Graffiti from Barcelona in memory of Pavlos Fyssas
Five years ago Pavlos Fyssas, the antifascist rap singer, was murdered on the streets of Athens by members of the Greek Neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn (GD). The on-going trial of GD leaders and members has heard extensive evidence that the murder was perpetrated with the knowledge and at the instigation of GD leaders.
Some key facts about the Golden Dawn trial are listed below. More information, including continuous reports of the trial proceedings, can be found on the Golden Dawn Watch webpage: http://goldendawnwatch.org/?page_id=420&lang=en
Start date of the trial: 20 April 2015.
18 Golden Dawn (GD) MP’s who were elected in June 2012 are accused of being in charge of a criminal organisation.
Nearly 50 more GD members or sympathisers are accused of being the physical perpetrators of the following attacks:
18 for the murder of Pavlos Fyssas on 17-18 September 2013.
5 for the attempted murder of communist trade unionists (of the PAME Trade Union) on 12 September 2013.
5 for the attempted murder of Egyptian fishermen in Greece on 12 June 2012.
The rest of the accused have already been charged for attacks that took place in the past, but at present the court is considering whether these attacks were carried out by them as members of GD.
At the moment all 150 witnesses for the prosecution have testified and all documents (including audiovisual material and phone calls) have been viewed and/or heard by the court.
Next step: the defence of GD will submit documents, followed by testimony of the defence witnesses, and the accused will provide their statements.
It is estimated that the trial will last for one more year from now.
The GD trial is an important landmark in the fight against fascism and racism in Europe.
All over Europe extreme right wing and Neo-Nazi parties are disguising themselves as “nationalists” and “patriots”. Golden Dawn is the most virulent of them, led by an unashamedly pro-Nazi leadership. As the evidence presented in the trial has clearly shown their ideology, structure and modus operandi as a Neo-Nazi party, their defence team has changed track from denying the Nazi nature of their organisation to arguing for “freedom of speech” for their abhorrent ideology. Their aim is to terrorise their opponents, by targeting migrants, left-wingers, trade unionists and everyone else who opposes their rhetoric of hate and violent actions. Like all similar parties in Europe, GD do not present the failures of the neoliberal economic policies and the resulting impoverishment of a large section of the population as the result of the inherent inequality that stems from the vast accumulation of wealth by the few, but use the migrants as scapegoats for all the ills that have been caused by the decisions of the wealthy elites.
Antifascist Action for Greece calls everyone concerned with the rise of racism and fascism in Greece, the UK and Europe, to help stem the tide of hatred that is targeting the most defenceless members of our societies.
Anti-Fascist Action For Greece 