Greece Political Briefing: Tensions on the Rise in Greek Political Scene George N

ISSN: 2560-1601

Vol. 37, No. 1 (GR)

February 2021

Greece political briefing: Tensions on the Rise in Greek Political Scene George N. Tzogopoulos

1052 Budapest Petőfi Sándor utca 11.

+36 1 5858 690 Kiadó: Kína-KKE Intézet Nonprofit Kft. [email protected] Szerkesztésért felelős személy: Chen Xin

Kiadásért felelős személy: Huang Ping china-cee.eu 2017/01

Tensions on the Rise in Greek Political Scene

The governing New Democracy and the main opposition SYRIZA party do continuously disagree on a variety of themes. February witnessed rising political tensions in spite of the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic. The participation of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in a big gathering on the island of Ikaria, the new higher education law, and the apparent involvement of former Director of the National Theater in an affair of sexual abuses of young Greek artists fueled tense parliamentary debates. The governing New Democracy party is allegedly capable to deliver on its promise to bring meritocracy in Greece but it is continuously regarded a better political choice than SYRIZA. The beginning of its political damage has not yet favored SYRIZA.

February 2021 was a hot month in Greek politics. On 5 February, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis went to the island of Ikaria in order to inspect the process of vaccination. His visit, however, ended with him joining a group lunch in the terrace of the house of a local MP. Information about this gathering was shared via social media after a resident of Ikaria posted a relevant video, which went viral. Several international media published stories about the Mitsotakis’ Ikaria visit as it was the second time the Greek Premier allegedly disregarded rule his own government had imposed. In December, he had without a mask alongside five motorcyclists at Mount Parnitha, north of Athens.1 The title of a Euronews article about the Ikaria incident was: ‘Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis accused of breaking COVID-19 rules for a second time’.2 Similar items were published in Politico,3 The Guardian,4 and other outlets.

Leader of the main opposition SYRIZA, Alexis Tsipras, found a good opportunity to criticize the governing New Democracy and Mitsotakis. He spoke about an ‘arrogant gesture’

1 Euronews website, ‘Greek PM Mitsotakis Denies Breaking Lockdown Rules during Weekend Bike Ride’, https://www.euronews.com/2020/12/04/greek-pm-mitsotakis-accused-of-breaking-lockdown-rules-during- weekend-bike-ride, 4 December 2020. 2 Matthew Holroyd, ‘Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis Accused of Breaking COVID-19 Rules for a Second Time’, available at: https://www.euronews.com/2021/02/08/greek-pm-kyriakos-mitsotakis-accused-of-breaking-covid- 19-rules-for-a-second-time, 8 February 2021. 3 Nektaria Stamouli, ‘Greek PM Accused of Breaking Coronavirus Lockdown Rules – Again’, available at: https://www.politico.eu/article/greek-prime-minister-kyriakos-mitsotakis-accused-of-breaking-coronavirus- lockdown-rules-again/, 7 February 2021. 4 Helena Smith, ‘Greek PM Criticized for Lunch that Breached COVID Restrictions’, available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/07/greek-prime-minister-criticised-for-lunch-with-up-to-40- people, 7 February 2021.

1 which could have led to a serious governmental crisis in other European countries. The Prime Minister himself gave an interview to SKAI TV in which he attempted to offer some explanations. As he said, his visit to Ikaria was successful but the viral video of the group lunch partly impacted on the substance of this visit. He offered no apology to Greek citizens, although he acknowledged that it had been a mistake to join the group gathering that would not be repeated. He then blamed SYRIZA for orchestrating demonstrations against him and his team in Ikaria.

Beyond the Ikaria incident another reason for tensions between New Democracy and SYRIZA was a new education bill that allows special police on university campuses. While the former believes that this will prevent acts of violence, the latter remains skeptical because of its potential impact on academic freedom. The two parties also disagreed on the necessary grade for schools alumni to enter universities. The new bill – as presented by New Democracy – articulates that a basic grade will be a precondition for university admissions. SYRIZA, by contrast, anticipates that such a precondition will cause a decrease in the number of college students that will lead young Greek either to abandon the dream of studies or to apply for admission to private colleges New Democracy considers as equal with state universities (law voted in December 2020). The new education law passed with 166 deputies voting in favor and 132 against. In parallel with the New Democracy parliamentary group, MPs of the Greek Solution party also supported it.

