Greece

Yearbook

    Euclid Tsakalotos – interviewed by Haris Golemis
  • Haris Golemis: At the time of this interview (12 December 2016), the Greek government is close to completing its second review of the third painful Memorandum of Understanding, which it was forced to agree to on July 2015. I understand that the government’s but also your view is that this evaluation...
    Rekindling Hope: Syriza’s Challenges and Prospects
  • Before turning to the main theme of this article it would be very useful to come to terms with at least the following preliminary observations: The left in government and especially the radical left in government has never been the subject of easy discussion among leftists. As the project of...
    More Than Ever: For Another Europe! August 2015 Theses [1]
  • The general impression one has today is of an impasse in the structure of the European Union as a democratic project benefiting its populations and contributing to a better world. As an adherent of ‘left-wing Europeanism’ [2], I want to emphasise in what follows that today, more than ever, there are...
    An Interview with Alexis Tsipras
  • Haris Golemis: Just three years ago, Syriza’s presence in Greece’s political landscape was quite small. Today, Syriza is predicted to be the frontrunner in the next elections – making you the next Prime Minister of Greece. What factors do you believe have led to Syriza’s meteoric rise in popularity,...
    The 10th Anniversary of the Nicos Poulantzas Institute
  • During the first two weeks of December 2007, a series of public events will take place in Athens, Greece, in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the founding of the Nicos Poulantzas Institute (NPI). The Managing Board of the Institute took this initiative for three main reasons: first, the need...
    Greek Wage Earners in the Crisis
  • Introduction The realisation of the policies included in the Memorandum that was agreed on between the Greek government and the “troika”, – the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the European Commission – has grievous effects not only for working people and the popular...
    Can PIGS Fly?
  • ”Thinking again?” the Duchess asked, with another dig of her sharp little chin. ”I’ve a right to think,” said Alice sharply, for she was beginning to feel a little worried. ”Just about as much right,” said the Duchess, “as pigs have to fly....” Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,...

Focus

    Golden Dawn Trial: A Democratic, Antifascist Society Holds its Breath
  • Tomorrow, 7 October, thousands of people will gather outside the courtroom of the Athens Criminal Court of Appeal to learn the court’s verdict in the trial against 69 members of the neo-Nazi organisation Golden Dawn, including its leader, Nikolaos Michaloliakos, and many of its former MPs.
    European Election in Greece
  • The recent EU election (2019) was a purely internal battle for Greece, in terms not only of electoral campaigns but also of electoral results.
    The Greek Left before 2019 EU election
  • Analysis from our member organisation "Nicos Poulantzas Institute" on the political landscape in Greece, the efforts of the left government and the challenges towards the European Elections.
    “The Congress’ Critical Questions”
  • Selected Documents. – The second congress of Syriza took place in Athens from 13 to 16 September, the first since the takeover of the government by the Syriza-led coalition. Two years as long as a whole era: the victorious elections of January 2015, the negotiations with the Troika, the historic Oxi vote, the coup of July, the subsequent party split followed by the electoral victory in September.
    Ηomosexual relationships are legally recognized in Greece
  • With 194 votes in favor the Greek parliament has finally given the green light for homosexual couples to enter into a civil union partnership. Following a marathon debate, the body of the Greek parliament affirmed the relevant decree making it a formal law of the state.
    What Now for Greece?
  • The task in this election was to get a clear mandate from the voters to form a solid parliamentary majority and a battle-ready government that can deploy all possible levers for ameliorating Greece’s negotiating position, reject the most unacceptable dictates, relaunch the economy and work towards rebuilding productive capacity, renegotiate the debt, and introduce social justice criteria into public policy.
    The Struggle For A Different Europe Is Not Over
  • "As general elections in Greece approach, the time is ripe to reiterate our solidarity with SYRIZA. In spite of the 13th of July agreement, which shed light onto the brutality and dogmatism of the so-called European partners, the struggle for a fairer Europe isn’t over. SYRIZA’s role remains...
    Alexis Tsipras speech at the nationwide SYRIZA conference
  • Comrades, allow me to start my introductory speech at our conference with a conclusion no-one could disagree with. Today and tomorrow, we are all meeting, discussing, deciding but all of us know that we are acting and fighting in a political battlefield.
    Return to drachma is no solution
  • The Greek government has just barely been able to avert the Grexit, i.e. having to leave the euro, by agreeing to enter into negotiations on a third bailout with other euro countries at the Euro Summit on the night of 13 July.
    The Defeat of Europe
  • Yanis Varoufakis explains about the negotiations and why "Greece capitulated but it is Europe that was defeated."
