On Feb. 20, the new Greek government led by the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) signed an agreement with the Eurogroup, composed of the finance ministers of all the countries that use the Euro currency. Upon assuming control of the government after last month’s election, SYRIZA declared that the hated Memorandum—the agreement between heavily indebted Greece and its creditors trading money for bank bailouts in return for devastating austerity measures—was over. This has been proven false. The Feb. 20 agreement extends the Memorandum for four months and commits the new government to all of its basic features for the foreseeable future.
The agreement states, “The Greek authorities reiterate their unequivocal commitment to honor their financial obligations to all their creditors fully and timely.” SYRIZA intends to make sure the banks get their money.
The basic formula of anti-worker “reforms” in exchange for financing (which goes right back in the pockets of the big bankers) is upheld in the agreement. On Monday, the Greek government will need to provide an initial list of austerity measures it will take. If this is judged to be “sufficiently comprehensive to be a valid starting point for a successful conclusion of the review,” negotiations will begin to develop a final, detailed plan by the end of April.
Although the agreement does not use the word “Troika”—the coalition of the European Central Bank, European Union and International Monetary Fund that imposed the Memorandum on Greece—it empowers these three institutions to oversee the extended bailout. The Troika lives on in all but name.
There are several general references to “flexibility” and “social fairness.” It is possible that some minor concessions will be granted to Greece, such as a reduction in the required budget surplus but nothing near what would be required for SYRIZA to fulfil its election campaign promises for massive public investment and expanded social services. There is no word for this other than capitulation.
In the first days of the new government, SYRIZA officials took an assertive tone. Announcements were made that privatizations were to be canceled, the minimum wage hiked, and a variety of other social rights restored. This won the government widespread popular support, and even the parties that agreed to the Memorandum hesitated to criticize SYRIZA for fear of being perceived as unpatriotic. For the first time in recent memory, large demonstrations took place in support of the authorities.
The Feb. 20 agreement shows that this was more a failed bargaining strategy than genuine statements of intent. The announcements were simply that—announcements. None had been voted into law.
Parallel to these attempts to shore up a mass base of support and pressure the Eurogroup into driving a softer bargain were actions to reassure the domestic Greek ruling class. SYRIZA promotes a patriotic narrative around the struggle against the Memorandum, characterizing it as an effort by all Greeks—workers and capitalists alike—to regain national sovereignty and dignity from German domination. As long as they pay their taxes, the government sees the Greek elite as an important constituent of this national consensus.
Just before the Feb. 20 agreement was signed, Prokopis Pavlopoulos was proposed and subsequently voted into office as the next president of Greece. Pavlopoulos is a vile figure especially hated by the radicalized and radicalizing youth for his role as head of the Interior Ministry (which controls the cops) during the police murder of 15-year-old activist Alexis Grigoropoulos in 2008, which sparked a nationwide uprising. The presidency is a mostly ceremonial position with little power, but it presented an opportunity for SYRIZA to communicate its political orientation.
Meanwhile, the minister of defense, from the right-wing Independent Greeks party, held a press conference that highlighted joint military drills Greece is taking part in with Israel, along with its close ally Cyprus.
The Feb. 20 agreement, however, cannot erase the resilience and resistance of the poor and working people of Greece. It remains to be seen as to whether this capitulation will lead to despair and the strengthening of the fascist right wing or deeper radicalization. The Greek Communist Party (KKE) refused to enter into any united front with SYRIZA in its opening struggle against the EU capitalist bankers. This was a missed opportunity. Instead of offering a principled and critical united front with the multi-tendency SYRIZA, which could have demanded and pressured the SYRIZA leadership to stick to its election promises to “end austerity,” the formidable KKE stood on the sidelines predicting that the new government would cave in to the pressure of the central European capitalists.
Perhaps the KKE will assert that their “we told you so” line has been validated and hope to pick up disaffected SYRIZA members, but this is not the way a minority communist movement succeeds in its efforts to win over the broad masses. More than 35 percent of the electorate voted for SYRIZA because they wanted it to succeed in the struggle against the ECB and the EU capitalists.
Condemning SYRIZA in advance and offering no support after the elections told this enthusiastic section of the people that they had only wasted their time and they had only been duped by SYRIZA’s promises. That is sterile and ineffective as a tactic. The question for communists is how best to influence and win over a larger sector of the SYRIZA base within the larger population. Offering a united front with SYRIZA against the EU bankers, while retaining political independence to criticize, would have made the KKE a dynamic part of this momentous struggle. The KKE refused to carry out this fundamental united front tactic.
SYRIZA’s leadership suffered a massive setback through its forced capitulation to the banks’ harsh demands. But it is not just a setback for an organization. This is a big setback in Greece and throughout southern Europe for the people too, who were so excited just weeks ago.
But the struggle is far from over. In Greece and throughout broad swaths of Europe, the capitalist offensive against working people is bound to create more resistance. The extension of the Memorandum shows that within the confines of the European Union, and the capitalist system more broadly, fundamental change is impossible. This makes the activities of revolutionary forces around the world all the more crucial.
