GREECE 2007

 

The first ex-officio prosecution for antisemitic incitement ended in December 2007 with the conviction of Holocaust denier Kosta Plevris, who was given a suspended prison sentence. A few cases of vandalism of Jewish sites were recorded.

 

the jewish community

The Jewish population of Greece is estimated at approximately 5,000 out of a total population of 10 million. There are eight active communities, the main ones being Athens (3,000), Thessaloniki and Larissa, where there are synagogues, Jewish primary schools, cultural centers, museums and homes for the aged. The Kentriko Israilitiko Symvoulio (Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece - KIS) is the governing body of Jewish communities. Jewish periodicals and books are published by the Board, the Athens and Thessaloniki communities and the Jewish Museum of Greece.

 

POLITICAL organizations

The extreme right LAOS – Popular Orthodox Rally party, under the leadership of MEP George Karatzaferis, gained representation for the first time in the Greek Parliament (300 seats), with 10 seats, after obtaining 3.8 percent of the vote in the general elections of September 16, 2007. Among the delegates elected were Athanassios, son of Holocaust denier Kostas Plevris (see below) and his lawyer at the trial, and Adonis Georgiades, former spokesman of LAOS and a defense witness for Plevris. Georgiades has a program on Teleasty, the TV station owned by Karatzaferis, in which he promoted Plevris’ antisemitic book.

The center-right New Democracy Party, led by Kostas Karamanlis, narrowly won a second term in office, with 41.83 percent of the vote, while the Socialist PASOK of George Papandreou obtained 38.10 percent. The parties of the left − the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) and the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) − enjoyed a significant increase in votes. KKE got 8.15 percent (up from 5.89), securing 22 parliament seats (from 12), while the radical left SYRIZA won 5.04 percent − 14 seats (up from 6) (see also ASW 2006).

 

ANTISEMITIC INCIDENTS

A few antisemitic incidents were recorded in 2007, mainly vandalism of Jewish sites with graffiti and antisemitic slogans. Swastikas were daubed on the gate of the Jewish cemetery in Ioannina in February, while in May antisemitic slogans, such as “Auschwitz – Lebanon What’s the difference?” were painted on the Holocaust monument in Komotini, and in Chania (Crete) on a café next to the synagogue. A street sign in Thessaloniki marking the Square of Jewish Martyrs was removed a few days before Holocaust Memorial Day, on January 27. It was replaced by the authorities.

            It should also be noted that swastikas were painted on the Resistance monument of Kesariani which, though not a Jewish site, is symbolic in that it marks the site where the Nazis executed members of the Resistance during the occupation.

A group of young Israelis vacationing on the Greek island of Kos was attacked in September. They were beaten in an alley by a group of Albanian youths who shouted antisemitic and anti-Israel epithets. One Israeli was hospitalized and the attackers also took a bag containing his passport.

 

ATTITUDE TOWARD THE HOLOCAUST

On January 28, 2007, three years after January 27 was established by law as the Memorial Day for Greek Jewish Martyrs and Heroes of the Holocaust, a commemoration ceremony was held at the Athens Synagogue, organized by the Board and the Athens prefecture. The key speaker was the president of the Greek Parliament Anna Psarouda-Benakis. The event was followed by a memorial service and a ceremony at the square in front of the Cathedral Church of Athens, in memory of Archbishop Damaskinos who saved many Jews during the war. Archbishop of Greece Christodoulos was the key speaker.

In October, the forth seminar for teachers and educators was held in Athens on the subject of “Teaching the Holocaust in Greece.” Organized by the Jewish Museum of Greece, it was held under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Education.

 

responses to antisemitism

On September 5, 2007, the trial of self-declared antisemite, Greek lawyer Kosta Plevris, as well as the editor and two columnists of the Greek newspaper Eleftheros Kosmos (Free World), opened before the penal court of Athens. The case was brought by the public prosecutor of Athens, following a complaint filed by the Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM − which monitors violations of human rights) on October 30, 2006. The suit related to advertisements and articles published in the far right weekly Eleftheros Kosmos one day earlier, promoting Plevris’ 1,400-page antisemitic book The Jews − The Whole Truth, issued in May 2006. The accused were tried for violation of art. 1 para. 1 and art. 2 of anti-racism law 927/79. All were charged with having “publicly... [and] with intent” incited hatred and violence on racist grounds, and especially against the Jews. Filing a counter-complaint against his accusers for false charges and defamation, Plevris told reporters, “I have obviously pleaded innocent, and am counter-attacking because the Jews committed crimes against my homeland.” Adonis Georgiades, spokesman of the extreme right LAOS, testified in favor of Plevris, supporting, inter alia, his Holocaust denial thesis. On December 13, 2007 Plevris was given a 14-month suspended sentence and three years probation. Plevris was intending to appeal. Witnesses for the prosecution included representatives of the Jewish community, the GHM and the Anti-Nazi Initiative. This was the first conviction in Greece for antisemitic incitement brought by ex-officio prosecution (that is, in the absence of a complaint from the injured party).

In his book, which is filled with blatantly antisemitic abuse, Plevris writes: “I declare from the outset that I am a Nazi and a fascist, racist, anti-democrat and an antisemite” (p. 600). He openly calls the Holocaust into question while justifying Nazism: “Ridding Europe of the Jews is necessary because Judaism poses a threat to the freedom of nations” (p. 432). Moreover, “I constantly blame the German Nazis for not ridding our Europe of Jewish Zionism when it was in their power to do so” (p. 1,221).

The court sessions took place in a strongly antisemitic atmosphere: a group of neo-Nazis gave Hitler salutes in the corridors of the courthouse, put up “Fans of Hitler” posters and handed out antisemitic leaflets. The prosecutor was openly biased: he referred to Plevris’ book as a “scientific piece of work,” provoking criticism in the mainstream Ta Nea (“Racism, a ‘Scientific Work’! Turmoil Follows Prosecutor’s Thesis on K. Plevris’ Book about the Jews,” Sept. 12), and showed contempt for the first witness for the prosecution, Anna Stai, from the Anti-Nazi Initiative. Further, he insisted on asking witnesses for the prosecution whether Jews believed in the Talmud and if it was true that the Talmud contains anti-Greek and anti-Christian references such as the ones published by Plevris in the book in question.

Nevertheless, the court’s decision was welcomed by Greek Jewry. A press release issued by the Board following the verdict expressed “its satisfaction with the decision of the court as it effectively condemns modern-day racism and Nazism in any form.”