    Fatal Tests
  • Europe has become a laboratory of the future. What is being tested there should be cause for concern for all democrats and particularly for everyone on the left.
    No to the overbid of Greece’s lenders
  • The negotiations between Greece and its lenders on a third “financial assistance package” have started on 27 July. European institutions’ condition to the release of these funds was the adoption by the Greek parliament of two packages of measures – which occurred on 16 and 23 July. But it wasn’t...
    "Austerity is a Dead End"
  • “Under adverse conditions and with a difficult balance of forces within Europe and the world, we tried to assert the point of view of a people and the possibility of an alternative path. Ultimately, even if the powerful were able to impose their will, what remains is the absolute confirmation on the international level that austerity is a dead end. This process has established a completely new landscape in Europe.”
    The Brussels diktat: and what followed
  • Alexis Tsipras won the battle on a question of principle – the need for a new Europe – even if he lost the war that ensued. What are the implications for the Greek left and for Europe?
    We need a Plan B: for another Europe, for all of Europe!
  • After five months of negotiations conducted in an authoritarian and arrogant manner, 18 heads of state and government of the Euro-group under the leadership of Germany’s finance minister, have forced an agreement on Greece’s democratically elected government that contradicts SYRIZA’s electoral programme and negates the results of the July 5 referendum.
    Greece again under the thumb of Merkel, Schäuble & Co.
  • Who has such “partners” doesn’t need enemies no more. Greece’s conservative and social-democratic “partners” in the EU and in the eurozone on July 12 have during 17 hours shot with smoking guns on the Greek government and have not missed their target. Read here the whole article in German...
    Understanding the Defeat Means Preparing a Victory
  • The Greek Dilemma and Us. Nine provisional considerations after both the popular Oxi and Syriza’s Yes to the Memorandum. This is being written after the vote in the Greek parliament and before the final decision of the Eurogroup. At the moment, everything is open, and we are certain of only a couple of things. Almost everything can change, but some things will remain true.
    Paul Krugman: Killing the European Project
  • Suppose you consider Tsipras an incompetent twerp. Suppose you dearly want to see Syriza out of power. Suppose, even, that you welcome the prospect of pushing those annoying Greeks out of the euro.
    ETUC Open Letter to EU Leaders
  • The European Trade Union Confederation issued an important open letter, considering the historical dimension in the confrontation between the European institutions and the Greek government.
    Greece said loudly NO to austerity and Yes to democracy!
  • On 26 June, Alexis Tsipras announced a referendum in Greece for 5 July. The people of Greece were called to decide on their future. The question, even though frequently falsely cited, was whether the Greek people agreed to the counter-proposal made by the lenders. It demanded more austerity...
    Trade Unions and Greece
  • Through its campaigning work, transform! seeks to gather trade unions’ statements in solidarity with Greece, and to circulate them as great an extent as possible.
    Greece, at the heart of Europe
  • The struggle of the Greek people is the struggle of all European democrats, of all those who believe in human progress. In the case of a potential defeat all European peoples would pay the price.
    Greece: Who is afraid of democracy?
  • Ever since last January, the Greek people has been subjected to unbearable pressure and blackmail from the European institutions, Eurozone governments and the International Monetary Fund.
    “No to Blackmail and to Austerity – Yes to Democracy”
  • On 5 July, the Greek people is called to make a decision of historical importance; a decision that will not only determine the future of the country, but the future of Europe as a whole. The institutions of the Troika (International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank, European Commission) are not only trying to destroy change in Greece, they are trying to undermine us all. Now is the time to raise our voices against this blackmail by the European elites.
    Europe’s Attack On Greek Democracy
  • The rising crescendo of bickering and acrimony within Europe might seem to outsiders to be the inevitable result of the bitter endgame playing out between Greece and its creditors. In fact, European leaders are finally beginning to reveal the true nature of the ongoing debt dispute, and the answer is not pleasant: it is about power and democracy much more than money and economics.
    No to Austerity, Yes to Democracy!
  • We, members of trade unions, political groups, and social movements from all over Europe, came together today in Athens in truly moving and historic times.
    German taxpayers are not paying for Greek pensions
  • During a negotiation, an exchange of arguments is legitimate so long as there is sincerity and good faith between the parties. Otherwise, when the dialogue is ongoing with no end in sight then the methods used are akin to those described by the great German philosopher Schopenhauer in “The Art of...
    Inge Graessle. So Why So Fake?
  • Inge Graessle is an MEP of Merkel’s CDU and holds the chair of the committee of the budgetary control in the European Parliament. She participated in a TV talk show along with Stelios Kouloglou, a SYRIZA MEP. Once again, her claims were not only untrue, but also mendacious. It’s part of their plan for deconstruction concerning the Greek Government. But really, who deconstructs whom?
