Rise of Nazism in Europe — murder of a young man in Greece
23.9.2013
Question for written answer E-010779-13
to the Commission
Rule 117
Sylvana Rapti (S&D) , Marietta Giannakou (PPE) , Niki Tzavela (EFD) , Nikos Chrysogelos (Verts/ALE) , Theodoros Skylakakis (ALDE) , Anni Podimata (S&D) , Spyros Danellis (S&D) , Dimitrios Droutsas (S&D) , Georgios Papanikolaou (PPE) , Maria Eleni Koppa (S&D) , Konstantinos Poupakis (PPE) , Chrysoula Paliadeli (S&D) , Ioannis A. Tsoukalas (PPE) , Georgios Stavrakakis (S&D) , Nikolaos Salavrakos (EFD)
On 17 September 2013, a member of the ‘Golden Dawn’ neo-Nazi party cold-bloodedly murdered a 34-year old man because of his political persuasions. This was the worst in a series of violent actions by Golden Dawn members (in Meligala, Giannitsa, Perama and elsewhere), which have increased exponentially against the backdrop of the unprecedented economic crisis which has damaged Greece and is spiralling out of control, bearing in mind that the stability programme — now in its sixth year of recession and fourth year of harsh austerity measures — has pushed the Greek people over the edge.
Obviously the Greek Government and the competent authorities will act immediately within the framework of the Constitution and national legislation in order to address these problems. However, the spread of neo-Nazi, racist parties and movements goes beyond Greece. They have already made their mark in national and European elections in numerous Member States of the European Union and, according to surveys throughout Europe, they are gaining support.
There is evidence on a daily basis that these groups are taking advantage of economic adjustment policies in all the Member States, especially where the social impact of the measures being applied conflicts with the social model on which the EU is founded, policies which the European Commission refers to as ‘necessary’ to the successful application of adjustment programmes and a way out of the crisis. The austerity programmes depressing people’s income and pushing large groups, especially young people, to the margins of society and the job market are providing fertile ground for using poverty and illegal immigration as an excuse for criminal behaviour.
In view of the fact that the above problems may get worse, and not only in Greece, will the European Commission and the Council say:
- 1.Are they aware that society, especially in Member States with adjustment programmes, is at the end of its democratic tether and that the principles and values on which the EU are founded are being seriously damaged?
- 2.Will they take account of the social and political parameters of adjustment programmes?
- 3.Insofar as they are able, what policies do they propose to apply in order to mitigate the impact of the recession and austerity in countries under adjustment programmes, in order to prevent any worsening of the violence and breakdown of social cohesion which are seriously damaging the European endeavour, totally undermining public confidence in the European Union and bringing back the threat of Nazism?
OJ C 206, 02/07/2014