Wednesday, February 04, 2015

GREECE OUSTS EU AUSTERITY:


GREEK ELECTIONS
A DEFEAT FOR
BRUSSELS:

The smashing victory of the Greek Left Syriza Party in last months Greek General election and the rapid formation of a new coalitition Government under its charismatic leader Alexi Tsipras, now Prime Minister of Greece, much to the chagrin of Berlin, Brussels and Washington, poses the first serious challenge to the miserable inhuman doctrine of Neo-Liberalism which has dominated the EU for decades.

(Michael Youlton, Greek activist and Peace worker and long-time resident of Ireland, writes on the German near-hysterical reaction to the democratic decision of the Greek people. Michael is an Executive member of Peace and Neutrality Alliance, (PANA) and Irish representative on the International Control Committee, NO to WAR, NO to NATO,(see sidebar for details)




Michael Youlton – Dublin February 2nd

The amazing speed with which Greece’s new elected coalition of Syriza and the Independent Greeks party expressed its opposition and discontent with the Troika and its representative and the Greek Prime Minister’s rebuke of how the EU Council rushed its decision to condemn Russia re: Ukraine was felt as a political Blitzkrieg., not only in Berlin but also in Brussels and everywhere else where politicians function under the German tutelage.

In this context, the Greek PM’s visit and presence at Greece’s national shrine to resistance against the fascists in Kaisariani last Sunday further annoyed the Germans as it highlighted the fact that sooner or later Greece will raise the implications of the German debt to Greece as a result of the war – as well as the way the then Allies confronted and helped the defeated and bankrupt Germany in the 1953 International Conference.

This Blitzkrieg assumed surprising dimensions as Handelsblatt felt that ‘a novel ghost was beginning to move over and haunt Europe with Tsipras as a revolutionary and a maestro leading a type of change able to shift opinions all over Europe[1]. Such ‘ghosts’ do not augur well for Merkel, a fact also noted by Spiegel: «Tsipras’ victory is a defeat for Merkel» and there is now «a problem for all of us but especially for Merkel who has to be able to find a swift solution to it»[2]. With reference to the same events, but in reality much more apprehensive and mentioning this Marxist ghost, the Welt  newspaper asserts that «Merkel will soon lose much of her authority in Europe as Tsipras’ victory in Greece changes fundamentally the foundations of the European Union», concluding that «left and right populists will now find the opportunity to fight against and possibly reverse the austerity policies imposed by the Chancellor»[3].

The German government has not yet responded with the same speed, adopting a more conciliatory ‘wait and see’ attitude. Welt’s position was: «let the Greeks come on to us – as it is, the money will run out by the end of the month». However, some of the commentary that came from the ‘yellow’ press was an unbelievable mixture of hate, enmity and blackmail against Greece and the new Prime Minister Tsipras  A new element that appeared there was the contradiction between sectors of the European Union and Russia re: Ukraine.

Leading this new phase of the demonisation of Greece is not the ‘yellow’ Bild but the more so-called quality publication die Zeit, It states clearly that it hopes for a speedy and complete defeat of the newly elected Greek government because of   «its internal contradictions and its foreign policy quasi-madness»[4] . The article conludes by stating that the Greek voters of Syriza deserve more and more poverty and unhappiness!!

A similar approach is taken by circles close to Josef Joffe,the die Zeit,’ publisher and part owner, who in another article state that «the new Greek government constitutes a danger for Europe» not because that any decisions taken in Athens would hurt the circles that lent money to the Greeks but because its stance «particularly in the issue of Ukraine constitutes a threat to European consolidation and works against all the ethical and legal values that are sacred in Europe»!

We in Ireland, but in almost all European countries that have developed a strong peace and anti-war movement, know and understand pretty well the implications of these sacred ethical and legal European values. Should we be surprised that for most of the German media those values are not threatened when US planes with pilots or drones take off from Germany and attack and kill civilians in other countries. Those values are not threatened  it appears, when American and German spies, in perfect collaboration with Nazis succeed in overthrowing democratically elected government Those values are not, it appears, threatened when innocents are flown secretly and tortured in places like Poland or Rumania. But these values demand ‘respect’ from Greece. In the name, of course, of European solidarityv[5]

The average German citizen knows now that the new Greek minister of Foreign Affairs is « a nationalist, a Putin fan, a friend of MaoTse Tung and China, an ideologue of hate and an enemy of Germany» [6]..I draw the conclusion from the above that the German State, and its ideologues, are using the media to prepare the country for a violent opposition to Greece. Threatening the destruction of the new Government, and by implication of its people, using its own economic Blitzkrieg which would lead Greece inexorably to bankruptcy The question that looms ahead is whether Greece will find itself isolated or if the USA, France, China and perhaps even Russia would stand behind it, attempting to reverse this almost godly penance for those who dared to resist

[1] Stefan Kreitewolf, «The Greek revolution», Handelsblatt, 31-1-2015.

[2] «The Angry Greek», Spiegel,  2-2-2015.

[3] Claus Christian Malzahn, Jan Dams, «Merkel will soon lose much of her authority in Europe;» die Welt, 2-2-2015.

[4] Jochen Bittner, «Putin’s Trojan Horse», die Zeit, 29-1-2015.

[5], www.tagesschau.de 29.01.2015

[6]  Michael Martens, «Tsipras forms a government in record time», Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 28.01.2015


PS

To follow from the newly elected Greek Government’s statement that it is will cease to co-operate with the various Troika reps, communicating their decisions by email etc.,  according to yesterday’s Handelsblatt (February 2nd) the European Central Bank is seriously considering withdrawing from the ‘troika’ in the next few days. According to the unnamed article, the foundation of this position is the widespread worry on the effect of the ECB’s recent decision to purchase state bonds – something the article says “may create clashes of interest”. “We will profit from this situation and move out from the troika in a civilised way” an ECB source is quoted as stating.

Without offering a direct quote, the
Handelsblatt article adds that the IMF is also considering a “quiet” exit from the troika leaving the European Union as its only participant. The article concludes that the President of the European Commission Jean Claude Juncker  believes that the troika’s future is in serious doubt and is actively considering the creation of a new structure with a much more pronounced democratic control background



No comments: