Die Parteispitze der rechtsextremen Chryssi Avgi (CA; zu Deutsch: „Goldene Morgenröte“) wurde Samstagmorgen verhaftet („Komitee Solidarität mit dem Widerstrand in Griechenland“)

Die Parteispitze der rechtsextremen Chryssi Avgi (CA; zu Deutsch: „Goldene Morgenröte“) wurde Samstagmorgen verhaftet. Die Antiterroreinheiten nahmen den so genannten „Führer“ bzw. „Prinz“ der CA, Nikos Michaloliakos (s. Foto; eurokinissi), in seinem Haus fest. Er leistete keinen Widerstand. Insgesamt kam es zu 16 Festnahmen, darunter befanden sich vier Abgeordnete der CA, die seit Juni 2012 mit 18 Parlamentariern in der Volksvertretung präsent ist. Zwei Abgeordnete, die sich der Festnahme entzogen haben, werden noch gesucht. Es ist das erste Mal in der jüngeren Geschichte Griechenlands, dass der Vorsitzende einer Partei in Gewahrsam genommen wird.

Anlass für die in Griechenland bisher beispiellose Aktion war der Mord an einem antifaschistischen Musiker, den ein Sympathisant der rechtsextremen Partei vorige Woche verübt hatte. Das Höchstgericht des Landes (Areopag) sammelte in der Folge Indizien und Beweise, ob im Falle der CA der Tatbestand einer „kriminellen Organisation“ vorliegt. Für die Justiz reichte das bisher erarbeitete Material offensichtlich aus, um die „Goldene Morgenröte“ als verbrecherische Organisation zu charakterisieren. Sie wird neben dem Mord an dem Musiker Pavlos Fyssas u. a. verdächtigt, hinter Anschlägen auf Ausländer beteiligt zu sein. Allein seit 2010 wurden der pakistanischen Gemeinde in Griechenland zufolge 900 Angriffe gegen Immigranten registriert. Man spricht von mindestens drei Toten. Außerdem hat der Staatsanwalt des Areopag Untersuchungen  angeordnet, ob die CA in Fälle von Geldwäsche involviert ist.

Die CA verfügt darüber hinaus über Sturmtrupps; sie wurden Medienberichten zufolge bei Attacken gegen Ausländer eingesetzt. In den vergangenen Tagen kam es in diesem Zusammenhang zur Verhaftung von mehreren Polizisten, die verdächtigt werden, die CA-Sturmtrupps im Nahkampf ausgebildet zu haben.
In einer Umfrage der Griechenland Zeitung auf www.griechenland.net, die vor wenigen Tagen hochgeladen wurde (http://www.griechenland.net/vote_results.php?poll=104), sprechen sich bisher 84 Prozent der Umfrage-Teilnehmer für ein Verbot der neofaschistischen Partei aus. (Griechenland Zeitung/rs)

Eleftherotipia

Thursday 26 September 2013

Special forces reservists call for resignation of government

Shadowy group wants ‚government of national unity‘

Updated At: 18:42 Thursday 26 September 2013

Author: Damian Mac Con Uladh

A group calling itself the Special Forces Reserve Union (KEED) wants the government to resign, the suspension of all laws relating to the troika memorandum and the expulsion of ‚illegal immigrants‘

A prosecutor in Athens has ordered an investigation into a blog post that appeared on a special forces reservists‘ website demanding the government and president resign and an interim government be appointed under the „guarantee“ of the armed forces.

In a statement posted on its website on September 23, the Hellenic Special Forces Reserve Union (KEED) says it will assemble at 4pm at Syntagma Square in order to demand “the immediate resignation of the government” because it has failed in its duty to provide “health, education, justice and security” that it says it is obliged to do under article 22 of the constitution.

The group first announced its intention to protest on Syntagma Square on 3 September, 170 years to the day since an uprising in 1843, led by the army, in Athens and supported by large sections of the people, that successfully forced the autocratic King Otto to introduce a constitutional monarchy.

Government and judicial authors met in an emergency meeting late on Wednesday after reports appeared in the media on the group’s demands that an interim “government of national unity” should take power, to be chaired by the president of the Supreme Court and to include “proven personalities with no political links” and members of the Academy of Athens.

The group also calls for the resignation of President Karolos Papoulias at an “appropriate time”.

The group’s willingness to openly call for the removal of the government will fuel concerns about rightwing infiltration of the armed forces in general. Earlier this week, the defence minister, Dimitris Avramopoulos, launched an inquiry into allegations that members of the armed forces have helped to train hit squads formed by the neonazi Golden Dawn party.

