The polls closed on January 25th amidst intense efforts to rearrange the political scene in Greece. These efforts have lasted for four years, since the great popular and strike mobilizations against the various “memorandums” and the imperialist overseers, shook the local bourgeois power block. These efforts have not managed to bring a stabilization necessary for the advancement of the imperialist interests. These efforts had also to face the intensification of the inter-imperialist contradictions globally as well as in the region of eastern Mediterranean.
The 25th of January elections marked all these elements that had risen up in the political stage the previous period:
>The former government block of ND and PASOK was defeated soundly due to the popular outrage against the continuous assault on their rights and income. This heavy price that the people had paid backfired and caused this heavy defeat. But both these parties remain in the game and are basic pillars of the system of imperialist dependence.
>The ND party scored results even lower than June 2012 and, with a difference of 8,5% from SYRIZA, was dealt a heavy blow that created an inter-party crisis. This crisis is at the time centered on the leader of the party but it also reflects the general crisis of orientation of the ruling class. But despite its crisis the ND Party is still a strong pillar of the system and it is certain that it will be the center for the rearrangement that will contain right and far right elements still strong electorally.
>PASOK was also defeated soundly. The last minute creation of a new party under George Papandreou is but the alibi for this defeat that shows the orientation crisis of social-democracy.
>The winner of the elections was SYRIZA that managed to exploit the great popular rage and collect the majority of the votes. It took advantage of the dissolution of the popular movement and the disappointment and despair of broad masses, exploited the election self-delusions, the easy solutions and that of the “savior” that will get them out of the capitalist crisis. At the same time it gave vows of faith on the old dogma of “belonging to the West”.
The coalition government with the right nationalist ANEL Party is characteristic of its rightist swing, its continuous adaptation to the imperialist orders and its willingness to become a basic component of the local bourgeois political scene.
The so-called national salvation government is but the facade of a policy that obeys the imperialist commands of the US, the EU and the IMF giving at the same time something little to the people.
A negative result is the high percentage once more of the nazi Golden Dawn Party. This shows the ideological dissolution and disorientation of broad masses of the people and the youth on the one hand, and on the other the weakness of the right block to absorb it. In any case this nazi group remains a hostile elemnt for the people and will be used against the people in the future.
The newly formed party “ The River” is available for use by capitalist centers and declares its usefulness for the formation of a new balance against the popular and workers rights.
A positive element of these elections was the resistance of large parts of leftists to the the delusional rhetoric of SYRIZA. A significant part of the people and the Left supported struggling and communist forces.
The electoral cooperation of CPG(m-l) and ML CPG fought resolutely in this political struggle. Our two organizations had in the past taken common steps and struggled all over the country against the electoral blackmails and delusions. They showed that the right path goes through struggles against the disarmament of the movement. They showed that we need to fight against the regime of imperialist dependence, against the line of “negotiating” with our oppressors, we need to reorganize the labor revolutionary communist movement against the delusions of a “logical management” of the capitalist crisis.
We had a small increase on our percentage since June 2012 and this is positive. Without ignoring the demands, the difficulties and the peculiarities of the period, we think that this increase is a significant base for the continuation of our bipartite cooperation, for the strengthening of a broader common action, for the creation of a broad resistance and demand front and the reorganization of the labor, popular, and communist movement.
It is clear that the “next day” , even with a new government, will find the people up against the capitalist and imperialist forces fighting for the defense of our victories and rights. We must not delay nor be self-delusional.
Communist Party of Greece (marxist – leninist)
International Bureau
