Understanding the rise and fall of Syriza
Through all the twists and turns of the last six months, Kevin Ovenden has been a key source of English-language updates on the Syriza government and events taking place in Greece. Now he has produced one of the first detailed accounts of the events that made the radical left’s rise to government possible, and Syriza’s rapid capitulation to EU-imposed austerity.
Opposition to austerity in Greece forces Syriza back to the polls
After capitulating to Europe’s rulers and signing a new austerity deal worse that any before, Greece’s Syriza Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has called a snap election for 20 September.
Racism and economic crisis: Lessons from fighting the far right in Greece
Greek socialist Petros Constantinou spoke at Keep Left 2015 on the racism accompanying the economic crisis in Greece and how the left has organised to stop the rise of the fascist Golden Dawn. We reproduce his speech here.
Greek activist: Fight against Syriza’s austerity has already begun
Officials from the Troika have returned to Greece to resume the enforcement of austerity measures agreed as part of the new Memorandum agreed by the Syriza government.
Greece’s royal coup—lessons of the July Days
The current battle against unelected institutions in Greece isn’t the first. Dave Sewell looks at the July Days in 1965—and how that movement could have won
Greek workers say “oxi” to austerity
The full scale of the EU’s ruthless contempt for ordinary people has been revealed in the new austerity deal imposed on Greece.
Class divide on show in austerity referendum
The Greek referendum revealed the stark class divide in Greece and a deepening radicalisation of the population.
Failure of reformism led to Greek tragedy
Prime minister Alexis Tsipras, of radical left party Syriza, asked the vultures to compromise. When they said no, he had no Plan B but surrender.
European Union imposes neo-liberalism and austerity by design
Many left-leaning people accept the notion that the EU is a progressive force. But the EU is a project that has always been a profoundly capitalist one.
OXI! NO vote in Greece can strike a blow against austerity
Syriza’s decision to refuse the austerity deal offered by the Troika and to call a referendum on the proposals is a major step forward. It is a product of pressure from the left and the workers’ movement to stand firm on saying “no” to austerity.
Syriza backsliding in Greece as EU tightens the screws
Greece narrowly avoided default in May by scraping together the €750 million debt repayment due to the IMF. The European Union is tightening the screws, demanding the new radical left Syriza government capitulate to accept further austerity in exchange for another bailout.
Populism, anti-politics and the left
Anti-political movements and new left parties like Podemos and Syriza are only inconsistent opponents of the system, writes James Supple
EU out to crush Syriza’s challenge to austerity
James Supple looks at how negotiations with the EU have seen Syriza agree to accept a new version of austerity—undermining initial promises
Syriza’s challenge to austerity in Greece
Alex Callinicos looks at the challenges facing Greece’s new left government—and the ideas behind its strategy
Support Greek anti-fascists against neo-Nazi inspired court case
Greek socialists are facing a court case from a lawyer who supports the fascist party, Golden Dawn, and need your support.---Three members of the greek Socialist Workers Party (SEK),...
Protests force Greece to act on fascist Golden Dawn
The growing opposition to Golden Dawn and its increasingly brazen attacks have forced the Greek government to act.Last month a Golden Dawn member stabbed to death Pavlos Fyssas, an...
Strikes and resistance have Greek government on the brink
The Greek government again faces collapse with a new wave of strikes against the austerity being imposed by the Troika of the EU, IMF and the European Central Bank.Health...
Fighting fascism and racism in Greece
Katerina Thoidou is a Greek activist and socialist. She is on the Steering Committee of KEERFA (United Against Racism and the Fascist Threat), a campaign group fighting Greece’s neo-Nazi...
SYRIZA retreats as Greek crisis deepens
The right of the Greek party SYRIZA won a victory over its left bloc at its founding conference in mid-July in Athens. The conference brought together 3500 delegates from...
Greek TV station under workers’ control: “We’re here to win!”
A workers' occupation of the Greek ERT state broadcasting corporation was the only media outlet broadcasting in the country today, Wednesday. Journalists across the rest of the Greek media...
Migrant workers in Greece fight back after racist shootings
Three farm supervisors opened fire on a crowd of 200 migrant workers, shooting 33, eight of them seriously, on a farm near the southern Greek village of Manolada in...
Italian voters elect for anything but austerity
The stockmarkets panicked at the Italian election result at the end of February. Neither of the major parties won enough votes to form the stable government that the EU,...
Cyprus “bailout” triggers another round of crisis
Another shockwave hit the world economy as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) attempted to negotiate a “bailout” deal for bankrupt Cyprus. The deal would have involved taking money from...
Europe rocked by general strikes in Portugal, Italy, Spain, Greece
Workers walked out in general strikes across Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece as well as parts of Belgium on November 14.In Spain this is the second general strike in...
