Earlier this fall Greek courts handed down rulings that changed its political landscape. The leaders of the Golden Dawn party were convicted on a number of charges including operating a criminal conspiracy that was masquerading as a political party. The leader of the party Nikolaos Michaloliakos and other party leadership were found guilty of operating a criminal organization. Lower level members were also convicted of violent attacks and the murder of Pavlos Fyssas, a Greek raper and anti-fascist.
The trial lasted 5 years and found party leadership and individual members guilty of crimes ranging from directing a criminal organization to attacks on trade unionists and illegal possession of weapons. This landmark ruling dealt a legal and political blow for the party. From a legal perspective this ruling effectively ended the leadership from being involved in politics. The full extent of the political ramifications are still to be felt but Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis offered this assessment, “an issue that has hurt the country is now closed. The political part, perhaps the most important one, closed in the elections of July 2019 when Golden Dawn did not enter Parliament.”
Golden Dawn is a far right wing neo fascist political party that was founded in the 1980’s. It began as a neo-nazi party that denied the Holocaust and harkened back to nostalgia for Greece’s former military junta. It emerged as a catchall for the remnants of rightwing elements that existed in Greek society.
In the past decade Golden Dawn has experienced an icarian rise and fall as they rode the political landscape of the 2010’s. As the Greek economy began to experience the fallout from the economic crisis of the Great Recession, Golden Dawn sought to tap into these feelings of economic anxiety. Coupled with this was the protracted negotiations between the European Union and Greece over the terms and conditions of a bailout. At the same time a large amount of refugees began to head towards Greece, either as a final destination or as a pass through to central europe. Golden Dawn played into Greeks fears about these two issues and ran on a platform that was steadfastly nationalistic and sceptical of outsiders. In recent past elections Golden Dawn showed signs of gaining popularity and membership. In the 2015 parliamentary elections they had their strongest showing and won seats in parliament making them the third largest party in parliament. In the 2019 elections the party did not win any seats and had no members in the parliament
The party’s members were frequently engaged in political violence and particularly targeted groups that the party didn’t agree with. These groups that were targeted include refugees and immigrants, the LGBT community, and members of leftist political parties.
The recent ruling, and rise and fall of Golden Dawn show the effects that democratic erosion has had on Greek society. The success that Golden Dawn had while running on a platform that combined right-wing nationalism and outright contempt of the ruling elite struck a nerve in Greek politics. At the same time of Golden Dawn’s parliamentary successes the Syriza party also enjoyed electoral wins. Both of these parties identified the undercurrent in Greek society that was fed up with the inaction of the political elite and embraced this populist spirit while doing it in two divergent ways.
This shows how the norms of mutual toleration can be worn away and lead to ordinary people embracing political violence. When a country is faced with a political crisis, such as an increase in refugee migration, the existing political situation is often magnified. In Greece this led those who feared increased refugee presence for a multitude of reasons; racism and xenophobia, economic concerns, and misplaced anger, to take that rage out on a clearly identified outgroup.
When violent far right wing parties gain acceptance and legislative power to enact their agendas this is a worrying sign for democracy and represents a clear threat to its survival.
While the full ramifications of this ruling will take time to become apparent, the conviction of the leadership of Golden Dawn is a good sign. This marks the potential for Greece to turn back some instances of the worrying trend of democratic erosion. By issuing a landmark ruling Greece has sent a clear message to similar far-right groups that this kind of political action will not be tolerated.
Matthew Morano
Hi James, I really enjoyed reading your article! The apparent decline of Golden Dawn definitely as a result of the criminal conviction of its leadership is certainly a win for democracy. I was actually living on the island of Crete during the summer of 2018 and I remember seeing and hearing about the party. However, I agree that it will take time for the ramifications of the ruling to become apparent. However, there is still much work to be done. It is important to remember that just because someone stopping shooting at you can’t celebrate as long as there are other actors continuing the fight. You had mentioned how the norm of mutual toleration can be worn away and how that may lead some to embrace violence. What is the state of forbearance and restraint in Greek politics? Can we expect this court ruling to be the last we see of the government going after the party?
It is no surprise to me that Golden Dawn first emerged as a result of economic crisis, as studies show that financial crisis empowers the far right and their rhetoric. Obviously, Greece’s problems are not going to just disappear. Migrants will continue to arrive on the shores of Greek islands and the economy will not recover anytime soon. It is hard to say whether the sunset of Golden Dawn could mean the rise of a new far-right party. The political legitimacy of Golden Dawn is all but tarnished, but the surprising rise and fall of such a party show that democratic erosion can impact any democracy, even the original. I find myself asking what can be done to prevent another Golden Dawn from materializing. As is the case in the formation of other racist, xenophobic, and neo-fascist parties it seems that the proximity to migration matters, and it seems that migration caused by the instability of the eastern Mediterranean is to blame for the radicalization of some Greeks. It is interesting how quickly their moment came and went. Hopefully, the rejection of Golden Dawn will prove to be the standard not the exception.
Frank Mastroianni
Hi James,
This was a very interesting article! The situation in Greece with the Golden Dawn bodes interesting questions for how democracies are to deal with a rise of anti-institutional populism. After reading your case, I think that Greece was lucky to “nip [the situation] in the bud” per se. The Golden Dawn had never led a government or seen one of its own serve as Prime Minister, which would have definitely caused damage in Greek democracy given that it would have further disseminated the party’s ideas.
I also find Greece’s ability to condemn violence against political opponents as especially hopeful. By decisively dealing a blow to the party before it did the maximum damage to the system, I do think Greek democracy was greatly helped. The institutions definitely did their job in gatekeeping threats against democracy. What would also help in the future is a conscious decision by all parties in the Greek parliament to refuse to form a government or alliance with the Golden Dawn. Alienation from the system will likely allow for its power to sputter out as it becomes less accepted in society. Playing hardball to protect democracy is very helpful in my opinion, and I hope countries like the United States take lessons from this.