ATHENS - Small groups of Greeks held peaceful rallies in Athens on Saturday to honor a teenager whose killing by police a week ago triggered the worst rioting in decades.

Families and former school mates of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos, known by friends as Alexis, met quietly in the main square outside parliament after seven days of violence in the city of four million people.

"We decided to come here to pay our respects to Alexandros," said 37-year old TV technician Chryssoula Kapsali in Syntagma square, where some 500 people had gathered by mid-afternoon.

Wearing a long-sleeved white T-shirt, she was accompanied by her husband and 8-year old son, who was carrying a red rose.

Banners in the square read "The state kills" and "Down with the government of murderers," but the atmosphere was calm.

Similar rallies were being held elsewhere in the capital and two other cities. Police reported a minor clash at Athens' Olympic stadium, with one policeman slightly injured.

The boy's shooting on December 6 unleashed a wave of riots by students and anarchists, tapping into resentment over political scandals and a slowing economy hit by the global recession.

Thousands of youths went on a rampage in Athens and other cities, smashing and burning shops, banks and cars, pelting police with stones and piling pressure on the fragile conservative government. More protests are planned next week.

"The murder of Alexis was the last straw. Being a young man in Greece today is a crime ... They are stealing our dreams," read one leaflet on Saturday.

The unrest has caused 200 million euros ($265.3 million) of damage in Athens alone. Police have detained 432 people.

Athens calm

On Saturday, businesses in the city center were open. Shopkeepers could be seen fixing broken windows. Townhall workers repaired Christmas decorations damaged by protesters.

The people gathered outside parliament voiced anger at the police, but several said they were tired of violent protests.

"We're here to show our grief and sorrow because no one understands us. They are killing children for no reason," said Irini, 16, a pupil in the school Grigoropoulos attended.

A 20-year old university student, Elias Alkides, said he did not condemn the riots but wanted to show a different kind of protest was possible.

"We are wearing white to show that we are different from the violent ones," he said, holding a bunch of daisies.

The policeman charged with killing the teenager has been jailed along with a colleague pending trial. He says he fired warning shots after being attacked by youths in a leftist Athens neighborhood and that one bullet ricocheted.

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has vowed to guarantee safety, rebuffing calls to resign and hold early elections.

A poll conducted before the violence and published on Saturday in Ethnos newspaper said his New Democracy government, which has a one-seat majority in parliament, was losing support to the Socialist opposition as well as other parties.

"Right now, the country is dealing with a serious, big international financial crisis ... It needs responsible policies and a steady hand on the wheel," Karamanlis said on Friday.

"This is my concern, this is the concern and the priority of the government and not scenarios about elections," he said.