Open US intervention in Greek internal affairs

In an unprecedented intervention in Greek internal affairs, Nicholas Burns, ex-Ambassador of the United States to Greece has congratulated the Greek government for its firm stance in the affair of hunger striker Dimitris Koufontinas.

It is exactly because of this “firm stance” and in clear violation of the Greek law, that Koufontinas is facing now the danger of imminent death.

“The Greek government is right to refuse to coddle the convicted terrorist Dimitris Koufoudinas” Mr. Burns tweeted.

There is no doubt that Koufontinas was a terrorist and that he was convicted for his actions (although, strictly legally speaking, he was not convicted for terrorism, as there was not such a crime back in 2004).

But the question is not there. Koufontinas did not begin the strike in order to be released from prison. He begun the strike asking for the government to apply the law, which stipulates clearly for his transfer to the Korydallos prison (not exactly a luxury hotel).

This is the reason the Greek Union of Judges and Prosecutors the Greek section of Amnesty International, four out of the six political parties represented in the Greek parliament, the Bar Associations of Patra and Peiraus, hundreds of Greek and international personalities, including three ex-ministers of the ruling New Democracy party and even the father of the Director of the Office of PM Mitsotakis Spyros Dimitriadis (and close friend of Pavlos Bakoyiannis, victim of the terrorist organization 17 November) asked the government to satisfy the demand of the prisoner. The last one said “I will not become an accomplish to murder“.

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The same position was adopted by the Greek Association for Human Rights (an official advisor of the Greek government)

All those people can hardly be characterized as friends or supporters, in any way, of terrorism. What they say is that the punishment of terrorism must be done in the context of the law, not by violating the law.

One wonders if Mr. Burns knows the details of this affair. Can he believe that in a democracy and a state of law terrorism must be punished by methods outside the law? And, if he holds such a view, he holds it only for foreign countries or, also, for the United States of America? One hopes that Mr. William Burns does not agree with such views, which, by the way, have contributed enormously to the decline of the international political capital and prestige of the United States of America.
Diplomatic observers in Athens believe it is probable that Mr. Burns’ intervention is due to information about hesitations inside the government and Mr. Mitsotakis’ close advisors, some of whom are afraid of the consequences of a very probable now death of Koufontinas.
Some days ago, Yanis Varoufakis, speaking to the Parliament, has clearly implied that it is the US Ambassador to Greece Mr. Pyatt (former ambassador to Ukraine) who appointed the Greek Minister of Protection of the Citizens (Public Order)! Nobody cared answering to him!
Since twenty years Greece had not any serious terrorism problem. By transforming Mr. Koufontinas into a victim and a hero, by its handling of the affair, the Greek Government, or whoever has organized those events, can create the preconditions for recreating a terrorism phenomenon in Greece. (The father of the Director of PM’ s Office has gone as far as to say all that is an pre-organized plan!)
In the past such US interventions in Greek affairs have been responsible for the serious, long – term deterioration of US – Greek relations and the emergence of a wave of anti-americanism in the country. President William Clinton has gone as far as to ask pardon from the Greek people for such interventions, out of the need to normalize the relations between the two countries.
Dimitris Georgopoulos

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“Η Ελληνική Δημοκρατία δεν εκβιάζεται” αλλά… το Sputnik δεν το παίρνουμε, τσουπ, εμφανίστηκε και ο Μπερνς