reports
on elections in Greece--and the extraordinary challenge against austerity
policies mounted by the Coalition of the Radical Left.
AN ALL-out fear campaign by Greek and European
capitalists helped conservatives eke out an election victory over the surging
Coalition of the Radical Left, known as SYRIZA by its initials in Greek.
Bankers and establishment politicians across
Europe celebrated the fact that SYRIZA's principled anti-austerity program
wouldn't become Greek government policy. As the Financial Times noted:
"In spite of SYRIZA's strong performance, European governments were sure
to be relieved that a party dedicated to overturning the terms of Greece's
international financial rescue appeared to have fallen short of victory."
The European ruling class feared that a
SYRIZA-led government coalition, while pledging to keep the euro as Greece's
currency, would be forced to leave the common currency shared by 17 countries
if it refused to abide by the so-called "Memorandum"--the agreement
that obliged Greece to make sweeping cutbacks in government spending, wage cuts
and higher taxes in exchange for a bailout by the European Union, European
Central Bank and International Monetary Fund.
It was growing anger over these austerity
policies that propelled SYRIZA from the margins of Greek politics to a
second-place finish in the inconclusive May 6 elections. Then, the party got
16.78 percent of the vote. This time, despite an all-out effort by the
mainstream media and politicians to undermine SYRIZA, the party scored 26.89
percent, only a few percentage points behind the leaders, the conservative New
Democracy party.
Moreover, SYRIZA obtained twice as many votes as
the center-left PASOK party, one of the two main parties in Greek politics for
four decades, which has been discredited by its central role in implementing
austerity policies since 2009--first as the governing party, then as the senior
partner in a coalition government of "technocrats."
By tapping into the popular fury against
austerity that has led to 17 general strikes and countless protests, SYRIZA
upended Greek politics. Now, with an expected 72 members in the Greek
parliament, it is well placed to build further resistance.
"This was a great result, even though we
weren't able to defeat New Democracy," said Antonis Davanellos, a member
of the socialist group Internationalist Workers Left, a cofounder of the SYRIZA
coalition in 2004. "It was better than we could have hoped for before
these elections began. We are out of the discussion of creating a government, but
we are in a position to help lead the serious fight against the memorandum and
austerity."
The radical left could have emerged as the
dominant electoral player if the Greek Communist Party (KKE, according to its
initials in Greek) had blocked with SYRIZA in an electoral alliance. But the
KKE is an old-school Stalinist party with a sectarian refusal to collaborate
with other left-wing groups.
The political polarization in Greece hasn't only
benefited the left. The Nazi Golden Dawn party scored nearly 6.92 percent of
the vote, enough to gain 18 seats in parliament. Golden Dawn, an openly
pro-Hitler party, made a name for itself by physically attacking immigrants and
blaming them for Greece's crisis. Its rise is ominous--and underscores the
importance of both confronting the right and building a left-wing alternative
to attract those who are deserting the main parties.
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WORRISOME AS the rise of Golden Dawn may be, the
left clearly has the momentum in Greece right now. The pressure from SYRIZA
forced New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras to make promises that he almost
certainly can't keep.
To reassure Germany--the dominant power in the
eurozone and its debt collector--Samaras told international audiences that if
he were elected, Greece would make good on more austerity measures that are
required as a condition of getting bailout loans. But in his election speeches, Samaras
suggested that he'd be able to renegotiate the Memorandum to gain relief for
Greek workers.
Samaras said that he wants "to add to our
commitments the necessary policies for growth and to combat unemployment,"
and wants to seek a longer time in which to make the fiscal adjustment--that
is, budget cuts and tax increases--demanded by creditors.
But while the next round of cuts may come more
slowly, they will come--and with devastating effect, if Samaras has his way.
To understand why Greece's political turmoil
will continue, look at the numbers: 48 percent of Greeks live at or below the
poverty level, following a 30 percent drop in wages. Unemployment stands at
around 22 percent--and is far higher among youth. The expected coalition
government of New Democracy and PASOK will pursue policies that will only
worsen those numbers--and spark new protests and resistance.
The challenge now for SYRIZA is to transform its
electoral appeal into a political vehicle that the mass movement can embrace
and make its own. SYRIZA's leader Alexis Tsipras pledged to keep up the fight:
"Overthrowing the bailout is the only viable solution. From Monday [after
the election], we will resume the struggle against it."
There will be no shortage of opportunities for
struggle. Even if the dominant European Union (EU) powers give Greece some breathing
room in the short run, they intend to keep squeezing,
as the Financial Times reported:
Publicly, EU leaders have studiously avoided comment on their
plans. Just by acknowledging that they may be willing to rework the bailout,
they feared that they would validate Mr. Tsipras' argument, and boost his
standing.
Yet behind the scenes, they have been busy debating a package of
concessions to dangle before a new Greek government. The catch is that the
government would have to recommit to the main outlines of the bailout.
Some of the benefits on offer could include lower interest rates
and extended maturities on the loans, but not changes or extensions to the
fiscal targets, according to senior officials in Brussels and Berlin.
If negotiations bog down, the EU may squeeze Greece. Member states
withheld 1 billion euros [$1.2 billion] from a loan disbursement last month,
pending the outcome of the elections. Without such funds, Greece will not be
able to pay salaries and pensions--let alone bond redemptions.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
A SYRIZA government would have challenged this
"bailout," which, after all, is aimed only at funneling money through
Greece's accounts and back out to the European banks that hold Greek government
bonds. That's why European capital went all-out to prop up Samaras and New Democracy.
But if the mood of European financiers and
politicians was brightened by New Democracy's win in Greece, the eurozone
remains mired in crisis. Government finances in Spain are unraveling after the
$125 billion bailout of Spanish banks only added more debt to the government's
books and raised the specter of more Greek-style austerity in that country.
That's why SYRIZA's election result looms so
large. By showing that it's possible to mount a political appeal against
austerity, SYRIZA can emerge as a reference point for Europe's left, labor
unions and social movements, which face their own struggles in the weeks and
months ahead.
And the struggle in Greece will continue. Capital has made
it clear that the austerity agenda will continue unless and until working people
are organized enough to stop it. SYRIZA's rise highlights the potential to do
just that.
(This article was first published at Socialist Worker US)
