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Moschonas Dissent Fall 2013
Moschonas Dissent Fall 2013
F A L L 2 0 1 3 DI S S EN T 33
THE EUROPEAN LEFT IN CRISIS
3 4 D ISSE N T F A L L 2 0 1 3
THE EUROPEAN LEFT IN CRISIS
F A L L 2 0 1 3 DI S S EN T 35
THE EUROPEAN LEFT IN CRISIS
Alexis Tsipras at a SYRIZA rally on May 4, 2012 (Asteris Masouras, Flickr creative commons)
conversion into a unified party in July, cratic exception of the KKE) have embarked
SYRIZA had thirteen separate tendencies) has upon a course of competitive demagogy,
negatively affected the partys cohesiveness gaucherie, and irresponsibility. But despite its
and style and limited its ability to generate newly pivotal position in the Greek political
fresh programmatic thought. Instead, SYRIZA order, SYRIZA does not appear to have the
has primarily generated condemnatory quality of political personnel, the strategic
discourse and ideological long-windedness, perspicacity, or the alliances inside and
exhibiting a tendency to repeat old-guard outside of Greece that would be required to
communist clichs. deal successfully with the current crisis.
Without the shock of the economic crisis, Within SYRIZA itself doubts and debate
SYRIZAs meteoric rise would not have about its current status can be heard. The
occurred, and without Alexis Tsiprass lead- realists wonder what their real margin for
ership and strategy, SYRIZA would not movement will be within the hostile struc-
have become the main party of opposition. tures of the EU. How many painful compro-
The June 2012 elections were more divided mises must they accept? Can they, if they come
on class lines than any other in the entire to power, keep the party united? The partys
democratic period: in the lower-class neigh- left wing (approximately 30 percent of the
borhoods of greater Athens, SYRIZAs 36.5 membership) has been radicalized: it favors
percent of the vote was 9 points higher than leaving the Eurozone and opening the road
the combined vote for New Democracy and to socialism. (Both proposals are supported
PASOK. by only a minority of Greeces population.)
More than a year after SYRIZAs excep- The disagreement over such key issues
tional electoral performance, it remains the undermines the partys cohesion and stra-
only bearer of an alternative projet de socit; all tegic maneuverability. These problems would
the other opposition parties (with the idiosyn- make it difficult for Tsipras, in the event he is
3 6 D ISSE N T F A L L 2 0 1 3
THE EUROPEAN LEFT IN CRISIS
elected prime minister, to reach an honorable finished? Social democratic parties have
compromise with Greeces partners (and shown an admirable capacity to renew them-
creditors) in the EU. selves and survive. PASOK is undoubtedly
very close to the edge, but it may figure out a
A New Laboratory for the Radical Left? way to bring itself back. Predictions that do
not to take into account previous historical
Historically, Western Europe social democrats trends risk proving over-hasty.
promoted four great sets of changes: democra- The Greek left is now being led by a radical
tization, cultural liberalism, social protection party. The post-communist SYRIZA lacks both
and integration, and social equality (through the preparation and the governmental culture
some kind of economic redistribution). for such a taskboth of which the radical
PASOKs long ascendancy did indeed include PASOK of the 1980s lacked, too. However,
a large number of policies that fit in this SYRIZA has matured to a significant degree.
framework. Nevertheless, neither the PASOK Its economic policy has changed gradually
of Andreas Papandreou (19811996) nor the during the three years of the debt crisis,
PASOK of Costas Simitis (19962004) was moving in a similar direction to the path
able to develop the economic and institutional taken during the 1930s by social democrats
underpinnings of a truly successful social in Sweden and New Deal Democrats in the
democratic strategy. PASOK was a composite United States. But globalization and European
and inconsistent party, simultaneously the integration place huge external constraints
spearhead of the social democratization and on SYRIZA that governments did not face, at
modernization of Greek society and the prin- least not to the same degree, during the Great
cipal obstacle to these processes. PASOKand Depression.
not only the populist PASOK of the 1980s SYRIZAs economic proposals are largely
was indeed a central actor in the drama of inconsistent with EU policies. If SYRIZA wins
Greeces bankruptcy. the next elections (which will occur no later
Does PASOKs trajectory have anything than 2016), it will be called upon to deal with
to tell us about European social democracy, problems of a truly historic nature as well as
or is it an extreme case from an extreme its own internaland profoundcontradic-
country, far from the problems of the more tions. Nothing better describes these contra-
developed economies of Europe? Greece is dictions, not just in SYRIZA but across the
a peculiar, discordant, but modern country. entire new radical left in Europe, than the title
In the years between 1954 and 2008 it was, of an article from the political scientist David
in terms of GDP growth, one of the strongest Arter: Communists we are no longer, Social
economic performers in Europe. The example Democrats we can never be. Whether Greece
of PASOK is certainly extreme but it is not is the laboratory of the future for the European
irrelevant; what is clear is that without an radical left or a workshop with old technology
effective economic strategy combined with a that will repeat failed experiments is the
well-targeted redistributionist policy, projects question that SYRIZA will need to answer.
for maintaining the European social model
are doomed to fail. This became evident more
Gerassimos Moschonas, PhD University of Paris-II, is an
rapidly and more profoundly in Greece than
associate professor in comparative politics at Panteion
elsewhere but it applies to the whole of the
University of Political and Social Sciences, Athens, Greece.
European left, particularly in the current era of He is the author, among other books, of In the Name of
globalization. Social Democracy: The Great Transformation, 1945 to the
PASOK obtained just 12.28 percent of the Present (Verso, 2002). His current research is mainly focused
vote in the elections of June 2012. Is the party on European integration and the parties of the left.
F A L L 2 0 1 3 DI S S EN T 37
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