Greece’s Far-Right Party Tries to Evade Government Crackdown With a New Name
ATHENS
— Encircled by a phalanx of riot police officers, members of Greece’s
far-right party Golden Dawn announced the formation of a new political
party late Saturday as a way to circumvent possible efforts by the
government to outlaw the organization ahead of European elections.
As
thousands of black-clad supporters chanted nationalist slogans at a
rally near Parliament, Ilias Kasidiaris, Golden Dawn’s spokesman, said
the new party, to be called National Dawn, could replace Golden Dawn to
allow its candidates to run in elections to be held in May to select
mayors and members of the European Parliament.
The
rebranding appeared to be a maneuver to outflank the Greek government’s
efforts to put a lid on Golden Dawn. Last year, the authorities
conducted an extraordinary crackdown on the party, arresting five
members of Parliament, including the leader of the group, and nearly 20
other people, after the murder of an antifascist rapper by a Golden Dawn
supporter.
While
the government cannot ban political parties, it has sought to dampen
Golden Dawn’s influence by labeling the party a criminal organization.
Five of the organization’s top members are still behind bars, but the
appeal of the party, which espouses nationalistic and xenophobic
stances, has not wavered.
National
Dawn would be a “clean” party of “Greek nationalists who have not been
involved in criminal organizations, who have no criminal record,” Mr.
Kasidiaris told the crowd, sarcastically referring to his jailed
colleagues. His remarks drew cheers from members who waved Greek flags
and the party’s own signature red flag, which uses a symbol that
resembles a swastika.
“They
put us in jail. But did we falter? No, we did not,” said Mr.
Kasidiaris, who has said he intends to run for mayor of Athens in May.
“We are stronger, we are more powerful, and in a short time we will be
in power.”
Throngs
of police officers blocked streets with buses in a bid to prevent
bloody clashes as hundreds of antifascist youths — many concealing their
faces with black masks — gathered a quarter of a mile away in Syntagma
Square wielding batons and rocks, and spoiling for a fight.
“We
are here to put a stop to them,” said a man calling himself Kostas, as
police officers ran to break up a tussle between youths who had charged a
man carrying a Greek flag.
The killing in September of Pavlos Fyssas,
an antifascist rapper, by a Golden Dawn supporter inflamed tensions and
set off a wave of retaliatory activity between the groups.
In November, two Golden Dawn members were shot and killed
near their party’s offices by leftist assailants calling themselves the
Militant People’s Revolutionary Forces. Then, a week ago, scores of
Golden Dawn activists converged on the site of Mr. Fyssas’ murder,
ripping down a makeshift shrine and covering spray-painted messages
about him with Golden Dawn’s insignia.
But
Golden Dawn has retained its standing in political polls. A poll
conducted late last month showed that if parliamentary elections were
held today, it would be the third most popular party in Greece, with 10
percent of the vote. It trailed the leftist anti-austerity Syriza group,
which would attract about 32 percent of the vote, and New Democracy,
the party of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, which was favored by 28
percent of respondents, according to the polling organization Public
Issue.
Despite
signs that Greece may be turning a corner after a five-year recession,
Mr. Samaras’s fragile government coalition is facing a mounting
challenge from both Syriza and Golden Dawn, who have strengthened their
appeal with austerity-weary Greek voters. Greece’s central bank recently
warned that political uncertainty posed one of the biggest threats to
the recovery.Mr.
Samaras has taken pains to assure his European partners that the
government will not fall apart.
But he has also warned of the trouble
that could arise in Greece and other euro zone countries if further
austerity increases the appeal of extremist groups.
Golden
Dawn’s appeal is partly explained by its promises to restore jobs and
order. With the jobless rate continuing to climb — it hit 27.8 percent
in October, and youth unemployment neared 60 percent — the organization
has increased food distribution to Greeks in areas where there are a
large number of unemployed immigrants.
After
Mr. Fyssas’ killing, Nikos Michaloliakos, Golden Dawn’s leader and a
member of Parliament, and four of his deputies remain in jail. All five
lawmakers are charged with forming a criminal organization The Council
of Europe’s human rights commissioner has described the group as a “neo-Nazi and violent political party” and urged that it be banned.
Since
the Greek Constitution does not allow political parties to be banned,
the government has resorted to other measures to restrict it, including
beginning the criminal investigations and revoking its state funding.
Rebranding
Golden Dawn is a way to counter the government’s efforts. “We will
participate in elections one way or another,” Mr. Kasidiaris said.
“Patriots will have a party to vote for if they go ahead with the coup
to ban Golden Dawn.”
Niki Kitsantonis contributed reporting.
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