Greek police exposed by torture victim with pierced lung

Libcom.org Sep 7 2009

One of the five arrested of last week's clashes in Athens exposes the greek police for torture, which led to his lungs being pieced by a broken rib.

One of the five men arrested last Friday in relation to the clashes that occurred with police forces in Exarcheia, Athens, has exposed the greek police for an unrepenting recourse to torture.

According to the accused and his solicitor, the veteran defender of human and civil rights Mr Papadakis, the 27 year old man was arrested by Delta force motorised policemen acting on no evidence but mere revengeful motives. The young man was apprehended, brutally beaten and tied to a tree. As a result his whole body is suffering from wounds and bruises while one of his ribs broke piercing his lungs and setting his life in serious danger.

In a press conference on the latest case of police torture, Mr Papadakis dismissed police allegations that the accused attacked them with molotov cocktails, arguing that not a single molotov was thrown that night as numerous neighbours and shop owners testify: "In the last few months" claimed the solicitor "we have been visiting our clients not in police departments, but in hospitals. Every time I get a call for the defense of a new accused, I ask: is he healthy or in the hospital? In most cases it is the latter case".

Human rights groups point out that although the young man was hospitalised after his arrest, the persecution failed to order a medical examination regarding the causes of his injuries, thus 'normalising' police brutality and torture.

For a video of the Delta force operation in the area see
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HUVbxOP_HI&feature=channel_page...