How the Specter of Militarism was Buried in Greece
By Ahmad Faruqui, PhD
Dansville, CA

Greece, the birthplace of democracy, was haunted for seven years by the specter of militarism. An earlier coup in 1935 had failed. On April 21, 1967, a group of Greek colonels framed their seizure of power as a “revolution to save the nation” from an imminent communist takeover (see C. M. Woodhouse, The Rise and Fall of the Greek Colonels, 1985).
They also succeeded in drawing the support of the US, which was fighting the Cold War. No protests came from Washington and many Greeks complained of US involvement in the coup. Years later, to clear the air, President Clinton would apologize to them.
For its spokesmen, the junta chose two former Marxists who proceeded to dub all “enemies of the state” as anarcho-communists. They discredited parliamentary democracy by equating it with dirty party politics, and put forward a religiously colored slogan, Greece for Christian Greeks, to galvanize national support.
The ring leader, Colonel George Papadopoulos, came from a poor but educated family. He publicly expressed his contempt for the urban, western-educated “elite” in Athens. Political oppression and censorship was introduced. Critical films (Kostas Gavras’s Z) and music (Mikim Theodarakis) were banned. At the same time, tourism was actively encouraged and discos and nightclubs were allowed to function.
However, in the absence of any civil rights, these socio-cultural freedoms were dispensed whimsically. Anyone who digressed into political criticism was courting arrest and possibly torture.
The junta found a natural ally in the farmers, whose loans were canceled since they were “the backbone of the people.” The simpler ideas of rural Greece were championed and religion and patriotism were promoted. As expected, such ideas were not welcomed in urban Greece.
Even then, several people welcomed the junta, since it had come into office after a period of conflict between the monarchy and parliament. They were just happy to see a stable government, even a military one. The junta cleverly promised a return to democracy once political order was established. This, of course, was simply a ruse to stay in power.
The junta succeeded in restoring economic growth and lowering inflation and unemployment. Economic growth was driven by the tourism industry and by pro-business incentives designed to lure foreign direct investment. In addition, the colonels embarked on an ambitious program of public sector investment, primarily in dams and power plants.
Because there were no checks and balances, loans were issued without regard to their serviceability. The construction of many hotels was abandoned once the “loan of the sea” was secured and a few half-built ones still dot the Greek countryside.
The junta made policies by decree. In Orwellian fashion, they began with the words, “We decide and we order.” Military courts were established and all political parties were dissolved. Political freedoms and civil liberties, synonymous with the Greek culture, were eliminated in a matter of minutes. Greeks were stunned. The opponents of the junta were imprisoned or exiled by the thousands to remote Greek island where they faced torture by the Security Police.
No one was allowed to assemble or engage in political demonstrations. The lives of citizens were put under surveillance. The colonels gave the Greeks the very totalitarian state that they were trying to prevent the communists from introducing. Since there was no valid code of jurisprudence, favoritism and nepotism became rampant in appointments and as means of adjudicating disputes. There was no freedom of the press.
A psychology of fear spread in the land. But within a year, signs of a democratic opposition were visible. Underground groups such as the Pan-Hellenic Liberation Movement began to coalesce. A failed assassination attempt was carried out against Papadopoulos in August 1968.
The assassin ignited a bomb along the road where Papadopoulos’ motorcade was designed to pass. But the attack failed. The assassin was captured in a nearby sea cave as his escape boat failed to show up. He was questioned, beaten, tortured and sentenced to death. He spent five years in jail. Luckily, before the death sentence could be carried out, democracy was restored. He was elected to parliament and became an emblem for the restoration of democracy.
In November 1968, the funeral of a major leader turned into a massive demonstration against the junta. In March 1969, Giorgos Seferis, recipient of the Nobel Prize six years earlier, took a stand against the junta. This was a tipping point in shaping public opinion. Seferis’s funeral a few years later also turned into a massive demonstration.
In September 1970, a geology student burned himself to death in protest. His remains were not returned to his home town for fourth months, since the junta feared it would stoke another mass demonstration.
By now, conditions had worsened to the point that there was a rebellion even within the military. A Greek warship refused to return home after participating in NATO exercises in May of 1973. The Captain and his crew remained loyal to their oath to obey the Constitution.
Despite having brought about economic growth and temporary political stability to the country, the junta was on the road to collapse. A series of events precipitated the Gotterdammerung.
The junta succumbed to infighting. Papadopoulos sought to stem the tide by liberalizing the political order but that led to public demands for more freedoms and political unrest. In a fatal error of judgment, in June 1973, he abolished the monarchy and declared himself president after a controversial referendum.
The tradition of student protest was always strong in Greece and it came to a head during the reign of the colonels. Students at the Law School in Athens led the protests. These spread to the Athens Polytechnic in November 1973, where students went on a strike and sit-in.
Sensing that the situation was going to get out hand, the junta sent in the army to suppress the students. Under cover of darkness, at 0300 hours, tanks crashed through the rail gate of the Polytechnic and seized the campus.
Subsequently, hardliner Brigadier Demetrious Ioannides launched a second coup and initiated an aggressive crackdown. He also declared martial law in Cyprus and overthrew the popular President Archbishop Makarios III.
Turkey responded by invading and occupying the northern portion of the island. Facing defeat, the junta collapsed.
Parliamentary democracy was restored and the colonels put on trial. They were sentenced to death. Later, the sentences were commuted to life in prison. Papadopoulos declined amnesty on the condition that it would require an acknowledgment of guilt. He died in prison, aged 80. Ioannides is still in jail. No coups have occurred since then.


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Editor: Akhtar M. Faruqui
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