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Program of activities
Greece participates to the Relay in collaboration with Turkey. In Istanbul, there are activities on May 9th, but we are not going to participate to them. Unfortunately, only a small delegation from Greece is going there, perhaps five women. We will take part in the demonstration and public meeting-feast on the 10th of May. The main theme of the activity is militarism and antiwar action.
On May 12th, we have two public meetings in Greece : one in Thessaloniki, in the North, another one in Patras, in the South. We chose Thessaloniki for its symbolism, because it is a big city near the borders with other Balkan countries, and near from Turkey and further Asia. In Thessaloniki we will have our short demonstration followed by our public meeting which is greatly organised until now, thanks to our Turkish and Bulgarian sisters, and of course above all, the women's groups in the city of Thessaloniki and women trades unionists. We are expecting a coach of Turkish sisters, they say 45, who will bring to the meeting the Charter and the Quilt, and some Bulgarian women from the city of Sadanski, which is near the Greek border. Of course the women's organisations as well as the social forum and other progressive collectives, antimilitarists, conscientious objectors, etc. will support and participate in our meeting.
The themes are:
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Presentation of the Relay and the Charter.
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Relocation of factories from Northern Greece to countries above the northern borders, former eastern block, which causes unemployment in Greece and overexploitation on the other sides.
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Our slogan is for the international co-operation of the workers for equal rights and fewer hours of work. The factories relocated for the last 10 years employ mainly women.
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Violence against women in the family and the personal relations framework, and also trafficking. The city of Sadanski is a centre for selling and buying women and organising trafficking by the transnational gangs.
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The women-immigrants in our country : double exploitation, double violence. We demand equal rights for all women.
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The speakers will be Greek, Turkish, Bulgarian, and hopefully one Canadian. The meeting will close with music and food and farewell to our foreigners who will be leaving at midnight.
In Patras, the WMW women are organising the presentation of a film against trafficking and other videos from activities of the World March of Women. There will be students participating, and women's groups as well as social collectives from the city. Unfortunately the quilt cannot be there this day otherwise we couldn't make the meeting with the Italian sisters.
The particular theme of the meeting is trafficking of women, as in Patras there is an important short history of solidarity to one Ukrainian woman who denounced the procurers and the rapists, and we have supported her massively in court. Another theme of the meeting is “Fortress Europe”, as Patras is the port where immigrants who are in Greece take the boats illegally for Italy, and many dramas have occurred around the piers and on the boats.
On the 13th of May, we are leaving from the port of Patras by ferry-boat to Brindisi, with the Charter and the Quilt and we have a small happening in the port before going aboard, where we will display for the media our quilt and give a press conference.
On the 14th of May, in the morning we arrive in Italy and we meet the Italian sisters who have organised events and demonstrations on the occasion of the reception of the Quilt and the Charter.
We wish everybody success in their activities!
Last modified 2007-06-18 02:42 PM
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