Claiming that it is protecting the “motherland” from its “enemies”, the KEED calls on “all Greeks regardless of their political beliefs to show up with a Greek flag at Syntagma Square to demand the restoration of our national sovereignty”.

Among its 15 demands is a call for the suspension of all laws related to the memorandum agreements. Furthermore, it calls for the “exclusion” of all citizens who participated in “governments responsible for the current economic situation”.

All German-owned businesses in Greece should be seized until Germany repays “in full” the loan it forced Greece to pay during its occupation of the the country during second world war and provides reparation compensation.

It also calls for the “removal” of all “illegal immigrants” to other EU countries.

The group says that the  “armed forces”, along with the “security forces”, would “guarantee” the implementation of its programme.

Greece launches inquiry into claims Golden Dawn trained by armed forces

Defence minister orders investigation into rightwing extremists as President Papoulias warns that ‚a storm is approaching‘

Helena Smith

• The Guardian, Tuesday 24 September 2013

The Greek authorities have launched an inquiry into allegations that members of the country’s armed forces have helped to train hit squads formed by the far-right Golden Dawn party.

The defence minister, Dimitris Avramopoulos, ordered the investigation as Greece’s governing coalition exhibited new resolve to clamp down on the „criminal organisation“ after a Greek musician was stabbed to death by one of the group’s supporters.

Highlighting the menace rightwing extremism now poses in a nation hobbled by economic collapse and political division, the country’s president Karolos Papoulias said that his top priority was to protect Greeks from neo-fascism. „From the time I was a young man I fought fascism and Nazism,“ he told reporters as he went into talks with the leftwing main opposition leader Alexis Tsipras. „It is my supreme duty as president of the republic to defend democracy and the Greek people from the storm that is approaching.“

The inquiry came amid revelations that Golden Dawn, which has seen its popularity soar on the back of debt-stricken Greece’s worst crisis in modern times, has not only set up a military wing but is actively training its members in the art of combat.

„In Golden Dawn we have an entire military structure with at least 3,000 people ready for everything,“ one member was quoted as saying by the Sunday Vima newspaper. Pictures of recruits in camouflage and balaclavas conducting night exercises in clandestine camps were published in another leading daily on Monday. The paper, Ethnos, claimed the men, some of who were armed with knives and wooden clubs, were being trained by members of Greece’s elite special forces who sympathise with the ultra-nationalist party.

The extremists‘ meteoric rise has worried Europe, with officials expressing disquiet over an organisation believed to be behind hundreds of attacks on immigrants, and more recently gay people, over the past three years. There have been many accusations that the police and judiciary are colluding with the extremists.

But the murder last week of Pavlos Fyssas, a leftwing hip-hop artist, appears to have galvanised authorities into finally taking action. On Monday two high-ranking police officers were forced to resign after it emerged they had failed to issue orders for the arrest of Golden Dawn members involved in attacks.

The public order ministry said five senior police officers – the heads of the special forces, internal security, organised crime, firearms and explosives, and a rapid-response motorcycle division – had been moved to other posts pending investigations, Associated Press reported. The regional police commanders of southern and central Greece resigned, citing personal reasons.

The resignations followed a series of raids on the party’s offices after the public order minister, Nikos Dendias, put the country’s anti-terrorism unit in charge of the investigation into the killing.

By Monday night at least 10 Golden Dawn members had been arrested in connection with the murder. A 45-year-old man belonging to the group has already confessed to the killing, according to police. The suspect, who reportedly worked in the cafe of the party’s local branch in Keratsini – the working class district in Athens where the murder took place – was charged with the killing on Saturday.

As prime minister Antonis Samaras’s government proposed that state funding for the far right group also be cut off if investigators found organisational links to the stabbing, Golden Dawn stepped up denials that it had any connection to the death. Its leader, Nikos Michaloliakos, insisted that the alleged killer was not a member of the party and had a tentative relationship with one of its 70 branches. „He was only passing through. I cannot control what everyone does,“ Michaloliakos told Kontra television in a rare interview.

Golden Dawn’s spokesman, Ilias Kasidiaris, went further, accusing political parties, the government and the media of waging a dirty war against the organisation because of its growing appeal – despite one poll showing its support had dropped 2.5 points following the stabbing.

„Golden Dawn has been radically strengthened, it has passed 20% [in the polls] and in a few months it will lay claim to the biggest municipalities in the land. We will not stop. We have justice on our side and more than a million Greeks,“ Kasidiaris said.

