Ignoring Racist Attacks on Immigrants

Andy Dabilis

EUROKINISSI
With a new government vowing to help rid Greece of unlawful immigrants, and the Parliament including a neo-Nazi group blamed for vicious assaults on immigrants, the atmosphere in Greece has become polluted with hate and led authorities to allow growing racism during an economic crisis that has fostered resentment against foreigners, the advocacy group Human Rights Watch said.

ATHENS – With a new government vowing to help rid Greece of unlawful immigrants, and the Parliament including a neo-Nazi group blamed for vicious assaults on immigrants, the atmosphere in Greece has become polluted with hate and led authorities to allow growing racism during an economic crisis that has fostered resentment against foreigners, the advocacy group Human Rights Watch said. In a 99-page report titled Hate on the Streets: Xenophobic Violence in Greece, the group detailed the experiences of dozens of victims of racist attacks, many of whom claim to have been discouraged from filing official complaints by police. The rising violence has led to many migrants being afraid of walking the streets of the capital, HRW said, especially at night. “People coming from war zones are scared to go out at night in Athens for fear of being attacked,” said Judith Sunderland, senior Western Europe researcher at Human Rights Watch.

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July 11, 2012

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1. Philip Vorgias wrote on July 11, 2012 8:23 AM	Human Rights Watch is a phoney group that sees every issue through a political agenda. This group which sees fit to criticise Greece on attacks on immigrants has had nary a word to say about the illegal occupation of Cyprus by Turkey's military or the lack of religious rights in Turkey. All good people condemn persecution of unlawful immigraints in Greece, but we don't need to be lectured on it by a discredited, political organization like HRW which has a political agenda. They need to clean their own house before they lecture Greece. Phoneys!

2. Niko Seretis wrote on July 11, 2012 11:11 AM	Did they mention human rights violations in Cyprus or the desecration of historic churches being turned in to stables? Was anything mentioned about the Patriarchate or the Greeks of Northern Epirus? Highly doubtfull!

3. spiros argyros wrote on July 11, 2012 11:44 AM	There getting attacked because they murder rob and rape Greek citizens!!!....Kala kanoun

4. spiros argyros wrote on July 11, 2012 11:47 AM	Its quite funny how all the countries or organizations who criticize Greece regarding immigrants dont want them in their countries either...Pure hypocrisy !!!!

5. Philip Vorgias wrote on July 11, 2012 12:14 PM	HRW has been challenged on several occasions by a patriotic Greek American I know over their lack of focus on Turkey's human rights violations. They always give him lame excuses. They're another phoney organization that receives tax-exempt funding from US citizens and uses their resources to focus on issues that support their pre-conceived political agenda. And that means focus on alleged human rights violations in EU nations, but ignore much more serious violations of rights in Islamic nations-like Turkey. They're phoneys.

6. diogenes kekatos wrote on July 11, 2012 2:20 PM	Absolutely correct about HRW. I encountered their garbage when I was an Assistant U.S. Attorney defending bogus asylum claims filed by aliens gaming the system with bogus asylum claims. HRW is an organization with a result-oriented agenda. It typically bashes governments friendly to the U.S. while giving hostile regimes a pass. I would trust HRW's reports as far as I could throw them -- which would be into the nearest recycling bag or paper shredder.

7. Philip Vorgias wrote on July 11, 2012 4:40 PM	Thanks for that information Diogenes, it concurs with what I have already learned about HRW. There are legitimate human rights groups out there who evaluate everyone with the same set of standards, but HRW is NOT one of them. They're phoneys-and they know it.
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Monday, May 20, 2013 Last Update: 2:37 AM ET