Immigrants raise their arms in front of a banner depicting a late Pakistani immigrant during an anti-racism rally in Athens January 19, 2013. PHOTO: REUTERS
ATHENS: Hundreds of people poured onto Athenian streets on Saturday, but this was not a rally against the government's austerity measures and rising unemployment. Rather, migrant workers mostly from Pakistan participated, protesting against a rising trend of racism and fascism that they are facing from Greeks.
The extent of racism is believed to have precipitated in the murder of a Pakistani migrant worker earlier this week.
Shehzad Luqman, 27, a Pakistani migrant worker was stabbed to death by two men on a motorcycle as he rode his bicycle to work in an Athens suburb in the early hours of Wednesday. Police believe that the attack may have been racially motivated.
"Perhaps his murder will bring hope that these attacks will stop. We are protesting for the government to take measures to stop racist attacks," Javied Aslam, head of the Pakistani Community organisation told Reuters, as about 300 Pakistani immigrants gathered outside city hall with the coffin.
Earlier this week, police arrested a 29-year-old firefighter and another man, 25, for Luqman's murder.
A police official told Reuters earlier this week that both suspects had admitted to stabbing Luqman in the chest following a drunken argument.
Protesters hold a banner during an anti-racism rally in Athens January 19, 2013. PHOTO: REUTERS
About 3,000 immigrants and human rights activists later gathered in the city's central Omonia square to demonstrate against racism, holding banners reading "Neo-Nazis out" and "Punishment for the fascist murderers of Shehzad Luqman".
"I have been the victim of a racist attack and when I tried to complain about it I was arrested. Police are the same as Nazis," 35-year-old Gildas Batola from Congo told AFP at the rally organised by groups including municipalities, migrant communities and the radical left main opposition party Syriza.
Protesters carried banners reading: "Fascism never again", "End to racist attacks" -- also a gay flag was thrown into the mix.
International human rights groups have warned of a surge in xenophobic attacks on migrants in Greece, where economic hardship and a sixth year of recession have fuelled the rise of the far-right.
Amnesty International said Luqman's killing was not an isolated incident but showed a "continuing failure" of the Greek authorities to take action to put an end to racist violence.
COMMENTS (28)
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Looks like a lot of Pakistanis and some Indians are averse to my comment.
Too bad that their parents did not teach them to face the truth head on.
How pathetic.
This young boy belonged to Lalamusa,Pakistan, my native city. His parents,relatives,brothers and sisters,all are mourning over his brutal killing.His family has been hand to mouth since I have seen.Everybody in this town is sad on this incident.Over here in Pakistan, we are the home of illegal immigrants but such incident against them are not happening here. I request the Greek authorities to stop such incidents and to pay compensation.
@Nobody: to Yoghurt lover "...you sir are nothing but a useless mass of hatred and idiocy- a dangerous combination." I don't have any way to vouch for it but did you consider the possibility that he/she might have posted his comment because he/she, too, rued such an incident as much as you do?
the guy could have been a terrorist for all we know.....how can we mourn without verifying his background, and what was he doing in athens?
@Ali:
Reality check. 1971. 90,000 surrendered. Which army did they belong to?
@Yoghurt lover: I'm all for Indians posting comments and/or being part of a discussion on here as I like to hear what the sensible ones have to say, but you sir are nothing but a useless mass of hatred and idiocy- a dangerous combination. Kindly take your inaccuracies, wishful thinking and hatred elsewhere. This blog is for grown ups and human beings. You ought to correct your comment to 'YOU don't give a damn when a Pakistani dies' simply because you are a soul less puddle of bile, or so your comments suggest. Cheers.
@Ali: are you talking about 1971? Nobody did.
@Umair Waheed, IBA, Khayban e Hafiz:
Even if the victim was an illegal immigrant, that does not provide justification to anyone to kill a person.
If a person of any nationality other than Pakistan would have had been killed, then we would have had seen an uproar in the international media. Our foreign office should contact Greek authorities to address this issue.
We keep criticizing the west but have no qualms migrating to christian majority countries and wanting their passport. Do we have Ny shame. This goes for all south asians who hVe been given nationality in european or other western countries. They all know what they would have done in their own countries.
@Umair Waheed, IBA, Khayban e Hafiz: Umair I am surprised with your comment, a man has died and you are saying that u r sure that he was an illegal immigrant, what has his immigration status to do with his kiling. Hundreds of ppl were killed in karachin in 2012 because of their ethinicity, I am sure those who killed them think exactly like you and any one who doesnt look like them or speak like them is an illegal immigrant in Karachi. Please stop passing judgements and next time stick to the issue.
@ Pakistanis here, grow up and stop replying to ignorant posters here, the kid "yoghurt lover" has yet to grow a brain, ignore the comment and move on, and I'm an Indian here.
Illegal immigrant Sikander ka muqader - saza e mauth! Shariah law implemented by the Greeks.
