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Grass root in Greek

A solidarity network in Greece may seem optimistic – but they have no other choice.




(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)

After the so-called troika (the European Union, the European Central Bank and the IMF) forced Syriza's left government to kneel in the summer of 2015 and inflicted further austerity measures and deteriorated living conditions for the Greeks, the self-help organization from below has become even more required. It has not crumbled. The measures implemented from 2012 onwards continue – while new initiatives are now being taken to further develop the movement.

The needs are enormous in a country where a quarter are unemployed, where wages and pensions are cut, where more than a third live below the poverty line and government debt is unmanageable. The EU is threatening further austerity this fall to transfer the money promised to Tsipras last year. Predicted debt securities are exposed to far out in 2017.

The EU leadership – with the Germans and the Eurogroup president, Jeroen Dijsselbloem at the head – is dissatisfied that the Greeks are exercising several measures. Now in September and October, the battle for further pension cuts and the labor laws is at stake. Against the EU and the IMF's demands, according to Reuter, Greek Labor Minister Giorgos Kastrougalos stepped down on September 14, highlighting that "we can no longer tolerate deteriorating conditions for Greek workers". He pointed out that both union leaders and the employers' union in Greece agreed to demand the strengthening of the right to collective agreements and the right to strike. The regular Greek, however, has little faith that the government will stand firm on the demands this time either. Therefore, the need for solidarity movement from below will only increase.

Solidarity for all. The Greek organization Solidarity for All was started in 2012, in parallel with the political movement towards the austerity policy of the troika. It is a grassroots movement with about 400 local organizations, independent of parties and the state, and run by people themselves.

They are active in areas such as health, food distribution, education, housing, legal aid, culture and solidarity with immigrants and refugees. The organization also extends beyond national borders and participates in international solidarity efforts, including with the Palestinians and Kurds, and in cooperation with movements in crisis policy in other European countries. (More information about the organization can be found on the website www.solidarity4all.gr.)

The more than 40 health clinics the organization has set up across Greece have been forced both because public health stations and hospitals have been closed, and because people cannot afford to seek help at private institutions or buy medicines at pharmacies. Solidarity for all provides first-line health care and distributes medicines free of charge. Doctors and nurses work for free, as many of them are also unemployed as a result of closures and austerity measures. The medicines are donated by individuals who have something left over, or who can afford to buy and give it to the health clinics. Much of the financial support that has come from solidarity contributions in other European countries, including Norway, has been used to purchase medicines.

By taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the neighborhood, people will be activated and break the isolation created by unemployment.

New structures are emerging. At the last national conference of the solidarity movement in May 2015, it was decided to start measures to try to get the unemployed back into work, through training and start-up of new production companies. In addition to providing help to the individual, this is motivated by the fact that it is necessary to start a productive business to get Greece back on its feet.

The difficult period since the defeat last summer has delayed implementation. But now, in the autumn of 2016, job training centers will be started up that will also run productive activities. They will be run as neighborhood projects where those who are outside of working life will be enabled to become productive and financially active again. By taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the neighborhood and their connections, people will be activated and break the isolation created by unemployment.

An example of this is the so-called Open Road project in the Kypseli district of Athens. Kypseli is a historic neighborhood in central Athens, which for decades has had close cooperation and a common identity as a hallmark, despite serious problems in the region of which they are a part. In the district, there is an area characterized by immigrants from mainly Africa who have lived there for over 15 years, largely in harmony with the indigenous population. In the last years before the crisis, many social, cultural and political joint initiatives developed in the district. They used the resources the district offers, such as several vacant houses as well as cinema and theater premises. One of the largest parks in central Athens, Aeros, and one of the best economics colleges in Greece, are also located there as resources.

The project, which is now to be launched, makes use of these framework conditions, and aims to rehabilitate disused factories and restore houses and meeting rooms using its own labor. Last summer, a major three-day music festival was held in the park.

By engaging the local population directly in improving their living conditions, the goal is also «to create new structures that point beyond the current way of organizing society». The project seeks to create a more inclusive society with stronger neighborhoods and less isolation. This is a continuation of the cooperative movement that in recent years has developed around the food distribution Solidarity for all has been responsible for. Here, expensive intermediaries are cut out by farmers bringing the food directly to the distribution centers organized by the local communities.

The goal is that projects such as the one in Kypseli can provide experiences and inspiration that can stimulate activities elsewhere, and reduce unemployment through new production ideas in other neighborhoods.

Also concerns us. The Solidarity Network in Greece is also asking for support from us in Norway for its activities. What is happening in Greece is something that concerns the whole of Europe, whether one lives within or outside the EU borders. They thank the support that has so far been given by solidarity movements in several European countries, and point out that the policies pursued by EU leadership and international financial institutions affect workers in all countries.

Christos Giovanopoulos, one of the founders of Solidarity for All and who just visited Norway, says that their plans may seem optimistic, given the situation in Greece. But he also points out that they have no choice but to move on to bring about change, and that they want to do this with us – and everyone who wants to fight for common interests.

Read the case here: Solidarity project starts in Norway


Arnljot Ask is a board member of Solidaritet med Kurdistan and a longtime friend of Greece, and has been internationally responsible in Rødt for a number of years.

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