In the amendment of “the Implementing Law which is under the responsibility of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security” is defined that until December 31, 2012 whoever immigrant is “illegal” resident in Greece and works in agriculture/cattle-breeding, private nursing, housekeeping, cleaning, having one or more stable employers “can” go to the police offices “together with their employer” within 3 months, in order to be recorded. If the citizen of the third country is found to have declared false information, he/she will be deported (…) The employer of this Article is exempted from the social security and other contributions that he/she owes and he/she is also exempted from the imposition of sanctions for the employment of the illegal resident who is citizen of a third country, for the duration before his/her recording”. However, it is well known that until today, an employer who employs “illegal” immigrant is threatened with imprisonment, flagrant etc.

Once again, the employers are proclaimed as regulators of legitimacy and of promotion of immigrants who try to survive in a foreign country. The employer is exempted from previous social security contributions that he/she owes, while the immigrant is dependant on the mood and the blackmails of every employer, in order for them to be able to be recorded and much more in order for them to return legally to our country.

The amendment is aligned with the European guidelines for the entry and the stay of immigrants for as long as the employer wants; it does not provide relief to the thousands of immigrants who become victims of circuits in their effort to obtain the legalizing documents. It does not persecute the multiple exploitation immigrants face by the employers. Of course it does not minimize the number of immigrants and refugees who are murdered by the anti-immigrant policy and are every day found on the banks of Evros or in the coasts of our islands.

We call upon immigrants to intensify their struggle against the brutal measures. We call them to become organized within the trade unions, to organize their struggle together with the Greek workers.

The immigrants must understand that the settings for the implementation of the Memorandum take into consideration first of all the needs of the plutocrats for the fewest loss from their profits and secondly the general direction of the black front government to load all the burdens on the Greek and immigrant workers.

We continue the struggle for legalization of immigrants who live and work in our country without any financial burden.

We strengthen the front of resistance of Greek and immigrants against the policy of exploitation, against the policy which gives birth to and multiplies immigration and refugees.

The Immigrants’ Secretariat