Greece

For more informations see also our section in Greek and check the Website of the Marxist magazine Marxistiki Foni in Greece.

• Greece: militant mood emerges under new right wing government
  After playing for time before last year’s Olympic games, the Greek ruling class is preparing an all-out attack on the workers of Greece. The Greek economy is beginning to slow down and this is adding to the problems of the ruling class. A recent wave of strikes and general strikes indicates that Greece is clearly moving towards a period of renewed class conflict. By Fred Weston and Stamatis Karagiannopoulos in Athens (July 10, 2005)

• Massive general strike in Greece – A new stage in the class struggle
  On May 11th a massive general strike took place in Greece. The trade union leaders were forced to call the strike as the anger of the workers mounted. The ND government has come out with an all-out attack on the working class and the workers have responded. Report from Marxistiki Foni. (May 13, 2005)

• The effects of the crisis within the Greek Orthodox Church and the position of the Marxists
  Further to our previous articles, we publish an Editorial Statement of the Greek Marxist Tendency, Marxistiki Foni, on the meaning of the severe crisis that has shaken the Greek Orthodox Church and how this relates to the future class battles that are being prepared in Greece. (March 2005)

• Greece: Scandals within the Church and the Judiciary are shaking the foundations of society
  The Greek Orthodox Church and the Judiciary have been involved in major corruption scandals, involving embezzlement, drug running and bribing of judges to fix trials. Two “pillars” of the Greek state have thus been exposed in the eyes of the masses, something which will have profound consequences in the coming years of class struggle. We publish an introduction by Fred Weston and the Editorial statement of the new Greek Marxist journal, Marxistiki Phoni, on these developments. (March 1, 2005)

• Welcoming ceremony for the European football champions in Greece
  The “common national spirit” breaks down even before the fanfare is over
  This report from Athens shows how the Greek bosses tried to exploit to their advantage the victory of the Greek football team in the European Cup. The main speaker in the official celebrations was the head of the Greek Orthodox Church who gave a very nationalist speech. He was widely hissed and many people abandoned the stadium. It gives an idea of what is to come in Greece. By Stamatis Karagiannopoulos, (July 6, 2004)

• Greece – euphoria over football, but the economic and social situation is grim
  Last night Greece was one huge party after the victory in the European Cup. No doubt workers and youth feel the need to celebrate, for the social and economic situation gives them no reason to be cheerful. Fred Weston looks at the situation in Greece as it is developing after the defeat of the PASOK and the election of the right-wing New Democracy government (July 5, 2004)

• The lessons of the recent defeat of the PASOK in the Greek elections
  Two weeks ago the PASOK (Greek Socialist Party) was ousted from power and the conservative ND (New Democracy) were elected to government. Has Greek society therefore shifted to the right? A closer look at the voting patterns shows that a majority actually voted for the left parties, who together got 52%. It also shows that the PASOK lost precisely because of its conservative policies. By Spiros Gougoussis. (March 18, 2004)

• Turmoil in PASOK as party faces almost certain defeat
  A sudden change took place in the Greek political scene on January 7, when PASOK president and Prime Minister Mr. Kostas Simitis announced that he would resign as president of the party at the party's emergency congress on February 6th. He also announced that he would resign as Prime Minister the day after the elections, which will be held on March 7th. Many people wonder why this sudden change has occurred. The truth of the matter is that it is not sudden at all. By Spyros Gougoussis. (January, 2004)

• Greece: it is time for struggle!
  In the recent period Greece has been gripped by a wave of strikes involving ever wider layers. The PASOK government is facing more and more opposition as the effects of its austerity measures bite into the living standards of ordinary working people. This has opened up the prospect of the PASOK possibly losing the next general election. (November 3, 2003)

• Greek working class – a rumbling volcano
  The level of antiwar mobilisations of the Greek workers and youth over the past few weeks, including several general strikes, is an indication of a deeper and more wide-ranging process that is developing in Greece. As the PASOK government faces defeat in next year's elections, Fred Weston looks at what is happening in the Greek trade unions, the youth and the left parties in general. (April 22, 2003).

• Greece: another general strike against the war in Iraq (April 7, 2003).

• The Greek state is using individual terrorism to justify its attack on the Greek labour movement and Trotskyism
  Towards the end of July the Greek media launched a campaign of slander about the ideology of the terrorist organisation 17N (November 17), claiming that it was a Trotskyist organisation. The Greek Marxists sent a letter of protest to all the newspapers and channels, which was published in two major newspapers. We are publishing this short article on the subject. (August, 2002)

• June 2002 General Strike in Greece: Workers' growing militancy
  On Tuesday a general strike took place in Greece - following on from the two massive general strikes that shook the country in the spring of 2001, and forced the government to back down on its proposed attacks on social spending. As we said at the time, these strikes marked a watershed, a turning point. Now the new mood of militancy has been shown once again. By Fred Weston in Athens. (June 18, 2002)

• Greek general Strike - a lesson for the workers of all Europe
  Under a blazing sun, at midday on Thursday, May 17, tens of thousands of Greek workers poured onto the streets of central Athens to protest the anti-working class policies of the right-wing socialist government of Konstantinos Simitis. This was the second general strike in the space of one month. Although the final figures have not yet been published, it was clearly a very successful strike. By Alan Woods in Athens (May 17, 2001)

• Massive General Strike Shakes Greek Government...
  While Spain prepares to follow
  On Wednesday 26th April 2001, the biggest general strike for fifteen years took place in Greece. Both public and private sectors came out on strike with very big percentages of success, with many factories striking 100%. The demonstration in Athens was huge: 150,000-200,000 workers participated in the rally and then marched through the centre of Athens to the Parliament. It was really an impressive demonstration - almost two miles long.

• General strike in Greece (10th October, 2000)A successful counterattack
  At the beginning of October one of the most successful general strikes of the last few years took place in Greece. More than 15,000 workers and youth gathered in front of the headquarters of the General Federation of Greek Workers in Athens with a very militant mood demanding the withdrawal of the government measures against the workers' conditions of work.

• Greek Blair Faces Worker Backlash
  Konstatin Simitis--the Greek Tony Blair--is a worried man. Elected after the death of Andreas Papandreu less than two years ago as leader of the Greek socialist party (PASOK) under the banner of "modernisation" he had 70% of public opinion behind him. Now it has dropped to 18%. The streets of Athens (congested at the best of times) are regularly blocked with demonstrations of angry bankworkers, airline employees and teachers. The premises of the Ionian bank, which the government wants to privatise, are occupied by the workers and covered with black flags. Alan Woods reports from Greece. June 1998

• Explosion in Greece as Simitis Tows the Blair line
  Events in Greece are especially relevant to the British Labour Movement because right wing PASOK (Socialist Party) leader Simitis is pursuing similar policies to those of Tony Blair and so-called "New Labour." This has led to an explosion of anger, not only on the streets, but in the trade unions and in PASOK itself. The PASOK union leaders were pro-Simitis one year ago, but now they have been forced into semi-opposition. Under pressure from below, they called a one-day general strike on April the 8th.. Alan Woods reports. May 1998