Athens--They have learned to live with over 2,000 prisoners on their doorstep, some of them notorious extremists and hardened killers.
But for those with homes and businesses situated beneath the high walls of the Korydallos prison, the country's leading correctional facility, hosting Greece's biggest trial in over a decade is too much.
On April 20, a special court inside Korydallos will convene for the Golden Dawn trial, the culmination of a mass probe implicating nearly 70 members and alleged supporters of Greece's neo-Nazi party.
After a 15-month investigation, state prosecutors will try to prove that the aggressive anti-immigrant group operated as a criminal organisation under a military-style leadership that allegedly encouraged the beating -- and possibly the killing -- of migrants and political opponents.
Under the command of party founder Nikos Michaloliakos, a 58-year-old disgraced former officer cadet, Golden Dawn has already been linked by investigating magistrates to at least two murders.
Local officials are bracing for trouble, noting that anti-fascist groups have already called protests for the start of the trial.
"The trial cannot and must not be held here," Korydallos' mayor Stavros Kasimatis told AFP.
"This is Greece's biggest trial in 40 years. It will last at least 18 months. There will be gatherings by anti-fascist groups, and Golden Dawn supporters will perhaps muster as well."
Anti-fascist groups, political parties and unions say they will hold a demonstration outside the prison on the opening day.
Kasimatis said that to keep rival groups apart, the police will probably be forced to erect barriers on one of Korydallos' main streets, just a few metres from the district's central school complex and nurseries.
AFP
