4/ PUBLIC CONFESSIONS BY STATE OFFICIALS AND THE 2012 ELECTIONS Public discussion about underground links between the Hellenic Police and Golden Dawn is hardly exclusive to the last three years. In fact, such confessions have been made by the most oicial sources one might expect, even by ministers in oice. Dimitris Psarras (2012: 181-182) quotes a highly illuminating conversation between a high-proile Greek journalist, Nikos Chatzinikolaou, and the then Public Order Minister Georgios Romeos, in autumn 1997, ater the disclosure of the infamous “junta-lovers fest” organized by high-ranked oicials of the Hellenic Police in Thessaloniki.20 “We hear a lot about a speciic organization, Golden Dawn. Is it an organized group within the Hellenic Police?”, the journalist asks. The Minister’s answer is cautious, yet telling: “No, it does not seem to be an organized group. But it is clear that some of them [police oicials] have ties with some organizations”. “The organization in question, is it Golden Dawn?”, insists the journalist. “Yes”, is the one-word answer given by the Minister. Two years later, in December 1999, a special team of the Hellenic Police itself prepares a “top secret” document ater an attempted homicide by a high-ranking Golden Dawn member. This document was published ive years later by a major daily, Ta Nea. It mentions that a special team of commissioned oicers of the Hellenic Police had set up an information network with ex-members of Golden Dawn. Here is a rather telling excerpt: “The organization entertains very good relationships and contacts with commissioned and non-commissioned oicers of the Hellenic Police, as well as with regular police oicers. In the past, during the demonstrations in commemoration of the 17 November 1973 Polytechnio uprising against the junta, and other events organized by letist and anarchist groups, the police provided them with walkie-talkies and batons in order to beat the demonstrators in the guise of ‘indignant citizens’”.21 In May 2011, ater the serious injury of a demonstrator and systematic pogroms against immigrants by Golden Dawn without any arrests whatsoever (despite the fact that there is a video of a dark-skinned man hunted down with knives by another man in front of Athens City Hall22), there was the following statement, the importance of which lies mostly in its locutor, not in its content: “A service, however strong, efective or popular, should be dissolved and start over from scratch, rather than function under a peculiar regime of tolerance that serves to promote, on the one hand, conducts of deiance, indiscipline, arbitrariness and abuse of authority, and, on the other, activates in cases of criminal behaviour a 20. 21. 22. 26 | This was a fest organized in Thermi area, Thessaloniki by police oicers and members of the special forces who were manifestly nostalgic towards the junta regime; see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2p374rN80E. A. Athanasiou, “Police oicers covered ‘Periandros’’ back: Golden Dawn goon A. Androutsopoulos still free ater 6 years thanks to his ties with Hellenic Police oicers”, Ta Nea, April 17, 2004. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxUBr5_tczU. ROSA LUXEMBURG STIFTUNG