    Europe’s Moment of Truth
  • Tasos Koronakis, Secretary of the Central Committee of SYRIZA, calls for acts of social and political solidarity. From the organization of rallies and awareness campaigns across Europe, to institutional initiatives in local, regional and national parliaments and personal or collective statements of support to the efforts of Greece to swift the European paradigm of austerity.
    A New Deal for Greece
  • ATHENS – Three months of negotiations between the Greek government and our European and international partners have brought about much convergence on the steps needed to overcome years of economic crisis and to bring about sustained recovery in Greece. But they have not yet produced a deal. Why? What steps are needed to produce a viable, mutually agreed reform agenda?
    The Next Hundred Days
  • As the bridge agreement with the Eurogroup approaches its expiration date, the conflict between the European “institutions” and the Greek government is getting tenser. Last week, Jacobin sat down with Elena Papadopoulou to better understand the dynamics between the Greek economy and the European Union (EU), the role of Germany and the United States, and Syriza’s strategy for the ongoing negotiations. In particular, we wanted to grasp not only how the structures of the European Monetary Unification have produced different outcomes for different countries — according to their existing economic and political structures — but also how it has created core-periphery relations inside the EU.
    Austerity reduced household income drastically
  • Austerity in Greece led to drastic income reductions for private households. Households with medium or low income were hit hardest. This is what Tassos Giannitsis and Stavros Zografakis show in their study “Greece: Solidarity and Adjustment in Times of Crisis”.
    Give Greece a chance!
  • For a democracy from below, let’s fight austerity everywhere! A commitment launched by Alter Summit, supported by Blockupy International Coordination, ATTAC-Europe, EuroMemo Group, transform! europe, and Solidarity for All. 
    The return of politics to Greece and Europe
  • Learn to swim, mate That the tide will lift That freedom is happening here (Sergio Godinho, Mare Alta) Long period of clashes ahead The Eurogroup agreement does not bring the negotiation into conclusion. It does not even postpone the clash. In contrast, it opens a new, long period full of...
    Reading The Greek Deal Correctly
  • On 20 February, as news of the Brussels deal came through, Germany claimed victory and it is no surprise that most of the working press bought the claim. They have high authorities to quote and to rely on. Thus from London The Independent reported: “several analysts agreed that the results of the talks amounted to a humiliating defeat for Greece.”
    10 Points on the Eurogroup Decision
  • 1. The Eurogroup of the 20th of February was the end of the first (short) round of negotiations between the new Greek government and its European partners. 2. To judge what the government won and what it lost, as well as what it did not win and what it did not lose, we have to take into account...
    The Greek people needs our solidarity!
  • The pressure on Greece on the part of the European Central Bank, the Euro-group and some EU government has tremendously increased. Counter pressure is necessary. transform! europe has therefore agreed to issue the following call:
    Tsipras sworn in as the new Prime Minister
  • Greece is headed into a new era of anti-austerity as the radical leftist Syriza successfully formed a government with the Independent Greeks party after falling short of an outright majority in Sunday’s landmark elections.
    What the SYRIZA Government Will Do
  • transform! publishes the government programme of SYRIZA announced at the Thessaloniki International Fair on 15 September 2014 by Alexis Tsipras.
    Greece is about to give European democracy a chance
  • When the constitutional process of a proud European democracy seemed to be leading, quite properly, to elections (as was the case in Greece since the Fall), the European Commission, various governments and the commentariat-at-large intervened, presenting the prospect of elections (the crowning...
    The Cause of SYRIZA Is Our Cause
  • The possible win of SYRIZA in the next Greek elections is a matter which should be at the centre of interest of social movements, trade unions and political forces in all European countries, since it can be the first step for a fundamental social and political change in our continent.
    Greece
  • KKE leaves GUE/NGL In its meeting the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE)  has decided to withdraw its MEPs from the left group in the European Parliament. The two MEPs will now be non affiliated members of the Parliament. In its statement the KKE argues that the “confederal...

Blog

    “Not the Time to Grieve, but to Fight”
  • Syriza took a beating in last month’s election, but the Greek Left is determined to continue the struggle. Read more in this interview with Danai Koltsida, director of Syriza's greek foundation the Nikos Poulantzas Institute, and vice president of transform! europe.
    After Tempe: Preconditions For Regaining Confidence in the Railways
  • Speech by Kostas Genidounias, President of the Panhellenic Association of Train Drivers (PEPE) at the conference organised by the Nikos Poulantzas Institute entitled "Safety: Countering the Argument - From Individual Responsibility to Multifaceted Collective Safety" held on 26th of April 2023.
