International CADTM network

Greece: ’The belly is still fertile from which the foul beast sprang’ (Brecht, Arturo Ui)

Responding to direct racist threats from the nazi party Golden Dawn against one of the founding members of CADTM Greece Moisis Litsis [1].]], the international CADTM network wishes to highlight how serious a danger the rise of fascism is, a development that is the direct consequence of the deterioration of social conditions imposed by creditors claiming that paying public debts is more important than fundamental human rights.

The neonazi magazine Stohos published a ‘biographical note’ on Moisis Litsis that list all his TU and political activities over the past two decades. Under the title ‘ESIEA (the journalists’ trade union) has a Jew as treasurer’, their racist libel further states, ‘he speaks perfect Hebrew, he loves Israel though he claims to be antisionist (but who would believe him)! … At the general assemblies of ESIEA, instead of talking about problems met by Greek journalists, Moisis Litsis will hold on about the Holocaust and the need to condemn the Golden Dawn’…

The steady deterioration of the social and economic crisis makes it possible for the far-right to demonize foreigners (immigrants, asylum seekers). It uses anti-Semitism so as to find scapegoats and obscure the real causes of the problems Greek people have to face behind a smoke screen. The brutal austerity measures enforced by the Troika on the Greek people lead many to try and find new ways of coping, not always shying away from the dark paths of fascism.

It has to be remembered, however, that the objective of Golden Dawn, a racist, violent and pogrom-inciting organization, is the destruction of any TU, political or cultural workers’ association, the crushing of all citizens’ resistance, the negation of the right to difference, and the extermination of those who are different or weaker, including physical extermination.

This racist, backwards, authoritarian and discriminatory backlash is one of the most worrying consequences of the ongoing process through which creditors destroy our social state for the sake of repaying a largely illegitimate debt.

The international CADTM network wishes to state again its complete solidarity with the Greek people in its struggle for sovereignty, against austerity policies, for the assertion of its rights and the cancellation of an odious and murderous debt. We cannot tolerate the murdering, bullying and provocative actions of a nazi party now represented in Parliament.

We join the many voices that are raised all over the world against the rise of fascism in Europe. Our struggle against austerity measures enforced to repay public debts cannot be dissociated from our struggle against fascism in Europe.

Our solidarity with Moisis Litsis, the Greek CADTM and all the left-wing forces fighting austerity policies and the system that breeds them

CADTM international