The Path To Democracy: Civil Society And Politics In , 1974-1977

Karayiannis, Yiannis, Univeristy of Crete

When it comes to modern Greek civil society, the main line of argumentation lies in the belief that civil society is weak and unable to grow in an oversized and inefficient Greek State (Makrydemetris 2002, Mouzelis and Pagoulatos 2007). Available studies offer limited empirical documentation and data, whilst often apply general theoretical principles and conceptual tools to the Greek case. In the same time, other scholars argue about strong enclaves within civil society and the need to further explore its silent parts (Sotiropoulos 2004, Kallas 2004). A little attention has also been paid on the role of civil society in cases of transition to democracy after the fall of a dictatorship or a fascist regime, such as those of Southern Europe in the 1970s. With the exception of a few studies (Radcliff, 2012) regarding the case of Spain, the role of civil society in democratic transition and consolidation in Southeast Europe remains largely unexplored. This lack is even more evident in the case of Greece. In order to explore the development of political participation through civil society, the proposed paper aims to trace specific aspects of civil society in the first four years after the collapse of the dictatorship (1974-1977). These years constituted strong "democratic moments" (Crouch, 2003) and inaugurate the most durable democratic period in modern Greek history. In terms of political participation, a variety of formal organizations and informal groups make an effort to participate in the setting of a new political agenda, using the press as a key instrument of addressing public issues. As many scholars point out media potentially play a crucial role in strengthening the voice of civil society, and enhancing democracy in general (Coronel, 1994). They are able to organize the public sphere by setting specific set of issues for public discussion (McCombs & Shaw, 1972) and most importantly they filter and transfer social demands to the incumbents. In these sense, the interaction between the press and civil society at that time cannot be left out of discussion. Furthermore, despite the complexity of the relation, media shape a significant field of mapping the civil society activities. In this context, the proposed paper aims to investigate the attempts of political participation through civil society organizations, as they appear in the daily press in the first years after transitions to democracy. In order to do that, research will consist of two parts: First the examination of four daily newspapers with different political orientations and spatial references: “” (Left, Athens), “Ta Nea” (Center, Athens), “” (Right, Athens), and a daily press from (“”), in order to map different reports on civil society activities at the period mentioned. Secondly, classification and further analysis of the reports according to following research questions: Which types of social groups and issues appear the most in the daily press? Which were the usual forms of addressing social demands? How does the press frame different civil society? And, finally, to what extent did civil society actually address public issues? The proposed paper is part of an interdisciplinary research project about forms of public sociality in urban Greece during the 20th century. It does not intent to systematically explore every aspect of civil society in Greece or to suggest a generalized theory about it. Instead, it aims to provide valuable information about civil society in Greece in the aforementioned period and about its role in addressing public issues through the press. In this sense, it will also serve to a broader understanding of the size and development of civil society in Greece that can contribute to the discussion about its current trends and challenges.

References Coronel, Sheila, 1994, The role of media in deepening democracy, in http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un/unpan010194.pdf

Crouch, Colin 2004, Post-Democracy, Cambridge, Poltiy Press.

Kallas, Yannis (2004), «Mia empeiriki dierevnisi tis koinonias politon sthn Hellada”, in Sotiropoulos D.A., (ed.), He agnostic koinonia politon, Athens: Potamos (An empirical research on civil society in Greece”, in “The unknown civil society”). Makrydemetris, Antonis, (2002), Kroatos ke Kenonia Politon, Athina: Metamesonykties Eksoseis (State and civil society. Athens: Metamesonykties Ekdoseis). Mouzelis, Νicοs P. and Pagoulatos, George, (2007) “Kenonia Politon ke idiotita toy politi sti metapoliteftiki Hellada”, in Elliniki Epitheorisi Politikis Epistimis (Civil Society and citizenship in post-junta Greece, Τhe Greek Review of Political Science, Vol. 22 pp 5-29). Maxwell E. McCombs && Donald L. Shaw, 1972, “The Agenda-Setting Function of Mass Media”, The Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol. 36, No. 2, pp. 176-187. Radcliff, Pamela Beth, Making Democratic Citizens in Spain, London, Palgrave Macmillan Sotiropoulos, Dimitri A. (2004) «He kenonia politon stin Hellada: atrophiki i afanis?», in Sotiropoulos D.A. (ed.), He agnosti kenonia politon, Athens: Potamos (Civil Society in Greece: atrophic or silent?», in «The unknown civil society»).