    A Crucial Battle for Greece and For Europe
  • In less than a month Greece is heading to national elections. After an almost full four-year term of the right-wing PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ single-party government, a lot is at stake.
    Genoa. 20 Years After.
  • On 20 July 2001, 23-year-old protester Carlo Giuliani was shot dead by a policeman in the course of the demonstrations against the G8 Summit in Genoa. This summit went down in history for the enormous scale of police brutality. Greek MP Yiannis Bournous, who took part in the protests, reflects on their impact on left parties all across Europe.
    Call for the Immediate Evacuation of Moria
  • In the face of the terrible and life-threatening situation of the 12,500 refugees and asylum seekers on Lesbos, transform! europe, together with various NGOs and intellectuals throughout Europe and worldwide, supports this call for an immediate evacuation of Moria.
    Moria Is On Fire: Evacuate Refugee Camps Now!
  • Fire has destroyed Greece's largest migrant camp, the overcrowded Moria facility on the island of Lesbos. The Party of the European Left (EL) demands a removal of the Dublin Regulations and the establishment of legal and safe humanitarian corridors.
    Campaign for Permanent Manolis Glezos Honour in EU Parliament
  • A campaign is underway by the left group in the European Parliament to honour the late, great resistance fighter and Greek MEP, Manolis Glezos. The veteran activist and former GUE/NGL member died earlier this week at the age of 97, and the group feels that an honour that befits a political figure...
    The Greek Left Since the 1940s. History Study Trip to Athens
  • For the third time already, present:history and transform! europe organize a history study trip to Greece. This time, we focused on Athens and the history of the Greek left since the 1940s for our main questions: Which role does history play for current political struggles? How can we talk about the...
    Gregor Gysi On The Election Results In Greece
  • Alexis Tsipras has led his country through a difficult period, for which I personally want to express my gratitude and respect to him as President of the Party of the European Left. However, the majority of Greeks are still suffering from the massive austerity dictates that the Greek government...
    What is at Stake on the 7th of July?
  • Greece is heading towards national elections on 7 July. What, as a result, will the future of Greece, the Greek working-class, and the left look like? – Much is at stake.
    Reflections of An Accidental Politican - Interview With Costas Douzinas
  • Costas Douzinas is president of the Nikos Poulantzas Institute, Professor of Law and Head of the Humanities faculty at Birkbeck University. He is also member of the Greek parliament and Chair of the Standing Committee on National Defence and Foreign Relations, which submitted the Prespes...
    Greece: Back On Track After 10 Years
  • On August 21st 2018 the third and last Greek memorandum came to its agreed end. Today, a full account of the political and economic developments during the past six months proves that the end of the memoranda era was not only of symbolic but also of important practical value, bringing Greece back on (economic, social and political) track.
    After the Referendum and the Vote in the Parliament of North Macedonia
  • The referendum in the Republic of North Macedonia on the approval of the Prespa Agreement, registered a strong majority of the YES, almost 94%, although this result was accompanied by a high percentage of abstention. In addition, what is happening in view of the debate in Parliament is indicative of...
    Greece’s expected exit from the 3rd adjustment programme: Whose victory?
  • Two months ago, on 25 July, the Greek government borrowed 3 billion Euros in the bond market at the very high rate of 4.625%. There was a big debate in the media, the Parliament and generally the Greek public space on whether this “exploratory” exit to the markets was a success of the Tsipras government.
    “The Congress’ Critical Questions”
  • Selected Documents. – The second congress of Syriza took place in Athens from 13 to 16 September, the first since the takeover of the government by the Syriza-led coalition. Two years as long as a whole era: the victorious elections of January 2015, the negotiations with the Troika, the historic Oxi vote, the coup of July, the subsequent party split followed by the electoral victory in September.
    Prime Ministers of Greece and Portugal signed a joint declaration
  • On 11 April Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras of Greece and Prime Minister António Costa of Portugal met in Athens to discuss the political and economic challenges facing Europe and their respective countries, as well as the need for forming a progressive front and promoting alternative policies to address these challenges.
    The Greek Government’s Parallel Program
  • In the elections held last September, voters accepted SYRIZA’s new position, which was based on two axes: the application of the agreement signed under the Troika’s blackmail, combined with ongoing attempts to reduce its negative consequences, and the construction of a Parallel Program – a series of policies in every field that will improve people’s everyday lives and lay down the fundamental prerequisites for a new type of state function and economic development.
    Ηomosexual relationships are legally recognized in Greece
  • With 194 votes in favor the Greek parliament has finally given the green light for homosexual couples to enter into a civil union partnership. Following a marathon debate, the body of the Greek parliament affirmed the relevant decree making it a formal law of the state. This vote is undoubtedly a...
