Specifically, on 31 May a protest was held against the high prices of essential goods at a supermarket on Svolou Street in central Thessaloniki. During the mobilization, police officers surrounded participants, pushed them inside the store, and used chemical agents. Subsequently, police forces carried out 24 detentions, one of which resulted in an arrest.
The organizing group stated in its announcement that police forces blocked the entrance and trapped people inside the supermarket, threatening that unless citizens voluntarily gave their details, they would be forcibly detained. Officers subsequently entered the supermarket, dragging, pushing, and kicking people in order to detain them. Customers and employees inside (except the store manager) demanded the police leave, as did those gathered outside. In the end, they sprayed chemicals on the crowd outside and forcibly detained 24 citizens, one of which resulted in an arrest.
In a state governed by the rule of law, the actions and functioning of police authorities must be guided by principles such as legality, proportionality, prohibition of abusive exercise of police power, and respect for human rights. The duties and conduct of police authorities are regulated, among other legislation, by Presidential Decrees 538/1989, 141/1991, and 254/2004.
Although the police are empowered to use force to enforce the law and protect human rights, this does not mean that any preventive or repressive use of force is lawful. On the contrary, arbitrary or excessive use of force beyond legal limits constitutes a dangerous phenomenon for democracy.
In this case, serious concerns arise regarding compliance with the legal framework governing the lawful operation of ELAS, specifically the prevention of excessive and arbitrary violence against citizens—which is an issue that must be investigated by state authorities and the judiciary.
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