Is insurgency a risk in Greece?
Thousands of Greek anti-austerity protesters blocked a military parade on Friday Oct. 28 in Thessaloniki, forcing the president to walk away minutes before the start of the annual event. Anti-austerity protesters hurled water bottles and eggs toward officials.
BOSTON — Yesterday, it was too much democracy. Today, questions are arising about whether Greece might fear some sort of armed uprising or military rule.
With Prime Minister George Papandreou in Cannes for meetings with European heads of state ahead of the G-20 summit, the defense minister suddenly replaced the debt-ridden country's military chiefs. As the Daily Telegraph put it:
"Panos Beglitis, Defence Minister, a close confidante of Mr Papandreou, summoned the chiefs of the army, navy and air-force and announced that they were being replaced by other senior officers."
The move came without explanation. The opposition New Democratic party protested the personnel shift. In a statement, it said:
“Under no circumstances will these changes be accepted, at a time when the government is collapsing and has not even secured a vote of confidence,”
Meanwhile, the left accused the government of trying to create a "highly politicized armed forces that it can control at a time of political crisis.”
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