Greek Court Convicts Fascist Leaders

Demonstrators march after the murder of Pavlos Fyssas. (Wikimedia Commons)

A court in Athens announced guilty verdicts against leaders and former lawmakers of the neo-Nazi group Golden Dawn, ending a trial that began over five years ago. Three judges convicted the group’s leader, Nikolaos Michaloliakos, and seven others of running a criminal syndicate and convicted dozens more of participating in the organization. The court also sentenced 16 people for the 2013 murder of activist and rapper Pavlos Fyssas.

Michaloliakos founded Golden Dawn in 1985 as a nationalist, anti-immigration, anti-Turkey organization. As right-wing parties gained popularity during the Greek financial crisis, so too did Golden Dawn, winning 21 seats in parliament in 2012. Authorities say that the party, at one point the third-largest in the national legislature, inspired attacks against immigrants, ethnic minorities, and left-wing politicians. After party supporters killed Fyssas in 2013, the government cracked down on Golden Dawn and arrested several leading members for alleged involvement in the slaying. Last year after failing to garner three percent of the national vote, the organization lost its remaining parliamentary seats.

The court’s verdict makes associating with Golden Dawn illegal while also carrying lengthy prison sentences for the defendants. The party no longer holds political office in Greece, but one of the convicted leaders, Ioannis Lagos, remains a non-aligned member of the European Parliament. Several EU representatives have called for the removal of Lagos from his post.

The Greek public and many politicians celebrated the verdicts. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called the ruling “courageous” and expressed optimism in interviews. “I believe that an issue that has hurt the country is now closed,” he told the Athens newspaper Ta Nea. Over 10,000 people gathered outside the Athens Appeals Court for the announcement, waving signs and chanting anti-fascist slogans. They began singing and dancing when the court announced its determination. Local authorities deployed hundreds of police officers to control the crowd, and later fired tear gas into the streets after some protesters pelted them with objects.

Although the court’s decision struck a blow to Greece’s xenophobic far right, a recent opinion poll found that 76 percent of Greeks still considered fascism a threat. Greece has faced an influx of refugees from the Middle East and Africa over the past several years owing to its location as an eastern gateway into the EU. Furthermore, Europe’s largest refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos burned down in September, increased tensions between displaced migrants and local residents. Though Golden Dawn, a major contributor to the fueling of these tensions, no longer holds power, nationalistic and xenophobic sentiments persist throughout the country and Europe as a whole.