Golden Dawn: fascists feeding on Greece’s misery
The Greek economy is in a depression. The austerity measures demanded by the troika have made it worse. Nationally one in four Greeks are out of work. Those with...
European general strike on November 14: International Socialist Tendency statement
The decision by unions in Greece, Italy, Portugal, the Spanish state, southern Cyprus and Malta to call a one-day general strike as part of a European-wide day of action...
Debt crisis spreads from Greece across Europe
France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and—last but not least—Spain. A storm of anti-austerity protest has been sweeping through Europe. This represents a very sharp change in the political temperature. For...
Victory in Greece won’t save Europe’s leaders from crisis
There were two pieces of good news for Europe’s rulers in recent weeks. First the left reformist party SYRIZA narrowly lost recall elections in Greece. Then financial markets temporarily...
Can’t pay, won’t pay: debating solutions to Europe’s debt
Crisis in the Eurozone
Edited by Costas Lapvitsas
Verso Books
$29.95The debt crisis in the eurozone has become the most glaring problem facing global capitalism.Across the world many states face high levels...
Greek activist: “the movement has brought down two governments”
Giorgos Pittas is a journalist at Greek newspaper Workers’ Solidarity and a member of anti-capitalist coalition ANTARSYA. This is an excerpt from a recent speech on Greece’s working class...
Greece’s elections, SYRIZA, and the austerity battles ahead
As we go to press, all eyes are on Europe for Greece’s election on June 17. The possibility that SYRIZA, the “Coalition of the Radical Left” could form government...
All eyes on Greece as voters revolt against the crisis
The economic crisis in Europe has become a political crisis after the architects of austerity in Greece were utterly smashed at the polls in the May 6 election.The two...
German MP on solidarity with Greek workers: ‘My no in the Bundestag is a yes to resistance’
Kate Davison interviewed Christine Buchholz, German MP for Die Linke (‘The Left’ Party) and supporter of Marx21, about austerity measures imposed on Greece by the German government and the...
German MP speaks on solidarity with Greek workers: “My no in the Bundestag is a yes to resistance”
Kate Davison interviewed Christine Buchholz, German Federal MP for Die Linke ("The Left" Party) and supporter of Marx21, about their efforts to build solidarity with Greek workers facing severe...
A new workers’ paper in Greece
Workers at Eleftherotypia, Greece's second largest newspaper have taken over their workplace and begun producing their own newspaper to report on the movement against austerity, explains Moissis Litsis Eleftherotypia newspaper...
New wave of Greek austerity answered by new strikes
The new Greek austerity package, demanded by “the troika”—the IMF, European Union (EU) and European Central Bank imposes further vicious cuts on the people of Greece. But the level...
Statement: Solidarity with workers in Greece
This statement on Greece, signed by organisations in the International Socialist Tendency and others, explains the vicious austerity policies facing the Greek people and offers solidarity in the Greek...
Jobs crash: Gillard fiddles as recession looms in Europe
The world faces a “1930s moment”, as the IMF warned in late January. Five years after the economic crisis erupted in 2007, global capitalism has failed to recover.
The European...
Interview with Greek activist: “workers can take us out of the crisis”
Kyriacos Banos is a member of Solidarity’s sister organisation in Greece, the Socialist Workers Party (or SEK). He spoke to us about the escalation of workers’ struggle in Greece.Can...
Eyewitness: Greek strikes a show of workers’ power
Hundreds of thousands of angry Greek trade unionists marched through central Athens on October 19 in the biggest workers’ demonstration since the toppling of the military dictatorship in 1974,...
Panic and protest as Eurozone crisis deepens
The crisis in the eurozone is again reaching panic levels. The world economy was “entering a dangerous phase”, IMF chief Christine Lagarde told the world’s finance ministers in Washington...
Greek workers show how to fight
Greece is in turmoil (see here). Workers are escalating resistance, staging their first 48-hour general strike as the government passed through vicious new austerity measures. But the Greek crisis...
Greek workers rise up as government faces default
Europe’s leaders spent June playing a giant game of poker, as they bluffed each other over who would contribute most towards bailing out Greece from bankruptcy. But all the...
Greek workers: “Let’s have Cairo everywhere!”
Greek workers held their first general strike of the year in February—their eighth in just 12 months. Work stoppages and nearly 60 demonstrations demanded an end to the government’s three-year...
All out truck strike: new stage in Greek resistance
FOR A week in July over 33,000 Greek truck drivers staged an industry-wide strike that paralysed much of the Greek economy. It follows six general strikes in six months,...
Crisis in the Eurozone: how deep does it go?
The debt crisis is Greece is the only the most severe case of government debt problems across Europe. Noe Wiener explain how the problems have built up and why...
