New Democracy (political party in the Hellenic Republic)
New Democracy Νέα Δημοκρατία | |
|---|---|
 | |
| President | Kyriakos Mitsotakis |
| Spokesperson | Pavlos Marinakis |
| Founder | Konstantinos Karamanlis |
| Founded | 4 October 1974 |
| Youth wing | Youth Organization of New Democracy |
| Political orientation | Neoliberalism Imperialism Anti-immigration Zionism Factions Neo-fascism Anti-Semitism |
| Political position | Right-wing to Far-right |
New Democracy, mockingly called New Dictatorship or No Democracy, is a far-right political party in Greece, currently in government.
Ideology
Neoliberalism, Imperialism
While the party itself has labeled itself as conservative-liberal, it has taken open neoliberal policies in the economic issues (see the Mitsotakis regime section below).
It also heavily supports the West, with its founder Karamanlis saying that "Greece belongs to the West".
Connections with Anti-semitism and Neo-fascism
The party has Makis Voridis as Vice President (and also currently Minister of the State), who is an anti-Semite who has cooperated with the CIA-backed military junta of 1967.[1]
Furthermore, Voridis, as well as other high-ranking party officials (such as the party's vice president, Adonis Georgiadis) are former members of LAOS, a far-right party whose former leader, George Karatzaferis is openly antisemetic. [2]
New Democracy Governments
Mitsotakis regime (2019-present)
Neoliberalism
Mitsotakis, since his election, has applied increasingly neoliberal policies with privatizations and reducing of workers' rights.
Since his first government in 2019, Mitsotakis has done a wave of massive privatizations as part of a wider neoliberal economic agenda. These privatizations include: tourist infrastracture, coastal land and any shares of the state left in gas and electricity companies (such as DEI, which ironically stands for Public Electricity Business). Tax reform was also implemented to make the country "a haven for billionaires and the wealthiest citizens" and to attract foreign capital. A clause also makes this law permanent and immune to change by next governments.[3]
The right to strike has also been restricted, whereas collective agreements have been completely abolished. Both measures were taken in 2020 as part of the so-called "big growth bill". These measures were first introduced by the neocolonial Troika in 2012 and then abolished by Tsipras in 2015.[4] In August 2020, a reform of the labor law was also passed, giving an employer the ability to lay off workers without any warning or reasoning, which can be exploited by employees by firing workers due to personal preferences.
The tax fraud unit was also abolished, therefore facilitating tax evasion. The said unit's employees are now integrated into the Ministry of Finance. [5]
Imperialism
Greece participates in the invasion of Yemen which is led by the US.
Autocracy, corruption and mishandling of situations
During Mitsotakis' term, corruption has heightened, [6][7] whereas freedom of speech has also become very limited, akin to dictatorships. [8][9][10] Mitsotakis' term was also marred by the 2022 wiretapping scandal[11] and the Tempi Train crash.[12]
Police violence has also been dramatically increased during his term, with the police clearly beating people during the Tempi Train Crash protests. [13]
Anti-immigration
Migration policy has been tightened: the coverage of hospital care for destitute foreigners has been abolished and the period during which refugees who have been granted asylum can reside in public housing has been reduced from six months to one month.[14]
Even the bourgeois propaganda outlet The New York Times has shown a video proof of Greek authorities abandoning migrants at sea. Mitsotakis' government denies this. [15]
The equally neoliberal European Union praises and funds him for this. [16]
Pro-Zionism
Mitsotakis has also supported "Israel" during the Operation Flood of Al-Aqsa.
Anti-communism
Mitsotakis has said that the National Liberation Front, the primary resistance against the Nazi occupiers, was the worst historical period of Greece. [17]
References
- ↑ Baboulias Yannis (2018-02-15). "The Far Right Is a Growing Threat in Greece" The Nation. Retrieved 2023-11-26.
- ↑ New Greek government includes ministers of antisemitic party. CFCA.
- ↑ La Grèce va-t-elle devenir le paradis des milliardaires ? (7 December 2019).
- ↑ Le gouvernement grec profite du coronavirus pour faciliter l'exploration pétrolière dans ses eaux.
- ↑ Grèce : le gouvernement amorce le changement (12 August 2019).
- ↑ The Rot at the Heart of Greece Is Now Clear for Everyone to See (22 August 2022).
- ↑ Greek PM's Wiretapping Scandal Can't be Justified by Foreign Threats (2022-09-21).
- ↑ How Greece became Europe's worst place for press freedom (8 August 2022).
- ↑ Greece: Media freedom under assault (23 April 2022).
- ↑ The worrying decline of press freedom in Greece (15 May 2022).
- ↑ Greek 'Watergate' tarnishes reputation of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (30 August 2022).
- ↑ Greek protests over train crash flare despite prime minister's apology (2023-03-05).
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/socialism/comments/11totkr/police_attacks_peaceful_protest_eventually/
- ↑ En Grèce, Kyriakos Mitsotakis devance les désirs des créanciers (16 July 2020).
- ↑ "Video Shows Greece Abandoning Migrants at Sea" (2023-05-19). The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-12-30.
- ↑ Migration: EU praises Greece as 'shield' after Turkey opens border (2020-03-03).
- ↑ “Νομίζω ότι όλοι μπορούν να βγάλουν τα συμπεράσματά τους από τις ιστορικές αναφορές που το κάθε κόμμα επιδιώκει να αναδείξει. Εμείς, ας πούμε, αναδεικνύουμε την αποκατάσταση της δημοκρατίας από τη Νέα Δημοκρατία και τον Κωνσταντίνο Καραμανλή. Εσείς επιμένετε να μας θυμίζετε τις χειρότερες στιγμές της ελληνικής ιστορίας και τους εμφύλιους διχασμούς, που αυτός ο τόπος πλήρωσε πολύ ακριβά”
"Μητσοτάκης για ΕΑΜ: Από τις χειρότερες στιγμές της ελληνικής Ιστορίας – Τσίπρας: Η Εθνική Αντίσταση είναι αναγνωρισμένη" (2023-02-07). Το Ποντίκι. Retrieved 2023-12-19.