Although surveys have shown the vast majority of Greeks expressing outrage at Golden Dawn’s tactics in the wake of the killing, polls have also revealed the party maintaining steady ground in the areas most affected by the economic crisis. One survey released on Monday showed the group sweeping Athens in municipal elections next year – prompting speculation that the government’s crackdown on the group could backfire. Especially hard-hit Greeks have lapped up the party’s outreach programme that has included providing support for elderly Greeks in crime-ridden areas and „Greeks only“ food handouts.

Eleftherotipia

Tuesday 16 April 2013

Claims for wartime compensation justified, says German historian

Hagen Fleischer is convinced that Greece’s case for reparations from Germany remains open, 68 years after the war

For decades, West Germany used postwar division as an excuse not to engage in discussions on paying compensation and repaying the wartime debt only to say after unification that it was too late to deal with the issue, points out Prof Hagen Fleischer

Greece’s demands for wartime reparations from Germany – particularly in regard to loans – are justified, a German historian who has lectured in Greece for 30 years has said.

Hagen Fleischer, professor emeritus of history at the University of Athens, told Deutsche Welle, Germany’s international broadcaster, that he is convinced that the issue of reparations is not yet settled 68 years after the end of the Second World War.

Last week, Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos said that international justice – and not comments by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble – would determine whether Greece is entitled to war reparations which, according to reports, could run to €162bn.

Possible claims include reparations for casualties and material assets as well as compensation for a loan the central Bank of Greece was forced to give the Nazi regime in 1942. According to reports, those claims could amount to €108bn in compensation for the destruction of Greece’s economy and €54bn for a forced wartime loan to Germany, both adjusted for inflation.

Fleischer, whose ground-breaking dissertation Crown and Swastika (1978) described for the first time – and in forensic detail – the German occupation of Greece, said that for decades West Germany had used postwar division as an excuse not to engage in discussions on paying compensation and repaying the wartime debt.

„Before 1990, Germany tended to point out [that] it was too soon, because Germany was divided and it was the entire country that had gone to war, not just one half. So the issue was supposed to be canned until Germany was again reunified,“ said Fleischer.

After reunification, however, „Germany’s response was suddenly, ‚So much time has passed – now it’s too late,“ he added.

Fleischer, who once said it was an “irony of history” that it would be he, a German, who would be the first historian to lecture on the history of the Second World War at a Greek university, said he doubts the validity of Germany’s objection that all reparation claims were settled by a 1960 bilateral accord when Germany paid 115m Deutschmarks in reparation payments to the Greek victims of Nazi terror in accord with a bilateral reparation agreement.

The Netherlands, which suffered much fewer losses, received a larger amount of money – Hagen Fleischer

But the 1960 reparations must be put into context, Fleischer told DW. „The Netherlands, which suffered much fewer losses, received a larger amount of money.“

Germany argues that the 1960 payment settled all claims definitively, but Greece points to the 1953 London Agreement on German External Debts stipulating that payment obligations from the war were to be deferred until „after the signing of a peace treaty“ between Germany and the victorious allies. That was signed in 1990 between the West and East Germany and the Big Four – UK, France, the USA and the Soviet Union.

Focus on the forced loan

But it is precisely the forced loan that should be regarded separately from any other claims, Fleischer told Deutsche Welle.

The forced occupation loan was imposed by the occupying German and Italian forces on Greece under the terms of a unilateral decision which they took in Rome on 14 March 1942, and which was subsequently presented to the collaborationist government in Athens.

Under the agreement, the Germans and Italians forced the collaborationist government to pay them 1.5bn drachmas per month in occupation costs. About nine months later, the amount of the forced loan was raised to 8bn drachmas on a monthly basis, which was supposed to be repaid at a later stage to Greece with a zero interest rate.

Fleischer told Deutsche Welle that the Greek government should forget about reparations and focus on the loan.

For „practical reasons“, asserting reparation claims is a dead-end street, as no German government would risk such a precedent, he said.

But, as he pointed out, the occupiers recognised their loan debt of 476m reichsmarks, then the German currency, and had actually started repayment shortly before the end of the war.

Today, that loan would amount to about €7bn without interest, the historian believes.

He added German loans after the war generally had a six-percent interest rate, but even at a conservative three percent, Greece could be looking at a three-digit billion sum. The fact that the Nazis recognised the loan is also an advantage for Greece, he said

3 September 1843 Revolution (wikipedia)

The 3 September 1843 Revolution (Greek: Επανάσταση της 3ης Σεπτεμβρίου 1843, NS 13 September), was an uprising by the Greek Army in Athens, supported by large sections of the people, against the autocratic rule of King Otto. The rebels, led by veterans of the Greek War of Independence, demanded the granting of a constitution and the departure of the Bavarian officials that dominated the government. The revolution succeeded, ushering the period of constitutional monarchy in Greece.

