The associations said the protest, attended by parents, teachers and pupils, was organised to oppose the planned closure of 15 departments and the existence of some 700 unfilled teaching posts in the Athens directorate. According to their statement, riot police used stun devices and chemical agents against the crowd, beat teachers and parents with batons, shoved a pregnant teacher with a shield and deployed flash-bangs while children were present.

‘Those who leave schools without teachers, pack children like sardines and hollow out classrooms lined up fully armed squads of repressive forces today,’ the associations said. They added that the building was ‘drowned in chemicals’ inside and out and that 20 pupils were taken to first aid; some were later referred for treatment with eye, respiratory, allergy and psychological symptoms.

The unions placed responsibility squarely on the Ministry of Education and the director of the First DIPE, saying officials had turned the directorate’s premises ‘into a battlefield’ by preventing people from entering and by ordering the police response. ‘Shame and disgrace,’ they wrote. ‘Hands off our children, hands off our schools.’

The associations said the violence was part of a broader pattern of repression and called for the immediate filling of all vacancies, an end to cuts and the protection of full-time public schooling. They announced a new series of protests, beginning with a demonstration outside the directorate at 14:00 today, continuing on Monday outside the Ministry of Education, and culminating in a pan-education rally on Thursday 6 November. They also plan local actions at schools where classes face closure, organised jointly with parents’ associations.

‘Terrorism and repression are the only things left for the government and the administration to stop our struggles,’ the statement concluded. ‘We are not retreating, we are not being terrorised. Our struggle will continue – more dynamic, more decisive and more massive – with parents, until victory.’

______________________________________________

Are you seeking news from Greece presented from a progressive, non-mainstream perspective? Subscribe monthly or annually to support TPP International in delivering independent reporting in English. Don’t let Greek progressive voices fade.

Make sure to reference “TPP International” and your order number as the reason for payment.