Greece Arrests Senior Members of Far-Right Party
Published: September 28, 2013
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The police are still seeking Christos Pappas, the sixth Golden Dawn lawmaker for whom an arrest warrant has been issued and the party’s second-in-command. A court official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that a report by the Greek prosecutor charged that the party had recruited young Greeks for its hit squads, in a manner similar to the Nazis.
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Greek Killing Raises Fears of Extremism (September 20, 2013)
The report claims that the party also had links to organized crime groups, particularly in Korydallos, southwest of Athens, close to the spot where the rapper, Mr. Fyssas, was killed on Sept. 18.
The police seized two handguns and a hunting rifle from the home of Mr. Michaloliakos, the party leader, on Saturday, saying he did not have licenses for them.
“It’s a big deal that the chief of the political party got arrested; most people are glad that something was finally done,” said Aris Papaspyrou, 32, an Athens-based lawyer.
“But I’m not sure this will be the end, because we’ve seen in history something like this happen with Hitler and Nazi Germany,” Mr. Papaspyrou added. “They took him to jail, but when he came out he created the party that won the election and went on to become prime minister. I hope this will not come back as a boomerang for us.”
As Mr. Michaloliakos, the party leader, and four of the other lawmakers were escorted from the Athens police headquarters in handcuffs, flanked by masked counterterrorism officers, and ushered into police vehicles for their transfer to the Athens court complex, about 300 Golden Dawn supporters gathered in front of the station before being dispersed by the police.
The arrests are part of a rapidly widening campaign by the government to clamp down on what it says is a rising tide of extremism in Greece, fueled by the economic crisis. In addition, the government opened an investigation last week into whether sympathizers or members of the group had infiltrated Greece’s police forces and the armed forces.
The government replaced seven senior police officials to ensure that the investigation would take place with “absolute objectivity.” Two other police officials stepped down.
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, who leads the right-leaning New Democracy Party, has said he is determined to curb the influence of Golden Dawn, a group whose standing climbed in opinion polls in the past year.
Since the murder a week and a half ago of Mr. Fyssas, whose lyrics protested the rise of neo-fascism in the country, Golden Dawn’s standing in polls has declined. But it is still the third most popular party in Greece, behind New Democracy and Syriza, the leftist party led by a political maverick, Alexis Tsipras.
Last week, as protests against the party intensified, Mr. Michaloliakos suggested that all 18 Golden Dawn lawmakers might resign from Parliament en masse, a move that could force a series of elections in areas where the party now holds seats.
A government spokesman said such a move would not force a general election. But the prospect of new elections for those seats could undermine political stability in Greece at a time when Mr. Samaras is negotiating with creditors for continued financial aid as part of two multibillion-dollar bailouts Greece has already received — even as speculation about the possible need for a third bailout hangs over the talks.
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