The Greek elections and the socialist alternative
- By Heiko Khoo
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E-mail China.org.cn, January 24, 2015
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Alexis Tsipras, leader of Greece's radical left Syriza party |
Opinion polls show the left-wing Syriza party led by Alexis Tsipras is likely to win the Greek election on Jan. 25. If so, it will create the first openly socialist government in Europe for decades. It is unclear if Syriza will secure an absolute majority of seats, but its leader, Alexis Tsipras, will almost certainly become Greece's next prime minister. This will shatter the European status quo and can open the door for a pan-European socialist revival.
Syriza is composed of various leftist parties and groups: it demands a halt to privatization; the nationalization of big private banks; and public ownership of utilities. Syriza's meteoric rise followed wave after wave of general strikes and protests against the draconian austerity measures imposed on Greece by the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Europe's mainstream journalists, economists, politicians and big business interests despise Tsipras even though he is a mild mannered and intelligent man offering a clear alternative vision. Syriza promises to fight structural economic reforms and austerity, and to improve the living conditions of the masses by investing in the economy.
Since 2008 the Greek economy shrunk by a quarter and its debt is about 175 percent of GDP. Unemployment exceeds 20 percent and youth unemployment is over 50 percent, but cuts in wages and pensions, and the collapse of social services has brought catastrophe to the people. Greece is experiencing a period of economic and social collapse similar to that in Germany between World War I and World War II.
Alongside the rise of Syriza, Greece has also seen the growth of a neo-Nazi party, Golden Dawn. Its members march through the streets attacking foreigners. They particularly target asylum seekers who arrive in large numbers from North Africa and the Middle East. Even though Golden Dawn have touched on a raw nerve in Greek politics and have gained support by their attacks on immigrants, Tsipras explains that the Greek people were at the forefront of the struggle against the Nazis during the Second World War. He points out that the problem of massive migration to Europe cannot be solved by violence and repression but only on a pan-European and international basis. Society needs to be rebuilt on the basis of "solidarity, meritocracy, democracy and social prosperity," he says.
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