Thing like these are sad.....BUT i understand pakistanis pay upto 500000 rupi to enter Greece illelagely. And Greece are totally bankrupt and are begging immigrants not to enter their country. They dont even have jobs for themselves. Unemplyoment is highest in Europe and some greeks are even starving. Meanwhile immigrants are pooring in by the thousand. Broke,with no place to live, with no education, and some even without brains. Like the one who raped a 15 year old girl and then smashed her head against the rocks trying to kill her.
So, why are pakistanis paying amounts which are more then enough to buy a small business or 5 autorickshaws in their own country? Cause they are some lazybones who want their investment back by doing easy work or live on goverment benifits. For 80000 pakistanis in Greece this dream is over. Return to your country now. They clearly DONT want you there!
@Umair Waheed, IBA, Khayban e Hafiz:
Last year in Germany , a far-right racist gang was arrested, the members of the gang later confessed a dozen murders of turks and greeks that they had committed in germany in past 10 years based solely on racial hatred. All the victims carried german nationality. You need to get the hard reality in your thick brain that the neo-nazi gangs do not ask a foreigner to show his legal status in their country before committing a murder.
@Faraz: Do you have any idea of the impact of illegal immigrations to Citizens of the country ? Just because your government is incapable and you don't have guts to demand your rights does not give you privilege to get easy way out by being illegal immigrant. Every Government makes plan for it's own people right from social benefits to employment plans. All this gets disrupted by illegal immigrants. They not just change the living standards because cheap labor causes lowering the income and decrease in living standards of people whose society have thrived hard to establish that way of living. Our society has by far not even come out from the discussions of strong age topics such as religion and blasphemy. We spend more times in religious and everything related to religion rather than spending that energy in making a developed nations. We fight about what women should wear and how long men should grow their beard rather than how we improve quality of life of people through development rather than 5 time religious chanting. We are taught that spending more time in god then work will earn bread automatically because u r now closer to god and are fated to get free breads. Our people wouldn't have to migrate legally or illegally if our leaders stop living in stone age and encourage us to work towards development rather than keeping us busy to sort out if Sunnis are better than Shias and if Ahmadis should be called muslims. My heart cries for this innocent death, but makes me equally embarassed and angry that our society has brought this upon us.
@Umair Waheed, IBA, Khayban e Hafiz:
Makes little difference if he was. It doesn't justify a lack of compassion or condoning of murder.
@Yoghurt lover:
Is that how you try to seek validation...by finding a white face in the crowd?
Regardless there were Greek nationals who were part of the protests as well, and these racist attacks have been a growing trend, which included many backgrounds including an Indian professor, Korean traveller, US African American tourist, etc. And believe it or not, there are Indian migrants, that are illegal in Europe as well. So please keep such heartless delusion, bigotry and racial servitude to yourself.
@Westerner:
Linking to an ultra right-wing nationalist website, that's prejudiced against migrants, about a rape in August, out of so many local rapes in Greece, does not make it a racially motivated attack simply because the criminal and victim had different ethnic backgrounds, nor trump the fact that there's a growing trend of darker skinned foreigners and migrants being attacked by local native racists.
@ Yoghurt lover Nobody cares if Pakistanis die.
Your army made similar assumptions and paid the price as well
hope he rests in peace, what a shameful way of killing others in the name of race or whatever, as for yogurt lover, im sorry, but Indians, Pakistanis and Bengalis all get same treatment abroad, either u are resting eyes fully closed in Mumbai, or u could be the son of mr tata to think so naively!
Economic hardship in several european countries has led to the rise of xenophobia and attacks on immigrants. Let us hope the police do their job properly.
@Yoghurt lover: Hardly a white face at a protest in Australia against Indian student killings:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-05-31/thousands-protest-against-indian-student-attacks/1699888
Same here again, with a few broken windowpanes to give it an Indian signature. Apparently, all the white guys present here are uniformed to control your compatriots!!!
http://www.theage.com.au/photogallery/national/indian-student-protest-20090531-brj1.html?selectedImage=0
Have a great weekend.
@Yoghurt lover: Give it a rest. Look up US immigration stats, Indians are among the Top 10 nationalities deported from America every year! And Indians have been on the top of that list for over a decade! Yes, the illegal Indians migrants that are all too common across the world. Second, where is your media reporting attacks on poor Indian migrants who are subjected to racial abuse in Russia? No one raises an eyebrow. Guess when an Indian is beaten by Russian, its okay. No racism.
@Westerner: I am sure the Indian government returned Puneet Puneet to Australia who killed a man while driving drunk. How typical.
There's nothing to do with ill-legal immigration, he was a human first.
Why does Amnesty international never rapport about the racist attacks by immigrants against the natives:
http://armscontrol.eu/2012/08/an-illegal-immigrant-from-pakistan-raped-a-15-year-old-girl-in-greece-leaving-it-half-dead-the-criminal-was-arrested/
Nobody cares if Pakistanis die.
Not a single white face in the crowd.
On the contrary had an Indian died, it would have made headlines across the globe and you would find white people also in the crowd.
Also like Umair has commented, most Pakistanis and Bangladeshis in the Europe are illegal.
@Umair Waheed, IBA, Khayban e Hafiz: since when being illegal immigrant is punishable by death? how a murder can be justified??
I am sure he was an illegal immigrant.