Riot police yesterday stormed the Acropolis to break up a blockade of Greece’s top monument by protesting Culture Ministry staff as the government faced fresh opposition to its austerity policies.
The police broke into the monument perimeter through a side entrance and used tear gas to disperse media representatives covering the event as they tried to corner the protesters and empty the site, which had been closed to the public since Wednesday.
The protesters, who had padlocked themselves inside the perimeter overnight, grabbed on to fence railings to prevent their removal from the hilltop site overlooking central Athens as gathered tourists snapped pictures.
One protester was detained in the evacuation, an AFP photographer said, but police later said they had released him.
“The Acropolis is a world heritage monument and no-one has the right to shut it down and prevent thousands of people who have travelled to see it from visiting it,” deputy Minister for Tourism George Nikitiadis said.
But the monument did not reopen to visitors as permanent staff staged a supporting strike, and the protesters’ syndicate pledged to return today.
“The protest will continue,” the head of temporary Culture Ministry staff Nikos Hasomeris said after the police operation.
“The authorities must accept their responsibilities. Today they destroyed the archaeological site,” he said.
The union began the protest on Tuesday, initially without barring visitors, against the imminent dismissal of 320 fixed-term employees whose contracts expire at the end of the month.
They also want the state to settle unpaid salaries which they say are worth €5 million over two years.
One German tourist, who did not give his name, said he sympathised with the protesters’ claims.
“I am OK with the protest, but from the other side, we came here to visit the Acropolis and we can’t. This is of course bothering me. I hope that the problem will be solved today, that is what we were told,” he said.
The Acropolis, Athens’ ancient citadel, draws thousands of visitors every year. Some of its marble temples recently underwent extensive restoration. Greece’s second largest union that represents civil servants, Adedy, blasted the government over the police operation.
“We call on the government to deal with the issue seriously and to consider the painful effects it has on employment,” Adedy said.
Short-term ministry staff with renewable contracts, who say they are at the mercy of layoffs, often shut down the Acropolis to demand job security.
Greece is in the grip of an unprecedented debt crisis and only narrowly avoided national bankruptcy a few months ago.
To reduce costs, the Socialist government has imposed severe cutbacks on state spending and a hiring freeze on public sector jobs.
Greece’s deputy Culture Minister offered to talk to the protesters but said the government would not break existing employment laws to assist them.
“Thousands of short-term workers have been laid off, and the law applies to all,” Telemachos Hytiris told Flash Radio.
“We cannot promise them full-term contracts.”