Greek students gather in Athens for rally

High school pupils gathered in Athens for a rally and students occupied university buildings today, but the Greek capital was calm following six days of violence which has shaken the conservative government.

Hundreds of cars, banks and businesses have been wrecked in rioting, sparked by the police shooting of a teenager on Saturday, as young Greeks voiced their anger at rising unemployment, low wages and a series of political scandals.

Students and teachers called a protest rally for midday in central Athens against the shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos. But, with the ferocity of protests appearing to subside, Greeks expressed frustration at government apathy.

"It was one of the most intense protests we've had in Greece, but today it could be the last day. I'm afraid it will be forgotten, like everything has been in the past," said Fani Stathoulopoulou, 25. "Politicians didn't react as they should."

Some 80 students peacefully occupied Flash Radio station, reading a statement over the air and playing music for about half an hour. Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, whose New Democracy party has a slender one-seat majority and has seen its popularity ratings dive in recent months, was due to hold a news conference at an EU summit in Brussels later.

"The Bell Tolls For Karamanlis" said Ta Nea newspaper on its front page, as Greek media criticised the government's sluggish response to the crisis. "Government Under Siege; Education Protests Escalate" said Ethnos in its top headline.

Yesterday, dozens of protesters hurled fire bombs and stones at riot police in central Athens but the damage was small compared to previous nights and heavy rain helped extinguish the demonstrations early. The protests have spread to several European cities, sowing fears of copy-cat riots elsewhere.

In bond markets, the spread between Greek debt and German benchmark bonds -- a measure of perceived risk -- reached its widest point this decade on Friday, at over 2 percentage points. "We ... do not expect investors to forget this situation quickly," said David Keeble, head of fixed income research at Calyon Bank.

Many Greeks were angry that the 37-year-old policeman charged with murdering Grigoropoulos did not express remorse to investigators, but said he fired warning shots in self-defence which ricocheted.

Epaminondas Korkoneas and his police partner, who is charged as an accomplice, are being held in jail pending trial by a prosecutor on Wednesday. Cases often take months to reach court.

Greeks rushing to work this morning were keen for their cities to return to normal after the protests, which the Greek Commerce Confederation said caused 200 million euros of damage to more than 500 shops in Athens alone.

"It will go calm now. But I want the government to clean up, to get the market and the economy moving," Isidoros Aletas, 21.

On Wednesday, hundreds of thousands of Greeks joined a strike to protest against privatisations, tax rises and pension reform. Many people, especially the fifth of Greeks who live below the poverty line, feel badly hit as the global downturn affects the 240 billion euro economy.

Karamanlis, who swept to power during the euphoria of the 2004 Athens Olympics, announced subsidies and tax relief measures for those affected, but many shopkeepers said the government should have protected their property.

In four years of conservative rule, a series of scandals, devastating forest fires and unsuccessful economic measures have erased the optimistic mood of 2004.