Greece doesn’t need a president from the right
The Coalition of the Radical Left, or SYRIZA, is leading the new government in Greece after a historic election victory on January 25, based on mass support for its promise to reverse austerity measures. Even before it was fully established in power, SYRIZA leaders have taken steps toward honoring long-standing pledges, such as stopping privatization and reinstating public-sector workers fired by previous governments.
But Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras caused dismay among SYRIZA members and supporters by making a deal with the right-wing Independent Greeks (known by the initials ANEL) to join the government and put its seats behind SYRIZA's near majority. ANEL opposes the austerity measures contained in the Memorandums--agreements negotiated with the Troika of the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund in return for a bailout of the Greek financial system. But the party is right wing and nationalist, and its warmongering founder and leader Panos Kammenos has already escalated tensions with Greece's historic rival Turkey in his new post as defense minister.
Since the election, there has also been speculation that Tsipras would appoint a prominent conservative as the government's candidate for president, a largely ceremonial post. One name is Kostas Karamanlis, a former prime minister for the center-right New Democracy party. Another is Dimitris Avramopoulos, the former vice president of New Democracy and minister in the recent right wing-led governments--currently, he is the Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship commissioner of the European Union.
The left inside SYRIZA--organized in the Left Platform, and the Red Network within that--has criticized these dangerous alliances. In this widely circulated letter, , a member of parliament from Thessaloniki representing SYRIZA and member of the Internationalist Workers Left, calls on Tsipras and the SYRIZA leadership to take a different path with its nominee for the Greek presidency. This article was published in RProject website and translated into English by Antonis Martalis.
RUMORS THAT SYRIZA could propose for president of the republic Dimitris Avramopoulos or Kostas Karamanlis must be put to rest immediately. They reinforce the doubts created in the working class and among the popular masses by the decision to form a coalition government with the Independent Greeks, and they weaken the political position of the radical left after the election victory of SYRIZA.
On the face of it, there is no reason to search for a candidate of the right. The agreement with ANEL is justified as a necessity in order to achieve a parliamentary majority of 151 seats, since SYRIZA fell just short, with 149 seats (this itself was false since it would have been possible to seek a "vote of tolerance" in parliament for a new government). When it comes to the selection of a president, however, there are no such problems. SYRIZA can--and should!--choose a president who will strengthen its policy in the face of very difficult challenges ahead.
It is also false to state that electing a president like the former vice president of New Democracy, Dimitris Avaramopoulos, will strengthen the consensus in favor of the social policies of SYRIZA. Like the agreement with ANEL, this can only spread confusion our base supporters. It will also provide political weapons that should not be underestimated--for example, the right of review draft laws--to the opponents of any policy that seeks the reversal of austerity.
SYRIZA should select and support for the position of president of the republic someone who will increase confidence among workers and the popular masses--confidence in the commitment that we will seek to implement our program by any means necessary.
