greeks have had enough: they demand an end to riots and looting

(in today's Kathimerini newspaper by Andreas Petroulakis.
The mother asks the school kid: Did you take your scarf? Did you take your wooly jumper? Did you put on your bullet proof vest?)



Let me be clear for the sake of those who have not followed these dramatic events closely and may misunderstand my account.

I have never, obviously, never tried to insinuate that it is wrong to protest. On the contrary, I am for political involvement and conscientious citizenship. After all, this is the definition of a citizen, someone who participates in the political body of a city, who cares and contributes to the democratic procedure.

The problem in the Greek events has to do with the deterioration of protest into a rage of destruction that would not stop before historical buildings, libraries with precious archives, blocks of flats, transport and other infrastructures, endangering people's lives and deflecting protest into a course of nihilism. Whether you like it or not, Greece after all is a democracy, with a constitution and its political system is also guaranteed by its participation in the European Union: only constitutional democracies can belong to the EU.
No democracy is perfect but no one has the right to behave irresponsibly without facing the consequences of their acts. Unfortunately, the financial and political elites, the "privileged" were the first to betray democracy by evading the consequences of their acts. And they have been doing this for so long. Nepotism and corruption is the name of the game.

Nevertheless, it is not an option to demolish our constitutional order.

The barbaric acts and vandalisms proliferated due to the inefficiency of a government that was terrified by the generalized disdain. Responsible measures should have included political decisions such as minister resignations and firm police tactics to distinguish peaceful protestors from aggressors. Correspondingly, other than anger against police violence, there was lack of a clear discourse on the part of protestors and many of those who pretended to seek positive change. Those who did not aggress the special units, trying to engage them as if that had been the goal, were often childishly gawking at the escalating confrontation, or remained numb and confused, pathetically unable to respond, discourage or prevent the riots that distracted all attention from their protest.

In Greece we have reached a point where we need to tackle the problems of corruption and envisage the necessary constitutional changes for a more liberal democracy that requires and promotes the emancipation of citizens.

Today, slowly, wiser voices are being heard and things are getting clearer. As the owners of looted shops are filing lawsuits against the government and we are counting the damages incurred, people are discussing some of the things I have been hoping for. People are asking the crucial questions. What kind of police do we want? What do we expect from the state? What do we expect from politicians? What kind of future do we want?
They are talking about the necessary conditions of democracy. The need for facing up to problems. The need to end corruption. To respect law abiding people, conscientious professionals and healthy enterprises. To improve the environment and invest massively on education and social integration. To apply laws without discrimination. To enhance the sense of trust in the state and its agents. And so much more! But it should not be mere words anymore, not wishful thinking. We are past that kind of self deception.

So much work to do and the least we need is to scream and burn indiscriminately. Let kids return to schools, but not the schools that do not cater for their needs in order to grow and prosper as responsible citizens. We need to plan a 21st century system of education, NOW.

Yesterday, in Patras as well as in Larissa, there were heavy clashes between rioters and a large number of citizens. Some said that these citizens belonged to the extreme right, but I would simply not allow anyone to make such a gift to the extreme right. We will not allow that. There is just no way of accepting the burning of a library, the destruction of public property and public infrastructures. The Greek society must come out of this with a renewed understanding of the need for democratic principles and practices.

I firmly believe that we will do away with fear and assume our responsibilities.
I repeat, Greece is a European country; Greece has a rich history of struggles for freedom and democracy.
The shot student simply does not belong to any party or fraction, noone has the right to exploit the death of a child. But we should all think about what has gone terribly wrong.