Contents

• 1 Background
• 2 The conspiracy
• 3 The revolution
• 4 External links
• 5 Bibliography

Background[edit source | edit]

During the War of Independence, the Greek rebels had passed a series of liberal and progressive constitutions on which the war’s provisional governments were based. With the establishment of the monarchy in 1832 and the arrival of the Bavarian prince Otto as king, however, these liberal institutions were discarded. For the next 10 years, Otto and his mainly Bavarian officials would rule in an autocratic manner, causing large-scale resentment amongst a people that had just been liberated from foreign rule. The „Bavarocracy“ (Βαυαροκρατία), as it was called, intentionally recalling the periods of „Francocracy“ and „Turcocracy„, even extended to the use of German alongside Greek in the state administration.

Greek politicians constantly demanded an end to this state of affairs. They wished for the Bavarians, above all the much-despised Major Hess, to be sent back to their country and for a constitution to be granted. However, they did not question the monarchy itself or the power of the king. Indeed, they did not wish to impose a constitution, but demanded that the king grant them one. These demands grew ever stronger as time passed, and cut across the political spectrum: all political parties, the French, the English, and the Russian, expressed them.

The conspiracy[edit source | edit]

                         

Andreas Metaxas, one of the conspirators.

The king’s repeated refusals to yield to these demands led to a radicalisation. Therefore, the politicians resorted to conspiracy, which was not a new form of political action in Greece – indeed it had preceded and occurred during the War of Independence. The first Greek governments, such as that of John Capodistria, had had to confront it, and conspiracies had never really disappeared. However, this movement was much more important and came out into the open on 3 September 1843.

The principal conspirators were Yannis Makriyannis, Andreas Metaxas, André Loutos, Constantine Zographos, Michail Soutsos and Rigas Palamidis. They had managed to convince certain officers to join their side, chief among these being Colonel Dimitrios Kallergis (Commander of the Athens cavalry), Colonel Skarvelis (Commander of the Athens infantry) and Colonel Spyromilios (Commander of the Military Academy). Thus, the conspirators were certain to have army support.

Their idea was to act quickly so as to present the Palace with a fait accompli. A first date was chosen: 25 March 1844, anniversary of the uprising against the Ottomans. The constitution would then appear as the logical and necessary consequence of independence. However, the secret was not well kept. Yannis Makriyannis, for example, spent his time trying to recruit new conspirators and in the process exposed the conspiracy. It was decided to pass more quickly to action, at the beginning of September 1843.

The revolution[edit source | edit]

On the night of 2 September 1843, it was learned that the names of the conspirators were known to the police services. Moreover, incidents took place around Makriyannis’ home. Therefore, Kallergis acted on his own initiative. He went looking for his men in their barracks and headed toward the royal palace. At the same time, he ordered that the gates of Medrese Prison be opened.

Captain Schinas, who commanded the Athens artillery, received an order to suppress the nascent insurrection, but he preferred to join the movement. The soldiers arrived at the royal palace and shouted “Long live the Constitution!” beneath the king’s windows.

Otto could not but yield to the demands and granted the 1844 Constitution. In fact, the Council of State had already drawn up the constitution in anticipation of the coup. The king then asked Metaxas to form a new government and to summon a new national assembly, which met on 10 November (OS)/20 November (NS). The troops returned to their barracks, acclaiming the king as a “constitutional” one.

The coup was bloodless. France and the United Kingdom accepted these changes without difficulty. For the French of the July Monarchy era, 3 September 1843 could only bring to mind their own Revolution of 1830. As for the British, their Glorious Revolution of 1688 was a liberal model par excellence in the 19th century. Only Russia condemned the movement, for she was autocratic, authoritarian, and consequently anti-liberal. The assembly designated a constitutional commission and a constitution was proclaimed in March 1844.

Kallergis agit alors de son propre chef. Il alla chercher ses hommes dans leur caserne et se dirigea vers le palais royal. Dans le même temps, il ordonna que les portes de la prison de Medrese fussent ouvertes. Le capitaine Schinas, qui commandait l’artillerie d’Athènes, reçut l’ordre de réprimer l’insurrection naissante. Il préféra se joindre au mouvement. Les soldats arrivèrent au palais royal et crièrent « Vive la Constitution » sous les fenêtres du souverain.

