Britain’s Communists condemn racist Immigration Bill

'People seeking to build a new life in Britain are being targeted by those who want to divide us', Tony Conway told the Communist Party's political committee on Monday evening (March 27).

'The Tory government at Westminster, the far right and the big business media are using every weapon to stigmatise migrants and asylum seekers instead of addressing the real economic and social problems facing working people and their families', he added.

KKE: The images of naked refugees on Greek-Turkish border expose capitalist barbarity

Greek border guards and officers of EU border agency Frontex found 92 unclothed migrants from the banks of the river Evros, on the northeastern border with Turkey on Friday, Greece's Citizen Protection Ministry said on Saturday.

The migrants “had been abandoned completely naked and without any equipment,” the ministry said. 

 

 In a statement about the incident, the Press Office of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) issued the following statement (here in Greek): 

KKE MEP: The Melilla massacre is an example of EU's criminal policy

The EU Parliament Group of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) strongly condemned the criminal policy of the EU and its governments that resulted in the recent tragic massacre of migrants in Melilla. 

 

During a debate in the Committee on Political Liberties (LIBE), in the presence of EU Commissioner Ylva Johannson, KKE MEP Kostas Papadakis made the following intervention:

Poland's communists blast governmental policy on refugees

“The Polish government's policy towards refugees failed and resulted in the death of at least a dozen people” points out the Communist Party of Poland (KPP) in a statement concerning the ongoing refugee crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border. 

 

“A government that is unable to resolve this crisis in a peaceful way should resign” adds the Communist Party, underlining that the foreign policy of Poland must change.

The KPP stresses out that “it shouldn't be forgotten that Poland, as a NATO member-state, had an instrumental role in the tragic situation affected by war, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan” and adds: “The refugees hope to reach Western European countries through Poland. These people often flee from Islamic fundamentalism, imperialism or the lack of prospects in their home country. Many migrants are Kurds who have become victims of Turkism imperialism in Syria and Iraq. Some have successfully fought against the Islamic State but, now, the U.S. has handed them over to Erdogan's regime which is occupying part of Syria's territory and carries out air strikes in northern Iraq”.

KKE: Statement for the refugee crisis in Belarus-EU borders

The KKE calls the people of Poland and Belarus, as well as the other people of the region, to turn their backs on nationalism and racism, to strengthen the solidarity with the people who are victims of imperialist wars and exploitation, points out a statement of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) concerning the dramatic situation in the Polish-Belarusian border.

More specifically, the statement (here in Greek) issued by the Press Bureau of the CC of the KKE reads:

Belarus-Poland standoff: The lives of refugees are not a tool in imperialist antagonisms

In a statement about the tension in the Belarusian-Polish border the Secretariat of the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) underlines that "the lives of refugees are not a tool in imperialist antagonisms" and calls for an end to the imperialist interventions which are the root of refugee-migrant crisis, The statement reads:

"The tension on the Belarusian border with Poland is intensifying every day at the expense of thousands of stranded migrants and refugees who are treated like a tennis-ball in the EU – USA – NATO geopolitical confrontation with Belarus and Russia.

Fire destroys Moria refugee camp in Greece — Statements by KKE and PAME

A large fire has destroyed Greece's largest refugee concentration camp in Moria, Lesbos. About 25 firefighters and 10 engines battled the flames as migrants were evacuated. 

Moria was home to nearly 13,000 refugees and migrants, which is more than four times the number the camp can officially hold. 

In a statement published in 902 portal, the Press Bureau of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) demands the immediate closing of Moria urging the authorities to proceed to the relocation of the refugees-migrants to safe places, under all the necessary measures of health protection, in mainland Greece. 

KKE responds to the fabrications published in "Die Rote Fahne" online newspaper

On June 6, 2020, an article titled "The Migration Issue "divides" the Left" was published online in Greece. The author of the article is a geologist who had studied in Germany and lives in Athens. It refers to an article in the German online newspaper "DIE ROTE FAHNE", which deals with the migration issue in Europe and criticises the ΚΚΕ for ..."deficient analysis". 

The author of the article claims that what we are dealing with is a "not so friendly reaction of the "fraternal" Communist Party of Germany, KPD (Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands).

Refugee Crisis: Militant intervention by Greek communists in the developments

The following article provides a thorough outline of the position and initiatives of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) regarding the ongoing refugee situation in the borders between Greece and Turkey and the Greek islands: 

Militant intervention by the communists in the developments concerning the Refugee question

By Nikos Sofianos*

Greece must not become EU's refugee prison, says KKE MEP Kostas Papadakis

Communist Party (KKE) eurodeputy Kostas Papadakis.

The immense responsibilities of the European Union and NATO in the creation and perpetuation of the refugee situation in the Greek-Turkish borders, as well as the need for the abolition of EU's Dublin Regulation and the EU-Turkey migrant deal, were highlighted by Kostas Papadakis, MEP for the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), during his intervention at the EU Parliament’s plenary in Brussels. 

More specifically Papadakis pointed out the following:

Dimitris Koutsoumbas on refugee crisis: "Dublin Regulation, EU-Turkey deal must be abolished"

The General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Dimitris Koutsoumbas gave an interview to “Real News” newspaper where, among other things, he refered to the ongoing refugee situation in the Greek-Turkish borders. Below you can read the excerpts of his answers:

“There is no greatest depravity than using uprooted, tortured people for your own aspirations, like Erdogan does, who blackmails for more support by the EU and NATO for his intervention in Northern Syria as well as in his other plans. For that reason, the needed protection of the borders can neither target the refugees nor acquitting EU and NATO which uproot people and have led to the entrapment of thousands of refugees in the Aegean islands and in Evros, thus playing Erdogan’s game. And certainly it cannot be utilized for the emboldenment of reactionary, racist voices”.