    What Now for Greece?
  • The task in this election was to get a clear mandate from the voters to form a solid parliamentary majority and a battle-ready government that can deploy all possible levers for ameliorating Greece’s negotiating position, reject the most unacceptable dictates, relaunch the economy and work towards rebuilding productive capacity, renegotiate the debt, and introduce social justice criteria into public policy.
    The Struggle for a Different Europe Is Not Over
  • "As general elections in Greece approach, the time is ripe to reiterate our solidarity with SYRIZA. In spite of the 13th of July agreement, which shed light onto the brutality and dogmatism of the so-called European partners, the struggle for a fairer Europe isn’t over. SYRIZA’s role remains...
    Alexis Tsipras speech at the nationwide SYRIZA conference
  • Comrades, allow me to start my introductory speech at our conference with a conclusion no-one could disagree with. Today and tomorrow, we are all meeting, discussing, deciding but all of us know that we are acting and fighting in a political battlefield.
    “We can neutralise the neoliberal measures in the agreement”
  • Georges Katrougalos, Greek Minister for Labour, tells French newspaper l’Humanité about the room for manoeuvre Tsipras’s government still has left, even in light of the memorandum extorted by the Troika on 13 July. In his view, the Greek left and Syriza must remain in power to take advantage of this room for manoeuvre.
    Return to drachma is no solution
  • The Greek government has just barely been able to avert the Grexit, i.e. having to leave the euro, by agreeing to enter into negotiations on a third bailout with other euro countries at the Euro Summit on the night of 13 July.
    "Austerity is a Dead End"
  • “Under adverse conditions and with a difficult balance of forces within Europe and the world, we tried to assert the point of view of a people and the possibility of an alternative path. Ultimately, even if the powerful were able to impose their will, what remains is the absolute confirmation on the international level that austerity is a dead end. This process has established a completely new landscape in Europe.”
    No to the overbid of Greece’s lenders
  • The negotiations between Greece and its lenders on a third “financial assistance package” have started on 27 July. European institutions’ condition to the release of these funds was the adoption by the Greek parliament of two packages of measures – which occurred on 16 and 23 July. But it wasn’t...
    The Brussels diktat: and what followed
  • Alexis Tsipras won the battle on a question of principle – the need for a new Europe – even if he lost the war that ensued. What are the implications for the Greek left and for Europe?
    We need a Plan B: for another Europe, for all of Europe!
  • After five months of negotiations conducted in an authoritarian and arrogant manner, 18 heads of state and government of the Euro-group under the leadership of Germany’s finance minister, have forced an agreement on Greece’s democratically elected government that contradicts SYRIZA’s electoral programme and negates the results of the July 5 referendum.
    Paul Krugman: Killing the European Project
  • Suppose you consider Tsipras an incompetent twerp. Suppose you dearly want to see Syriza out of power. Suppose, even, that you welcome the prospect of pushing those annoying Greeks out of the euro.
    Understanding the Defeat Means Preparing a Victory
  • The Greek Dilemma and Us. Nine provisional considerations after both the popular Oxi and Syriza’s Yes to the Memorandum. This is being written after the vote in the Greek parliament and before the final decision of the Eurogroup. At the moment, everything is open, and we are certain of only a couple of things. Almost everything can change, but some things will remain true.
    ETUC Open Letter to EU Leaders
  • The European Trade Union Confederation issued an important open letter, considering the historical dimension in the confrontation between the European institutions and the Greek government.
    Greece said loudly NO to austerity and Yes to democracy!
  • On 26 June, Alexis Tsipras announced a referendum in Greece for 5 July. The people of Greece were called to decide on their future. The question, even though frequently falsely cited, was whether the Greek people agreed to the counter-proposal made by the lenders. It demanded more austerity...
    Trade Unions and Greece
  • Through its campaigning work, transform! seeks to gather trade unions’ statements in solidarity with Greece, and to circulate them as great an extent as possible.
    Greece, at the heart of Europe
  • The struggle of the Greek people is the struggle of all European democrats, of all those who believe in human progress. In the case of a potential defeat all European peoples would pay the price.
    Greece: Who is afraid of democracy?
  • Ever since last January, the Greek people has been subjected to unbearable pressure and blackmail from the European institutions, Eurozone governments and the International Monetary Fund.
    “No to Blackmail and to Austerity – Yes to Democracy”
  • On 5 July, the Greek people is called to make a decision of historical importance; a decision that will not only determine the future of the country, but the future of Europe as a whole. The institutions of the Troika (International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank, European Commission) are not only trying to destroy change in Greece, they are trying to undermine us all. Now is the time to raise our voices against this blackmail by the European elites.
