Greek Roma face racism, police violence: community leader says after police shooting

• Kostas Fragoulis was shot in the head by a police motorbike.
• He is “between life and death,” according to his father.
• There are between 170,000 and 300,000 Roma in Greece.

Roma in Greece are subject to institutional racism and recurrent police violence, a community leader warned Wednesday, after a police shooting of a Roma juvenile sparked protests.

“This is a tragic incident, the fourth of its kind in a year in our community,” said Vassilis Pantzos, head of the Panhellenic Confederation of Roma, in an interview with AFP.

During a chase early Monday morning, Kostas Fragoulis, 16, from the Roma community of Agia Sofia near Thessaloniki was shot in the head by a police motorbike.

The act has provoked intermittent protests by the nation’s Roma minorities.

On Wednesday, Roma erected roadblocks and burnt tires on a roadway in the vicinity of Thessaloniki. On the Athens-Corinth highway, rocks that were hurled into the pavement halted traffic.

A bus and a tire shop were set on fire in the Ano Liosia neighborhood of western Athens, according to the fire department.

No casualties were immediately reported.

Fragoulis is in severe condition at a hospital in Thessaloniki. According to his father, he is “between life and death.”

Also Read

Greece’s top diplomat cancels his trip to Tripoli after landing

Nikos Dendias refused to get off the plane when it landed in...

Fragoulis, according to police, was in a pickup truck and attempted to collide with police motorcyclists who were pursuing him after he fled a gas station without paying.

The cop who shot him has been charged with attempted murder and unlawful use of a firearm.

Wednesday, as part of the inquiry, the father of the victim, Pavlos Fragoulis, told reporters that the family wanted the suspect “to be punished and imprisoned because he shot a 16-year-old child.”

There are between 170,000 and 300,000 Roma in Greece, although specific numbers are unavailable.

Pantzos stated that the majority of Greek Roma suffer from “exclusion and live in misery” and confront “numerous prejudices and racism.”

In October 2021, a 20-year-old Roma guy was slain in western Athens by police pursuing a stolen vehicle.

Seven officers are charged with the murder and attempted murder of a 16-year-old who was hurt during the pursuit, but they are free pending trial.

Pantzos stated that a 44-year-old member of the Roma community in Menidi, western Athens, was beaten to death earlier this year by two men, one of whom was an off-duty police officer, for allegedly attempting to steal an air conditioner.

In January, a police officer in Volos, central Greece, fired shots at a group of unlicensed adolescent Roma in a car.

Pantzos stated that the Greek government had exhibited “inertia” in executing EU-funded social integration programs.

Also Read

Police kills Greek Roma boy for prompting outrage in Greece

A police officer shot a teenager in the head as he fled...