Greek workers' movement stands in solidarity with refugees — Statement by PAME

In face of the latest developments with the refugee situation in the Greek-Turkish borders and the Aegean islands, the vanguard of Greece's class-oriented labour movement, the All-Workers Militant Front (PAME), issued the following statement:

The trapping of thousands of refugees and immigrants in the Aegean islands and the Greek-Turkish border in Evros, in the most dramatic way, highlights the barbarism of imperialist organizations, the EU and NATO and the active involvement of all Greek governments in these organizations.

Statement of the Political Bureau of the KKE on the refugee crisis in Greek-Turkish borders

On March 3, 2020, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) issued a statement regarding the refugee situation in the Greek-Turkish borders and the measures announced by the government. You can read previous statements by the KKE about the issue here and here. 

The statement is the following:

The latest developments, with the entrapment of thousands of refugees and immigrants on the Aegean islands and at the Greek-Turkish border in Evros, confirm once again that the EU and NATO policy that the Greek governments have followed and are fervently adhering to now is, on the one hand, responsible for the dissolution of countries and the uprooting of peoples and on the other,  for the entrapment of uprooted peoples on islands and at borders. This policy has paved the way for Erdogan to try to impose his own objectives, using the refugee situation as a vehicle.

KKE slams Greek government: "Demonstrate your strength to EU and NATO, not to refugees"

Greek riot police forces behind the fences at Kastanies
border crossing, 29 February 2020 EPA/EFE.

After a meeting on Sunday chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greece’s Government Council on National Security (KYSEA) decided to step up the level of deterrence to the maximum point at the Greek-Turkish borders in Evros. 

The conservative ND government also decided to suspend new asylum applications, while the presence of army units and police forces across Kastanies border gates has been strengthened. Additionally, Athens has requested from EU border agency FRONTEX to provide additional aid in the protection of the borders.

Refugee flows are a result of the interventions by US-NATO-EU and Turkey in Syria — KKE

During the last 48 hours, the tension in the Greek-Turkish borders in Evros has been escalated, with thousands of refugees and migrants gathering at Kastanies/Pazarkule border gate. “We will no longer keep the doors closed for refugees who want to go to Europe”, a senior Turkish official said as a response to the killing of 33 Turkish soldiers in Idlib Province, Syria. 

At the same time, the Greek government decided yesterday to suspend border crossing at Kastanies, sending additional riot police forces to the area. In a message, Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis wrote: “I want to be clear: no illegal entries into Greece will be tolerated”, announcing the increase of border security. 

Greek government's authoritarianism exceeded all limits: Police brutality hits Aegean islands

In the last two days, the Greek government has unleashed a brutal attack against protesters in the islands of the Aegean, particularly those that have been at the epicenter of the refugee-migrants issue during the last years. 

Demonstrators in Lesvos, Chios and Samos suffered excessive repression and violence by riot police forces as they demanded the end of the concentration camps. The local unions in Lesvos, Chios and Samos, have been in the front line demanding real measures of protection and assistance to the refugees, as well as support to the local communities, who witness their land turn into huge EU’s detention centers.

EU migration policy turns Greek islands into prisons for refugees — Statement by KKE

The Press Bureau of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) sharply criticized New Democracy (ND) government’s legislative act which introduces requisition of land and facilities for migration purposes. 

Stelios Petsas, the governmental spokesperson, announced on Monday that the current administration will issue a Legislative Act by which the state will be able to proceed with the requisition of public and private properties where new migrant camps (hotspots) will be constructed.

KKE slams Mitsotakis government's measures for the refugee-migration issue

In a statement published on 902 portal, the Press Bureau of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) comments on the recent measures announced by the right-wing government of New Democracy (ND) regarding the refugee-migration issue. 

"The measures announced by the ND government for the refugee issue strengthen even further the entrapment and repression to asylum seekers, as well as the suffering of the local Greek population. They cultivate and fuel racism and xenophobic reactions. They are dangerous measures for both the refugees and the Greek people" points out the statement. 

Human tragedy in Greece's Moria refugee camp — Statement by the KKE

A woman from Afghanistan and her child are the victims of the fire that broke out in a container in the refugee camp of Moria on the Greek island of Lesvos on Sunday afternoon. 

The State-run news agency AMNA reports that the body of the woman was transferred to the hospital in the city of Mytilene with a private car, while it was the refugees who retrieved the body of the child.

US anti-war activists: "Troops off the border! Solidarity with refugees and migrants!"

In a statement, the Tucson Anti-War Committee of Arizona condemns the decision of U.S. President Trump to authorize security troops to shoot against the migrants caravan from Central America. The Anti-War Committee demands the removal of U.S. troops from the border and the asylum granting to all refugees:

On October 29, President Trump ordered 5200 U.S. troops to the Mexican border in an attempted show of force with a caravan of refugees moving north from Honduras through Mexico. Trump has since threatened thousands more troops. The troop total could end up being more than the U.S. troops continuing the war in Afghanistan.