Clashes outside parliament as strike grips Greece

Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament today during a general strike which paralysed Greece and piled pressure…

Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament today during a general strike which paralysed Greece and piled pressure on a conservative government reeling from the worst riots in decades.

Greece's socialist opposition leader George Papandreou today appealed for restraint and an end to the five days of violence sparked by the police shooting of a teenager.

"I appeal to all to show responsibility, restraint and to end the violence that our country is experiencing these days," he told a conference.

Earlier today, Greek prime minister Costas Karamanlis announced financial support for businesses damaged in five days of rioting. He also pledged to safeguard people from violence, but did not say how.

Government sources have denied rumours emergency measures were being considered.

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Demonstrators are furious at the shooting of the teenager by police on Saturday which has sparked violence fuelled by simmering public anger at political scandals, rising unemployment and poverty.

A lawyer acting for the policeman at the centre of the case told news agencies today that a ballistics report into the shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos concluded that the bullet ricocheted before hitting the youth. Witnesses said the police officer took aim at the boy before discharging his weapon.

"The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this was an accident," the lawyer Alexis Kougias told Reuters. The ballistics report has not yet been officially published.

Thousands marched on parliament in a union rally at economic and social policy, which quickly turned violent. Police fired teargas and protesters responded with stones, bottles and sticks.

The opposition socialist party has said the government, which has a one-seat majority and trails in opinion polls, has lost the trust of the people and has called for elections.

"Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a standstill," said Stathis Anestis, spokesman for the GSEE union federation which called the 24-hour stoppage.

Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of Greeks walked off the job.

Unions say privatisations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the poverty line, precisely at a time when the global downturn is hurting the 240 billion euro economy.

"There is demand for change: social, economic and political change," said Odysseas Korakidis, 25, who works two jobs. "It's not unusual here to hold down two jobs to get just 800 or 1,000 euros a month. In other countries, that's inconceivable!"

Mr Karamanlis, who swept to power amid the euphoria of the 2004 Athens Olympics, appealed to political leaders for unity and urged unions to cancel Wednesday's rally. But his requests were flatly rejected by the opposition.

"He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that the country, that Greek society is experiencing," said socialist party spokesman George Papakonstantinou.

One policeman has been charged with murder over the shooting of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, but has said he only fired in warning. A ballistics report is due today and the policeman was scheduled to appear before investigators with his partner, who has been charged as an accomplice.

Rioting at the teenager's death began in Athens on Saturday and quickly spread to at least 10 cities across the European Union nation of 11 million people. Greeks also protested in Paris, Berlin, London, The Hague and in Cyprus.

The riots, Greece's worst unrest since the aftermath of military rule in 1974, have caused more than 20 million euros in damage in wrecked cars, torched shops and banks, insurers say.

In Athens alone, a municipal official said 322 banks and businesses had been damaged and the number was still rising.

"The death of the kid was an excuse that lit the match," said grocery store owner Yannis Thomas, 60. "Today we are more afraid than ever because of the strike."

Wednesday's strike by GSEE and its public sector counterpart ADEDY, which group half of Greece's 5-million-strong work force, was the latest in a series of labour protests by unions.

Many shops in central Athens stayed shut, boarding up their windows to prevent further damage. Bus stops and litter bins were blackened by fire, public telephone booths smashed and some buildings gutted by blazes.

Greece has a tradition of violence at student rallies and fire bomb attacks by anarchist groups, which have heightened tensions with police. Amnesty International, in a report on Tuesday, accused police of brutality in handling the riots.

Karamanlis has promised to compensate shopkeepers but his government already faces a big deficit. In four years of conservative rule, a series of scandals, devastating forest fires last summer, and misfired economic measures have erased the optimistic mood of the 2004 Olympics.