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Greek Solidarity Protests Spring up Across Europe

© AFP 2023 / THEO KARANIKOS Protestors wave the Greek flag as they shout "Oxi" (No) during the Melbourne stands with Greece solidarity rally outside Parliament House in Melbourne on July 4, 2015
Protestors wave the Greek flag as they shout Oxi (No) during the Melbourne stands with Greece solidarity rally outside Parliament House in Melbourne on July 4, 2015 - Sputnik International
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As Greece prepares for Sunday's referendum on the proposals of its creditors, thousands have joined marches and protests across Europe in support of the Greek plight.

Alexis Tsipras, head of Greece's Syriza left-wing main opposition party - Sputnik International
Tsipras Urges 'Proud No' as Greeks Rally Ahead of Bailout Referendum
Marches and protests have been organized in European cities to express solidarity with the Greek people, who will vote in a referendum on Sunday on whether to accept the proposals of its creditors from the European Commission, IMF and ECB.

A rally planned for Saturday afternoon in London's Trafalgar Square will feature a polling station where participants "can vote NO TO AUSTERITY," say the organizers, whose Facebook event page has over 1,200 attendees. Another of the campaign's slogans is "Oxi," a reference to Sunday's vote, which will give Greece's creditors the option to vote "Oxi" ('No' in Greek) or "Nai" (Yes).  

No to Austerity Yes to Democracy

Posted by Greece Solidarity Campaign on Friday, 3 July 2015

Solidarity protests already held elsewhere in Western Europe this week also attracted hundreds and thousands of participants. 

A rally in Glasgow on Thursday attracted hundreds of people, holding "Oxi" signs and chanting slogans such as "the Troika says cut-back, we say fight-back," and "From Glasgow to Greece, no justice no peace."

"We stand with the Greek people who will be voting No and in doing so rejecting the coercion of the undemocratic European elites," Jonathon Shafi of Scotland's Radical Independence Campaign [RIC] told Common Space. The RIC, which organized Thursday's protest, is also planning to take part in a protest planned for Saturday outside the office of the European Commission in Edinburgh, organized by Syriza Scotland.

Solidarity with the people of Greece from Copenhagen, Aarhus, Paris, Osnabrueck, Glasgow, Oxford, Santiago de Campostela, Sevilla, Granada, Molfetta, Padova, Firenze, Cordoba

Posted by Syriza Scotland on Friday, 3 July 2015

Rallies were also held in Berlin, Paris and other European cities; in Brussels, the home of the EU Commission, more than 5,000 people reportedly gathered to "demonstrate their solidarity with the Greek people, and their opposition to the politics of austerity and looting," said the organizers.

Bruxelles Plus de 5000 manifestants ont manifesté à Bruxelles leur solidarité avec le peuple grec, pour le non aux…

Posted by PPICS — banque d'images on Friday, 3 July 2015

In Athens, the epicenter of protest, tens of thousands gathered in Syntagma, the city's central square for a rally on Friday evening at which Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras urged a No vote in Sunday's referendum on the country's future.

"I call upon you to ignore the sirens, the scaremongering, decide for Greece, proud Greece in a democratic Europe," said Tsipras.

As well as the crowds packing Syntagma square, a smaller, rival "yes" rally was also held on Friday evening at Athens'  Panathenaic Stadium, and was attended by former Greek Prime Ministers Costas Karamanlis, Costas Simitis and Constantinos Mitsotakis. 

 

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