The European Left Party is gathered today in Athens, in an extraordinary meeting of its Council of Chairpersons and the Executive Board, not only to express its complete solidarity with the uprising of the Greek youth, with the brother party Synaspismos, with SYRIZA and with all the left and democratic forces, but because the fight of the youth, the educational community and workers in Greece touched the hearts of the people and the youth in every corner of Europe.
However, the EL prefers to focus on what was brought into light by the uprising of the youth of Greece. More specifically in Europe, where many social and democratic rights have been conquered after big struggles, precarity constitutes a generalised condition of life and takes us many decades back. The reduction of social and democratic rights, and the increasing unemployment constitute the constitutive elements that compose the crisis that touches upon and concern the institutions and the total problem of democracy.
The forces that direct the European Union today and the forces that seek to play a master role in the current globalized capitalism, face the current crisis as a coincidental financial crisis, this is why they face it with urgent aid to the banks and with persistence to the neoliberal dogma of the Stability Pact, the Bolkenstein Directive, the Bologna Process and the Lisbon Strategy.
We believe that the crisis is deeper, with more permanent characteristics that concern the structures of economy, as well as the structures and the values of the European capitalism and global neoliberalism under the hegemony of the USA.
The economic crisis is only one extension of this generalised crisis. This crisis is expressed through the extensive social insecurity that shatters the dreams and the daily life of the people, particularly and mainly the youth.
It is expressed through the enormous enlargement of inequalities, the enlargement of the democratic deficits, the destruction of the environment, the reinforcement of repression mechanisms and the escalation of military aggressiveness. The murderous war in Gaza constitutes a glaring example.
The crisis of democracy is not simply expressed by the centralized and bureaucratic function of the institutions; it concerns mainly the lack of the possibility of the people to develop their action, their movements, and their possibility of controlling the decision-making centres, which decide for their life.
The youth of Greece reminded us with the most deafening way that the right to the dream does not constitute an unnecessary luxury, but an integral element of each society that wants to remain alive, that wants to seek and expect a life better than the one the previous generations have lived.
Those who hurried to incriminate the youth for violence and destruction should first abandon their hypocrisy and then look into the mirror of their conscience in order to discover their guilt.
They should first answer, and mainly to themselves, the question of why the spontaneous and the untamed juvenile rush should be faced with reasonable police repression.
Why should Alexis Grigoropoulos be a victim of the callousness of the state, which instead of offering resources for the new generation, increases the expenses for weapons?
If they answer honestly, they will find who the guilty party is for the blood that has been shed by a young and heavily wounded police officer.
We are not in Greece to teach lessons but to hear, and mostly we do not mean to teach lessons to the Greek people and to the movement of the Greek youth. We are here in order to be taught, in order to touch the visioning of the generation that was found in the streets. We are here because we are anxious about the future of the population and youth in every country of Europe. We are here because we want to express our solidarity with the Greek youth and to carry the teachings of their struggles to the people of our countries. We are here because we want to ensure the Greek population and the Greek youth that their struggles and their visions are also ours and that we understand what it means to stand up for our rights.
And we are stressing our commitment to contribute to the democratic refoundation of Europe. It is the defence of public space for every citizen who lives in Europe. It is the creation of a public sector that will ensure the public social goods and will constitute a growth that can bring the economy into full employment, and in the protection of the environment and in solidarity.
We are here in order to ensure you that our current and permanent objective is to put a barrier to the war and to consolidate peace in every corner of the planet.
We address the youth.
• Do not stop dreaming, do not stop fighting. Hear the messages that come from the long history of people’s struggle for freedom, democracy and justice.
• This is the wealth that has been bequeathed to you through the struggles of generations.
• The European Left, following the ideas of universal freedom and democracy, of socialism and eradication of every form of exploitation sends you the warmest greetings.
• The European Left supports the fight and the demands of the movement of the youth in Greece, which, to a large extent, are common with the corresponding demands throughout Europe.
• We support and fight for the upgrade of the public and free education in all levels.
• We support full employment and the increase of salaries, the right to a decent life.
• We support the struggle for the protection and the enlargement of democratic rights and the protection of the environment.
• We join our voice with those who do not have a voice (refugees and migrants) and support their fight for the right to a decent life.
Dear friends, young women and men, it is your right to revolt against everything that ruins your life.
Take your fate into your hands!
Athens, 17 January 2009