Othon ne put que céder aux demandes et accorda la constitution dite de 1843. En fait, le Conseil d’État avait déjà préparé cette constitution, anticipant le mouvement. Le roi chargea ensuite Andréas Metaxás de former un nouveau gouvernement et de convoquer une nouvelle assemblée nationale. Les soldats regagnèrent leur caserne en acclamant le roi « constitutionnel ».

Réaction internationale[modifier | modifier le code]

La révolution n’avait pas fait couler une goutte de sang. La France et le Royaume-Uni acceptèrent sans difficulté ces changements en Grèce. En fait, le 3 septembre 1843 ne pouvait que rappeler aux Français de la Monarchie de Juillet libérale leur propre révolution de 1830. Quant aux Britanniques, leur Glorieuse Révolution de 1688 était, au XIX^e le modèle libéral par excellence. Seule la Russie condamna le mouvement. Elle était autocratique et autoritaire et par conséquent anti-libérale. La nouvelle assemblée, qui se réunit le 10 novembre (julien) / 20 novembre (grégorien). Une commission constitutionnelle fut désignée et une constitution fut proclamée en mars 1844.

Depuis, la place du palais royal fut rebaptisée place de la Constitution (Syntagma, Πλατεία Συντάγματος en grec moderne).

Annexes[modifier | modifier le code]

• (fr) Wladymir Brunet de Presle et      Alexandre Blanchet, Grèce depuis la conquête romaine jusqu’à nos jours.,      Firmin Didot, 1860.
• (en) Richard Clogg, A Concise History of Greece, Cambridge, Cambridge U.P., 1992, 257 p. (ISBN 0-521-37830-3)
• (fr) Georges Contogeorgis, Histoire      de la Grèce, Paris, Hatier, coll.      Nations d’Europe, 1992, 477 p. (ISBN 2-218-03-841-2)
• (fr) Nicolas      Svoronos, Histoire de la Grèce moderne, Paris, P.U.F, coll. « Que      Sais-Je ? » (n^o 578), 1964, 128 p.
• (fr) Constantin Tsoucalas, La Grèce de      l’indépendance aux colonels., Maspero, Paris, 1970. (ISBN 0140522778) (pour la version originale en anglais)
• (fr) Apostolos      Vacalopoulos, Histoire de la Grèce moderne, Horvath, 1975,      330 p. (ISBN 2-7171-0057-1)
• (en) C. M. Woodhouse,      Modern      Greece : A Short History, Faber et Faber, 1999 (ISBN 0571197949)

Eleftherotipia

Thursday 26 September 2013

Evidence builds against Golden Dawn

Eavesdropping recordings may implicate three party MPs

Golden Dawn leader leaves question open on whether he will pull his party out of parliament, a move which would trigger byelections in a number of constituences

Evidence incriminating at least three sitting MPs of Golden Dawn has emerged in an investigation being carried out by a Supreme Court prosecutor into illegal activities carried out by members of the neonazi party.

As reported by the local media, evidence that the MPs are involved in unlawful activity arises from information – including from recordings of telephone conversations made by hundreds of Golden Dawn officials – provided by the National Intelligence Service (EYP) to deputy Supreme Court prosecutor Haralambos Vourliotis, who was handed 32 case files of incidents involving Golden Dawn members of the party earlier this week.

Some of these recordings were made shortly before the murder of Pavlos Flyssas, Eleftherotypia reported on Thursday. According to the daily, the transcript of the recordings could show that the murderer received an order to assassinate Fyssas, and the source of the order may have been a Golden Dawn MP.

The information also contains evidence of links between Golden Dawn officials and underworld and criminal figures.

Golden Dawn reacts

Golden Dawn’s leader on Thursday lashed out at the judicial and political focus on his party, stating that party was was leaving the option open on whether its 18 MPs would resign en masse from parliament.

Speaking outside parliament building, Nikos Michaloliakos said that Golden Dawn would „exhaust every means to defend its political honour“.

„Everything is open,“ he said, responding to queries on whether his MPs would resign.

If the party’s 18 MPs resigned, byelections would be held in the constituencies where they were elected in the June 2012 election. As other parties would contest those byelections, it is doubtful whether any Golden Dawn MPs could top the poll.

„If the country enters a destabilisation spiral, Golden Dawn will not be guilty but those who demonise Golden Dawn and beat it in such a dirty and illegal manner,“ he said.

He concluded: „Golden Dawn is a legitimate political movement whose accent has displeased those who looted the toil of the Greek people for decades, those who are selling out our country today piece for piece. The criminals and the criminal gang are the ones who bankrupted the country and ceded our sovereignty.“