GREECE 2004

 

Several incidents of desecration of Holocaust monuments, as well as antisemitic graffiti in public places, were reported in Greece in 2004. In addition, antisemitic overtones continued in the mainstream Greek media.

 

THE JEWISH COMMUNITY

The current Jewish population of Greece is estimated at approximately 5,000 out of a total population of 10 million, 3,000 of whom live in Athens. The Kentriko Israilitiko Symvoulio (Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece – KIS) is the governing body of the Jewish communities.

 

POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS AND EXTRA-PARLIAMENTARY GROUPS

The nationalist, xenophobic and antisemitic LAOS (Popular Orthodox Herald) party won a seat in the June 2004 European Parliamentary elections. The seat is occupied by George Karatzaferis, leader of the party. It should be noted that LAOS has joined multi-lateral structures such as Euro-Parliament’s Union for Europe of the Nations (UEN) and the broader Alliance for Europe of the Nations, which includes Ireland’s Fianna Fail of former EU president Bertie Ahern, Italy’s Alleanza Nazionale and Portugal’s CDS – Popular Party, as well as Israel’s Likud party.

Chrissi Avghi is the main neo-Nazi organization in Greece, and the group behind many incidents of antisemitic vandalism and graffiti over the years (see also below). About 300 activists operate in ten major cities. They publish a weekly, Chrissi Avghi, as well as the magazine Antepithessi (Counter-Attack), which contains a supplement in English.

The extreme right nationalist and xenophobic party Elliniko Metopo (Greek Front) was founded in 1994. Since 1998, its electoral power has ranged between 0.1 and 1.4 percent. In the 2004 national parliamentary elections, it gained 0.1 percent of the vote and in the June European Parliamentary elections 0.25 percent. According to its official website, the Front’s ideology and political action focus on the “preservation of national identity which is threatened by the dangers deriving from globalization.”

 

antisemitic activity

The situation regarding antisemitism in Greece has remained virtually unchanged in the past few years, and is characterized by occasional desecration of Jewish memorial sites and sporadic acts of graffiti in public places, mostly unsigned. In the press the anti-Israel line continued, albeit less intensively compared to the previous three years following the outbreak of the intifada. Many articles still draw parallels between the actions of the Israeli government and that of the Nazi regime.

In April and May 2004 antisemitic slogans were smeared on the Holocaust memorial at Drama and on a tobacco warehouse in the town, where the Jews of Drama were detained before deportation in 1943. The graffiti read: “Greece-Palestine, no Jew will be left alive.” Swastikas and antisemitic graffiti also appeared in August on the newly unveiled Komotini (Thrace) Holocaust memorial (see below). The graffiti read: “Some spilled their blood for this land; you build a monument to the slayers of people and perpetuate their lies.”

            In July, graffiti reading “Foreigners out – Jews out” and signed by Chrissi Avghi (Golden Dawn) was reported on the Athens-Corinth highway. It was erased and a month later, a slogan reading “Juden raus! Hitler was right” appeared in the same spot. Similar slogans recurred on the same artery. The Central Board of Greek Jews sent letters of protest to the Ministry of Public Order. The graffiti was erased by the local authorities only in February 2005.

In August 2004, antisemitic graffiti reading “Jews out… from Al-Qa`ida” was reported in the Athens suburb of Kifissia. In September 2004, the slogan “Jews and Masons murder, blackmail and rob Greek citizens,” appeared on the island of Tinos.

In addition, antisemitic overtones continued in the mainstream Greek media. Following Israel’s assassination of Hamas leader Ahmad Yasin in March 2004, the major dailies Eleftheorotypia and Ta Nea published cartoons (23, 24 and 27 March) depicting Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as a butcher in Nazi garb and inferring that the Easter assassination was reminiscent of the Jews’ alleged killing of Jesus. After the Central Board of Greek Jews sent a letter of protest to the Journalists Union about antisemitism in the Greek media, the former foreign editor of Ta Nea (the largest circulation newspaper in Greece) and member of the board of directors of the Journalists Union, Kostas Betinakis, accused Greek Jews on his personal website in May of being puppets of the Israeli government and of censoring criticism of Israeli policies, which he termed ‘fascist’. When he was foreign editor, Betinakis omitted printing news of Palestinian terrorist attacks in Israel. Further, his website failed to mention that in 2001 Ta Nea had apologized to the Jewish community after they protested Betinakis’ likening of Israeli policy in the Middle East to the Jewish merchant who breaks agreements and does not honor his signature. He maintains that such remonstrations are an attempt to suppress freedom of speech. It should be noted that both the Anti-Defamation League and the Simon Wiesenthal Center also sent letters to the Greek government protesting antisemitism in the Greek media.

The mainstream daily Kathimerini re-printed (28 Aug. 2004) an interview held with the Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis by Ari Shavit in Ha’aretz (26 Aug. 2004), under the title “The Jewish Problem according to Theodorakis.” In it, Theodorakis made several antisemitic references and repeated his comment (made in 2003) about the “Jews being at the root of all evil.”

Ephirio, an economic journal, printed a cartoon on 24 July, showing a crematorium with a caption comparing Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians to the Nazi murder of Jews.

On 19 June a regular columnist in Alpha Ena, the weekly organ of LAOS, wondered why “Jews who are as numerous as Greeks in the world are sweeping Nobel prizes and world chess championships.” The article offers various conspiracy theory explanations, including the claim that “Jews – who used to be shepherds as opposed to Greeks who were the founders of three empires – stole ancient Greek occult manuscripts allowing them to be 100 times smarter today.” The writer also referred to the US as “Zionist dominated.”

Antisemitic statements were made by the coach of the Olympiakos football team, Nikos Alefantos concerning his counterpart in the Panathinaikos football team, the Israeli Yitzak Shum. Prior to a match between Panathinaikos and PAOK for the national championship, Alefantos urged the PAOK team coach “to unite the forces of the Christian Orthodox in the war against the Jew.” The Central Board of Jewish Communities issued a press release, in April, condemning his insult. Following publicity over the issue, the Greek Federation of Football Coaches punished Alefantos by suspending him from the Federation for seven months.

 

Attitudes towards the Holocaust

January 27 was instituted as an annual memorial day for Greek Jewish Martyrs and Heroes of the Holocaust, following a unanimous vote of all political parties in the Greek Parliament in 2003. More than 2,000 people including then Foreign Minister George Papandreou and representatives of all political parties, addressed the first event, held on 27 January 2004 in the Athens Music Hall.

Two Holocaust monuments were unveiled in Greece in 2004, in Arta (Epirus) in July and in Komotini (Thrace) in May.

A one-day seminar for teachers and educators was held in Athens on 22 October on the theme “Teaching the Holocaust in Greece.” Held under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Education and sponsored by the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research, it was organized by the Jewish Museum of Greece. This was the first time that an educational event of this kind had been held in Greece. A more comprehensive seminar was planned for 2005.