    Europe’s Attack On Greek Democracy
  • The rising crescendo of bickering and acrimony within Europe might seem to outsiders to be the inevitable result of the bitter endgame playing out between Greece and its creditors. In fact, European leaders are finally beginning to reveal the true nature of the ongoing debt dispute, and the answer is not pleasant: it is about power and democracy much more than money and economics.
    No to Austerity, Yes to Democracy!
  • We, members of trade unions, political groups, and social movements from all over Europe, came together today in Athens in truly moving and historic times.
    German taxpayers are not paying for Greek pensions
  • During a negotiation, an exchange of arguments is legitimate so long as there is sincerity and good faith between the parties. Otherwise, when the dialogue is ongoing with no end in sight then the methods used are akin to those described by the great German philosopher Schopenhauer in “The Art of...
    Together with Syriza We Fight against Austerity in Europe
  • Since the beginning of the crisis in 2008, the European ruling elites, institutions and governments have been trying to exit from it not by loosening the neoliberal austerity policies, which were highly responsible for the financial turmoil, but through their authoritarian intensification.
    Alexis Tsipras: Europe at a crossroads
  • On the eve of a week of final negotiations between Greece and its creditors, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, defends the actions of his government in an article published yesterday in “LeMonde.fr”.
    May Hope Prevail in Greece and Europe
  • The following text is a common Resolution of the Central Committee of Syriza, published on 24 May and is binding for the Party collectively. The Resolution is a product of consensus and has been voted for.
    Inge Graessle. So Why So Fake?
  • Inge Graessle is an MEP of Merkel’s CDU and holds the chair of the committee of the budgetary control in the European Parliament. She participated in a TV talk show along with Stelios Kouloglou, a SYRIZA MEP. Once again, her claims were not only untrue, but also mendacious. It’s part of their plan for deconstruction concerning the Greek Government. But really, who deconstructs whom?
    Europe’s Moment of Truth
  • Tasos Koronakis, Secretary of the Central Committee of SYRIZA, calls for acts of social and political solidarity. From the organization of rallies and awareness campaigns across Europe, to institutional initiatives in local, regional and national parliaments and personal or collective statements of support to the efforts of Greece to swift the European paradigm of austerity.
    No to blackmailing – The Greek People’s mandate is nonnegotiable
  • The Political Secretariat in the last meeting unanimously decided the following: 1. The Government, staying faithful to the popular mandate of the 25th of January regarding the abolition of the memorandum policies and austerity, defends the interests of the country, the popular sovereignty and the...
    A New Deal for Greece
  • ATHENS – Three months of negotiations between the Greek government and our European and international partners have brought about much convergence on the steps needed to overcome years of economic crisis and to bring about sustained recovery in Greece. But they have not yet produced a deal. Why? What steps are needed to produce a viable, mutually agreed reform agenda?
    Austerity reduced household income drastically
  • Austerity in Greece led to drastic income reductions for private households. Households with medium or low income were hit hardest. This is what Tassos Giannitsis and Stavros Zografakis show in their study “Greece: Solidarity and Adjustment in Times of Crisis”.
    Give Greece a chance!
  • For a democracy from below, let’s fight austerity everywhere! A commitment launched by Alter Summit, supported by Blockupy International Coordination, ATTAC-Europe, EuroMemo Group, transform! europe, and Solidarity for All.
    The return of politics to Greece and Europe
  • Learn to swim, mateThat the tide will liftThat freedom is happening here(Sergio Godinho, Mare Alta) Long period of clashes ahead The Eurogroup agreement does not bring the negotiation into conclusion. It does not even postpone the clash. In contrast, it opens a new, long period full of hard...
    Reading The Greek Deal Correctly
  • On 20 February, as news of the Brussels deal came through, Germany claimed victory and it is no surprise that most of the working press bought the claim. They have high authorities to quote and to rely on. Thus from London The Independent reported: “several analysts agreed that the results of the talks amounted to a humiliating defeat for Greece.”
    10 Points on the Eurogroup Decision
  • 1. The Eurogroup of the 20th of February was the end of the first (short) round of negotiations between the new Greek government and its European partners.
    The Greek people needs our solidarity!
  • The pressure on Greece on the part of the European Central Bank, the Euro-group and some EU government has tremendously increased. Counter pressure is necessary. transform! europe has therefore agreed to issue the following call:
    The Greek election and the day after
  • The first projections had already revealed that the election on 25 January would lead to a fundamental change of political direction. This turned out to be true even though the goal of achieving an absolute majority was just missed out on. Instead of the required number of 151 Parliamentarians; SYRIZA now has 149 out of 300 deputies in the Greek Parliament (Vouli).
    Hope over Cynism
  • The team of the Austrian solidarity and information initiative “Griechenland entscheidet” (Greece Decides) gives its opinion on the election results and Greece’s new government.
    Tsipras sworn in as the new Prime Minister
  • Greece is headed into a new era of anti-austerity as the radical leftist Syriza successfully formed a government with the Independent Greeks party after falling short of an outright majority in Sunday’s landmark elections.
    Greece is about to give European democracy a chance
  • When the constitutional process of a proud European democracy seemed to be leading, quite properly, to elections (as was the case in Greece since the Fall), the European Commission, various governments and the commentariat-at-large intervened, presenting the prospect of elections (the crowning...
    What the SYRIZA Government Will Do
  • transform! publishes the government programme of SYRIZA announced at the Thessaloniki International Fair on 15 September 2014 by Alexis Tsipras.
    Can Greece change the EU?
  • What has been happening in Greece since the outbreak of the financial crisis in 2007/2008 and of the eurocrisis in 2009/2010 is not unique to this country. Greece is not an exceptional case.
    The Cause of SYRIZA Is Our Cause
  • The possible win of SYRIZA in the next Greek elections is a matter which should be at the centre of interest of social movements, trade unions and political forces in all European countries, since it can be the first step for a fundamental social and political change in our continent.
    Hope Will Defeat Fear – in Greece and in Europe
  • Austerity has led us to an impasse which can be seen most clearly in Greece. But it is also noticeable everywhere else in Europe. Austerity – apart from being an ineffective and pointless means to combatting the crisis – is now proving treacherous. This is because it continues to change the nature of the crisis.
    What is SYRIZA and what it isn’t?
  • An analysis by Andreas Karitzis, member of the Political Secretariat of SYRIZA and member of the Nicos Poulantzas Institute, from April 2013 and still relevant.
    The Pretext for Privatization of Greek Higher Education
  • Higher education reforms, by using a discourse of quality, competitiveness and “attractiveness” of the university, are of the most important risks going on in many countries, as they are connected not only with issues such as the denigration of university as a public good with the relative reduction of national funds, the promotion of entrepreneurship, marketization processes and commercialization of knowledge, but they are also connected with student-debt and control of the future generations.
    An Alternative Welcome at the University of Athens
  • Greek university education is going through the most critical phase in its entire history, because the Ministry of Education is implementing a harsh mobility scheme for the administrative and technical staff of the country’s eight largest universities.
    The Greek Government and the Golden Dawn: More Links than Conflicts
  • At night of 17 September, Pavlos Fyssas, a 34 years old antifascist hip-hop artist had been stubbed to death by a member of the neo-nazi party Golden Dawn in Keratsini, a district of Piraeus. The murder of Pavlos Fyssas became the springboard of massive developments at the political and judiciary level as it gave rise to a massive legal prosecution progress of the neo-nazi party and its members, who are accused to be members of a criminal gang.
    Alarming Reduction of Tertiary Education in Greece
  • For at least the past four years the public and democratic university has been systematically undermined by the neoliberal governments through its institutional liquidation, that has destroyed the collective and democratically elected academic bodies, and predominantly by its economic strangulation.
    Report on the 1st Congress of SYRIZA
  • The 1st Congress of SYRIZA took place in Athens, 10-14 July 2013. Approximately 3500 delegates dealt with the major tasks of formulating the Political Declaration, the Political Resolution and the Statutes of the new party, while evaluating the current situation in a national, European and global level and discussed on the ideological and programmatic features of the transformed SYRIZA and the project of the government of the Left.
    Another Attack of the Government on Democracy
  • In the afternoon of Tuesday June 11, the Greek government, with a surprising move, announced the closure of the Greek Television and Radio corporation (ERT) and the firing of all its employees.
    Strawberry Fields in Greece: Exploitation and Racism
  • At least 28 strawberry field workers from Bangladesh were transferred to hospital with injuries on 17 May after being shot by the “foremen” of their employer. The incident occurred at 6 p.m. on the 41st kilometer of the highway between Patras and Pyrgos in Peloponnese.
    Urgent Petition from Greek Universities
  • Based on financial logistics rather than on criteria of academic excellence, the ATHENA scheme of the Greek government regarding University Education calls for the merging of the Departments of English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish Languages and Literatures, into a single “Department of...
    Austerity in Southern Europe Could Lead to a Resurgence of Global Recession
  • The recent SYRIZA-USF formal visit to Brazil and Argentina has offered the opportunity to meet government officials, leaders of left parties supporting governments as well as left-wing opposition parties, representatives of unions, left movements, but also intellectuals, academics, artists and Greeks of the Diaspora.
