Golden Dawn Trial: Anti-fascist rally in the Court of Appeals – Alexandra closed

By Makis Synodinos

An anti-fascist rally is underway outside the Court of Appeals where the case of the Golden Dawn criminal organization will be tried in the second instance.

Alexandras Avenue is currently closed downstream to Patision. From 8 in the morning, traffic regulations have come into force both in Alexandras and around the appellate court.

The stakes of today’s trial

The stake in today’s trial, according to a telegram from APE – BPE, is whether the aggressive action of party members, which managed to be the third parliamentary force in the country in 2012, will be judged, as in the first instance, coordinated, organized and guided from above with concrete background. That is, if the irrevocable judgment of the judges accepts that the actions of the accused they were not “individual acts”as they claim, but as a result of a criminal Nazi-type structure that selected victims according to specific criteria.

Today’s starting point for the second instance court is to start at 9 am when the President of the Court Sofia Panoutsakopoulowill announce the start of the trial. However, although problems have been resolved, such as the venue and the dismissal of the judges of the composition from other duties, the course of the trial will not be useless as there are issues that need to be resolved and postponement requests who appear to be ready to submit some of the accused, which will be examined by the court.

The trial was scheduled to take place in the Ceremony Hall of the Court of Appeal by decision of the Minister of Justice, after the consent of the leadership of the Court of Appeal at the request of the Civil Action. The decision of the minister greatly facilitates the progress of the trial, which in its first instance was not taken care of by the political leadership of the Ministry of Justice, for its rapid development. The first court started on April 20, 2015 in the hall of the women’s prison of Korydallos and ended on October 22, 2020 in the ceremonial hall of the Court of Appeal.

The x-ray of the trial and the scenarios for the final decision

The trial that is expected to start today will be conducted from the beginning, without the court being bound by the verdict of the judges who ruled the case in the first instance. This practically means that for the accused all possibilities are open. They can expect their acquittal or reduction of their sentence in case of conviction or even its non-change. Some of those currently out of jail due to suspension by the first court are facing the possibility of being in jail.

In the a total of 50 defendants will sit on the bench, of which about 40 were taken to prison after the decision of the Three-Member Criminal Court of Appeal that did not grant them a suspensory effect on the appeal.

Of the 50, 7 are the leadership of the structure and are facing the crime of directing a criminal organization.

The criminal organization’s management team, leader and former party MPs are prisoners. This is the leader of the party Nikos Michaloliakos and their Elias Kasidiaris, Ioannis Lagos, Christos Pappas, Elias Panagiotaros, George Germeni and Artemi Mattheopoulos sentenced to imprisonment of at least 13 years except for the latter who is serving a 10-year sentence.

Others 11 former MPs have been convicted of joining a criminal organization including the wife of Nikos Michaloliakos, Eleni Zaroulia, Panagiotis Iliopoulos, Konstantinos Barbarousis etc. in which the first instance sentences start from 5 and reach 7 years. In four of the 11 groups, the court had recognized mitigation.

Another 32 people accused of joining a criminal organization are being tried with them.

Of the 32 who are being tried as members of the organization, 21 are facing another felony involving either homicide or attempted homicide.

Faced with a possible longer sentence the leadership team and five other defendants

For 12 of the accused the final outcome of the trial may have an unpleasant outcome as they are faced with possible increase of the sentences imposed on them in the first instance. This is because the appellate court for the specific defendants, not only judges the appeals filed by them expecting acquittal or reduction of their sentences but also the appeal filed by the Appellate Prosecutor asking for larger sentences.

A few days after the completion of the first trial, the Prosecutor of Appeals Stelios Costarellos Deputy Prosecutor in the first court, appealed against the part of the decision that concerns the seven of the management team and the five accused of attempted murder of an Egyptian fisherman, essentially asking for a greater sentence.

The prosecutor stating that the members of the Directorate “Exercised complete control over all criminal events” Golden Dawn estimated that the imposed penalties should be more severe. Respectively asks Higher sentences for the perpetrators of the attack on Egyptian fishermenjudging that the court did not properly weigh either the degree of their criminal disposition, nor the unreasonable attack they made, nor their humble motives as submissive to the management team.

Thus, for these 12 defendants, the possibilities are open, but also with the aspect of their handling by the court.

The cases being tried

The trial concerns three crimes. The charges concern the activity of the criminal organization Chrysi Avgi, in the context of which, according to the first instance decision, two other crimes were committed.

It’s about:

* The murder of Pavlos Fyssas, late at night on September 17, 2013 by a group of members, Assault Battalion, of the Local Organization of the Golden Dawn in Nice who facilitated the executive of the organization George Roupakia to fatally stab the musician. The murder, according to the first instance decision, was not an accidental, uncoordinated moment, as the defendants claim. It was a “targeted and organized plan of attack against him”, the judges of the Three-Member Criminal Court of Appeal ruled, accepting that “Pavlos Fyssas was the target of the Golden Dawn in the area of ​​Piraeus”.

The 34-year-old musician is held accountable for the murder George Roupakias, sentenced in the first instance to life imprisonment and 14 years imprisonment and another 15 defendants sentenced to prison sentences from 7 to 10 years.

Among those convicted is the “nuclear chief” of Nice George Patelis.

* Attempted assassination of Egyptian fisherman Abuzid Ebarak on June 12, 2012, when an assault battalion consisting of members of the Local ATHEX of Perama stormed the victim’s house at dawn and attacked him and other sleeping compatriots. The fisherman was seriously injured as he was hit with poles and crowbars on the head.

With the decision of the Three-Member Court of Appeals, 5 defendants were sentenced to 7 to 10 years of temporary imprisonment.

Among those convicted is the nuclear chief of Perama Anastasios Pantazis

These are the cases that the court will try in parallel with the examination of the overall action of Golden Dawn as a structured and organized group that for a number of years, as the first instance court accepted, chose target victims based on criteria based on its fascist ideology. Dozens of other crimes such as Assassination of Pakistani worker Sahzat Lukman, attempted murder of student Dimitris Kousouris, attacks on members of social media (Antipnosis, Workshop, etc.) and other actions will be examined by the court and victims will be given a reason to weigh all the parameters before deciding on the accused.

In the first trial, there was another case of criminal action which concerned the attack of Golden Dawn members against KKE posters on September 12, 2013, from which nine people were injured. The case was introduced as an attempted murder, however, with the first instance decision, the accusation was reduced to the misdemeanor of dangerous bodily harm, which expired last September due to an 8-year lapse. Four of the accused had been convicted in this case.

In gatherings today outside the Court of Appeals, in view of the start of the trial, organizations, organizations and anti-fascist movements have been invited, including ADEDY, ESIEA, Labor and Employment Center of Athens, Teachers’ Associations, KEERFA, Labor Center of Piraeus, Piraeus Syn. student organizations.

Traffic regulations

In the meantime, it is effective from 8 in the morning Traffic regulations both in Alexandras and around the Court of Appeal.
In the measure “Ampelokipi” appoint unions, anti-fascist organizations and ADEDY in order to make a march to the Court of Appeal.