The hunger strike of the three-hundred migrant workers has ended. The struggle for a world of equality, solidarity and freedom continues – GREVA E URISË E 300 EMIGRANTËVE PUNËTORË PËRFUNDOJ. LUFTA PËR NJË JETË ME BARAZI, SOLIDARITET DHE LIRI VAZHDONالإضراب عن الطعام من ٣٠٠ العمال المهاجرين فرغ النضال لعالم حرا وسويا مستمر
On January 25th, 2011 three-hundred migrants in Athens and Thessaloniki commenced a fierce hunger strike, claiming the most basic things: equal rights with the local workers and the legalization of all migrants living, working and moving across the country.
44 days later and after more than 100 strikers were hospitalized with serious health issues, the state was forced to drop its intransigent attitude along with previous threats of deportation of the strikers and to negotiate officially with them, meeting a significant part of their demands:
Decrease of the required residence time of migrants in the country in order to submit applications for residence permits to 8 years, down from 12 years before (this applies to every single migrant living in the Greek territory)
Decrease of the required work credits to 120, from 200 before (same as for local workers)
Decrease of the work credits required for insurance cover to 50, from 80 before (this applies to all workers, local and migrant)
For the three-hundred hunger strikers in particular, the allowance has been given for them to indefinitely renew their 6-month “state of tolerance” status until the time when they reach the time and conditions to receive a residence permit. During that time they will be allowed to travel freely to and from their country of origin. The three-hundred migrant strikers risked their lives not on the basis of individualistic or utilitarian motives but for a collective right, in a struggle that asserted rights concerning the dignity of the entire working class. This hunger strike is a social struggle against the illegality of all migrants, a struggle addressing the entire class of workers. It comes as a continuation of struggles of the recent past, from the farmer-migrants in Manoliada, Ilia and Skala, Lakonia to the strike of the fishermen-migrants in Michaniona, Thessaloniki. The struggle of the three-hundred migrant workers proves nothing is impossible.
If the three-hundred achieved this, imagine what thousands of migrants-workers-repressed can achieve together.
Assembly of solidarity of anarchists/anti-authoritarians/libertarians/comrades