It is certainly interesting, if not disappointing, that the recent parliamentary discussion about higher education in Greece did not focus on innovation or the connection of universities to the labor market but mainly on the role of the police. Minister of Citizen Protection, Michalis Chrysochoidis, for instance, said that the presence of police in university campuses was not a decision shaped by political ideology but a response to rising violence. In November 2020, Athens University of Economics and Business Rector Dimitris Bourantonis was assaulted by a group of anarchists.5 Groups of students did not agree with Chrysochoidis, however. They organized demonstrations against the education bill despite coronavirus restrictions. Police was occasionally accused of using violence against protesters. 6

Alexis Tsipras has publicly said that demonstrations and protests were a critical element in a democracy – even under current circumstances. In an interview on Alpha TV he explained

5 Apostolos Lakasas, ‘Time for Uni Violence to End, Says Rector’, available at: https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/258925/time-for-uni-violence-to-end-says-rector/, 9 November 2020. 6 Stavros Malichudis, ‘Greek Police Accused of Violence at Education Bill Protests’, available at: https://balkaninsight.com/2021/02/11/greek-police-accused-of-violence-at-education-bill-protests/, 11 February 2021.

2 that they were both expected from the moment the government was introducing important bills in parliament. He went further and asserted he would undertake the risk of contagions and therefore proposed that important bills should not be introduced by the government in parliament amid the pandemic. He clarified that SYRIZA had been very careful on 17 November 2020 (marking the 1973 student uprising against the military dictatorship) but considered the education law parliamentary discussion an extraordinary situation because the governing New Democracy party was legislating in a ‘provocative’ way.

Last but not least, New Democracy and SYRIZA strongly disagreed about former director of the Greek National Theatre, Dimitris Lignadis, who resigned after allegations of rape. Culture Minister Lina Mendoni had initially undermined the importance of the issue but when allegations that Lignadis had sexually harassed young actors became serious, she changed stance. Speaking at a virtual press conference Mendoni said that ‘with a profound talent for acting, [Lignadis] tried to convince us that he had no connection to the affair’.7 SYRIZA demanded the resignation of the Culture Minister for covering-up the sexual abuse but Premier Mitsotakis offered her support. It is noteworthy that Mendoni had personally selected Lignadis for the position of the director of the Greek National Theatre bypassing the official vetting process in 2019. The Lignadis affair was another theme tarnishing Greece’s image in the international media. 8 A relevant parliamentary discussion reflected the typical political argumentation of the two main parties, New Democracy and SYRIZA.

The period of New Democracy’s political damage has already started. The resignation of government spokesperson Christos Tarantilis on the last day of February fueled speculations. Although he invoked family reasons, SYRIZA diagnosed internal problems within New Democracy and encouraged the Culture Minister to follow the path of Mendoni. Obviously, Mendoni cannot be held accountable for the sexual abuses of the former Director of the National Theater neither are her competences questioned because of Lignadis’ attitude. But her insistence on keeping her portfolio demonstrates lack of courage in undertaking the political responsibility of an affair that has shocked Greek public opinion. SYRIZA, for its part, exerts criticism, which is a usual habit for opposition parties in Greece, in the hope to politically benefit in the medium-term. Nevertheless, it has not yet offered a new, reliable governmental program, whereas memories of its July 2019 defeat remain vivid.

7 Hi Kathimerini English edition website, ‘Culture Minister Says Was Deceived by Former Head of National Theater’, available at: https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1155537/culture-minister-says-was-deceived-by- former-head-of-national-theatre/, 19 February 2021. 8 Niki Kitsantonis, ‘Ex-Artistic Director of Greece’s National Theater Held after Rape Arrest Warrant’, available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/20/world/europe/Greek-national-theater-Metoo.html, 20 February 2021.

While the period of New Democracy’s political damage has begun, the good news for the governing party is that citizens remain confident in the way it has responded to the coronavirus crisis from the perspective of public health protection. This currently applies to the coordination of the vaccination process. Of course, the more time passes the more citizens assess the performance of the government from the perspective of their economic survival. The coming summer is expected to be critical because Greece largely relies on tourism and several citizens do not necessarily consider state allowances sufficient to cover their economic needs. Additionally, New Democracy can perhaps lose supporters who will not essentially join SYRIZA but other small political parties. The Lignadis affair, for example, might arguably push some of them to this direction noting that Mitsotakis has not boosted meritocracy as he had pledged before the 2019 national election.

Conclusion

The next Greek national election will be based on a proportional system. This means that it is particularly hard for the winner to form a government. As political cooperation among parties is far from easy in Greece, the organization of a second election is likely. Against this backdrop, Greek citizens could find it tempting to vote for smaller parties at first. The beginning of New Democracy’s political damage, which was evident in February 2021, and the inability of SYRIZA to articulate straightforward political proposals will perhaps break down Greece’s political map. Centrist voters acknowledge problems in the governing style of New Democracy and refrain from expressing confidence in SYRIZA.