    The Greek Nazi Party “Golden Dawn”
  • The fact that a Nazi party – namely “Golden Dawn” – made it to the Greek Parliament is part of the broader phenomenon of the rise of far-Right in Europe; it reveals nonetheless some special dimensions of the political and financial crisis in Greece.
    Golden Dawn members attack and beat SYRIZA MP
  • Members of extreme right-wing Golden Dawn attacked and beat Dimitris Stratoulis, MP of left-wing SYRIZA outside OAKA football stadium Dec 16 evening in Athens. According to Stratoulis, he was approached by three men who told him they were members of Chrysi Avgi (Golden Dawn).
    14N Day in Greece
  • In Greece, the 14N day was marked by demonstrations in Athens and Thessaloniki which were basically focused on sending a message of solidarity to the Spanish, Portuguese and Italians who are also struggling against the neoliberal attack.
    The Crisis Attacks Democracy and Freedom of Speech
  • Violent reactions around the performance of “Corpus Christi” at the Hytirion Theatre in Athens prove that a play could indicate all the conservative trends that characterize an important part of the Greek society.
    Merkel’s Visit in Greece: A Well-Organised Project of “Applied” Political Repression
  • Two were the highlights of the day Angela Merkel visited Greece on October 9: on the one hand the absence of any kind of intention to negotiate – as far as the Memorandum and the austerity measures are concerned – on behalf of the Greek government, on the other the very well-organised plan the Greek authorities launched for the purpose of targeting social protest and terrorising the politically “awake” youth and working-class people.
    Greece: The Show Must Go On
  • Three months after the crucial elections of 17 June and the formation of the new coalition government, the end of the summer ceasefire once again finds Greece in big distress.
    After the Greek Elections: “Let Us All Give a Promise!”
  • The night of the Greek elections of 17 June punctuated the map of Modern Greek history. For the first time, parties left of the Social democracy receive such as a large percentage (SYRIZA, Democratic Left and KKE together 37.5%), and assume the position of the major opposition. The only time...
    Hegemony and Despair
  • Before the elections of 6 May, the most likely result seemed to be the formation of a government of New Democracy (conservatives) and PASOK (social democrats). However, the slogan for the “government of the Left”, which was brought in the political arena by Alexis Tsipras, led people to face SYRIZA...
    The Special Regime of Media in Greece
  • Media crisis in Greece comes as a consequence of the lack of real democracy that becomes more and more intensive. If in Greece, there is a non-pluralistic sector of public life, this is definitely the mainstream private media. These stations took their license to transmit through public frequencies...
    "A Road Map For The New Greece"
  • Speech of Alexis Tsipras, President of the Parliamentary Group of Syriza - Unitary Social Front (USF), during the presentation of the Party Programme, Athinas Hall, Friday, 1 June 2012
    Not a Debate about the Euro
  • For everyone who has studied backwards induction in game theory, “the case of Europe” could not constitute a better occasion for her to practice it. Players are there, uncertainty is there, probabilities are there, multiple outcomes are there. Only the game is real, and the way it turns out will not...
    The Politics of Austerity: Democracy in Deficit
  • In their attempt to harness state finances, EU austerity plans openly promoted the implementation of a clear-cut neoliberal agenda with enormous political implications.  Two years after these plans were set in motion, one can draw two safe conclusions: That economic recovery is still absent and that...
    Greece: A Crucial Battle for a European Struggle
  • For the last two years Greece has been a big laboratory. A laboratory for economic policy (meaning how a program of abrupt internal devaluation would work in face of a severe economic crisis in an advanced capitalist economy), for the margins of social reaction and for the form and magnitude of...
    Greek Elections: Climate of Extreme Political Polarization
  • It is evident that we are finding ourselves amidst a transitional period out of which a new point of equilibrium is to emerge following the intense political and social conflicts. What is at stake in the new elections is the political regulation of the crisis. The implementation, in other words,...

Publication

Calendar

    Greek Refugee Camps and the Covid-19 Crisis
  • Κaterina Anastasiou, transform! europe, discussed with the Director of Amnesty International Greece and the activist of the civil society rescue mission Mediterranea:saving humans, on the current life-threatening situation for refugees and migrants in Greece. Watch the full webinar.

Webinars

    Greek Refugee Camps and the Covid-19 Crisis
  • Κaterina Anastasiou, transform! europe, discussed with the Director of Amnesty International Greece and the activist of the civil society rescue mission Mediterranea:saving humans, on the current life-threatening situation for refugees and migrants in Greece. Watch the full webinar.