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Course of Freedom

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Course of Freedom
Πλεύση Ελευθερίας
PresidentZoe Konstantopoulou
FounderZoe Konstantopoulou
Founded19 April 2016; 8 years ago (2016-04-19)
Split fromPopular Unity[1]
IdeologyLeft-wing nationalism[6]
Sovereigntism[7]
Anti-austerity[8][9]
Left-wing populism[12]
Progressivism[13][14]
Hard Euroscepticism[17]
Political positionLeft-wing[23]
European Parliament groupNon-Inscrits
Colours  Purple
  Turquoise
Slogan"We look neither right nor left. We look forward."[24]
Hellenic Parliament
6 / 300
European Parliament
1 / 21
Website
www.plefsieleftherias.gr

Course of Freedom (Greek: Πλεύση Ελευθερίας, romanized: Plefsi Eleftherias) is a Greek anti-establishment[25][26][7] political party founded on 19 April 2016, by former President of the Hellenic Parliament, Zoe Konstantopoulou.[27]

History

[edit]

Zoe Konstantopoulou on 19 April 2016, she announced the founding of Course of Freedom. According to its founding declaration, the party's purpose of action consists of democracy, justice, transparency, rights, debt cancellation and claim for World War II reparations.[28]

Konstantopoulou, along with the party, had attended and called for support of the "Macedonia name" anti-Prespa Agreement mass protests of 2018 and 2019, with the slogan "I'm not ceding my homeland", having been the only political figure of the Greek left to openly do so.[29][30][7][5]

The party cooperates electorally with the I Don't Pay Movement, whose leaders were included in Course of Freedom's ballot to run in the European and Greek national elections of 2019.[31][32]

Course of Freedom was able to enter the Hellenic Parliament at the June 2023 legislative election, scoring 3.17% and electing 8 members of Parliament.[33]

The party condemned attacks on health facilities during the Israel–Hamas war after party president Konstantopoulou met with the Palestinian envoy,[34] expressing her support for the Palestinian people; she vowed that Course of Freedom will "be the voice" of Palestine in Greece[35]

In the 2024 European election the party was able to elect one MEP, Maria Zacharia, who is a trade unionist and labourist.[36]

Ideology

[edit]

Course of Freedom was established on an anti-memoranda ideology,[27] based on its founder's Zoe Konstantopoulou's hardliner[37] opposition to austerity, neoliberalism, "tax inequality", Greece's creditors, and the Troika,[9][38][39][40][41] and has been seen as "left-wing populist".[7][10] Mattia Zulianello, the professor of political science at the University of Trieste, also classified the party as left-wing populist.[11] The party has been described by political commentators as left-wing,[18][19][20][21][22] "nominally left",[42][43][44] or far-left,[45][46][47][48][49] although Konstantopoulou describes it as anti-establishment and "neither left nor right" instead.[26] The party's political position has also been considered to be "catch-all",[44] accruing support from both left-wing and right-wing voters, including a component from the far-right,[7][50] owing to its generalized anti-establishment positions.[7][50] Course of Freedom is considered to be a sovereignist party[7] and appeals to nationalist sentiments,[42][9] and has been labelled as "nationalist left"[4][3][51][52] or left-wing nationalist.[2][53][54]

Course of Freedom's political position has also been evaluated as solely anti-establishment[25][55][56][51][57][58][49] or simply populist "anti-systemic".[59][9][36] It is considered to be a radical formation,[60][61] espousing a virulent rejection of all politicians while still embracing legalism and institutionalism.[7]

Konstantopoulou has criticized privatizations, taxation increases, "media oligarchs", and auctioning off and bank seizures of homes of overindebted families and electronic auctions.[13] The party has also come in support of refugees, the LGBT community, opponents to COVID-19 vaccination, and of victims of sexism and sexual violence.[7]

Course of Freedom is a hard Eurosceptic party, with Konstantopoulou calling the European Union a "monstrous creation" lacking in democracy that is "not a union to belong to";[15][16] the party's founding declaration denounces "Eurobureaucracy" as totalitarianism.[62]

Konstantopoulou and the party have also launched a "Don't Pay" movement and a campaign of "general disobedience" towards debts, taxes and insurance contributions since 2017.[63]

Positions

[edit]

The party's positions include the cancellation of the country's national debt (that Zoe Konstantopoulou has previously during her time in government affirmed as "illegal, illegitimate, odious",[64] "unsustainable"[65] and "unconstitutional"[66] based on the report of the Hellenic Parliament's Greek Debt Truth Commission[67]), opposition to the Prespa naming agreement on North Macedonia's name and calling for a referendum on it,[68] claiming German war reparations and loans of up to €350 billion,[15] additional compensation for Nazi atrocities,[26] expanding Greece's territorial waters to 10 km, and opposition to mandatory vaccination.[69]

The party's program includes confiscation of property of bankers and politicians who will be deemed responsible for the country's inclusion in the Memoranda, and also shutting down all media accused of "propaganda and entanglement" and doing away with the riot control known as MAT, replacing the last two with citizen collaboration/participation alternatives.[70][71]

Its founding declaration supports positions of popular democracy and participatory democracy, and includes proposals like the institutionalization of mandatory referendums, citizen participation in the justice system, renationalization of all public enterprises and public assets, the dissolution of the HRADF S.A, and an accountancy audit of Greek debt, insurance funds and state-owned institutions.[62]

Course of Freedom has supported and voted in favour of legalising same-sex marriage.[72]

The party supports Palestinian statehood and wants the Greek government to start internationally recognizing Palestine.[73]

Composition

[edit]

Election results

[edit]

Hellenic Parliament

[edit]
Election Hellenic Parliament Rank Government Leader
Votes % ±pp Seats won +/−
2019 82,673 1.5% New
0 / 300
 New 8th Extra-parliamentary Zoe Konstantopoulou
May 2023 170,298 2.9% +1.4
0 / 300
 Steady 0 7th Extra-parliamentary
Jun 2023 165,210 3.2% +0.3
8 / 300
 Increase 8 8th Opposition

European Parliament

[edit]
European Parliament
Election Votes % ±pp Seats won +/− Rank Leader EP Group
2019 81,269 1.61% New
0 / 21
 New 8th Zoe Konstantopoulou −
2024 135,310 3.40% +1.79
1 / 21
 Increase 1 7th NI

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Lafazanis: We wish you success in the "Freedom Sailing" of Zoi :"Panagiotis Lafazanis commented on the change of course of Zoe Konstantopoulou, who separated her position from LAE by founding the "Pleusi Eleftherias" party." TV without Frontiers 19 April 2016, Retrieved 26 June 2023
  2. ^ a b "Parliamentary elections in Greece: Mitsotakis outclasses the left". Die Tageszeitung (taz.de). 22 May 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  3. ^ a b New Greek Parliament Barron's 26 June 2023, Retrieved 27 June 2023
  4. ^ a b What To Know As Greece Votes Again In Legislative Polls Neos Kosmos 17 June 2023, Retrieved 27 June 2023
  5. ^ a b The Macedonia Question "...they also touched a chord on sectors of a "patriotic left"...the rally was also supported by Zoe Konstantopoulou, the former president of the Greek parliament and founder of the "Course of Freedom" movement", Jacobin.com by Stathis Kouvelakis March 2018, Retrieved 24 June 2019
  6. ^ [2][3][4][5]
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Syriza's Electoral Quagmire Reflects Its Crushing of Greeks' Hopes, Jacobin.com 6 September 2023, Retrieved 16 May 2023
  8. ^ "Zoe Konstantopoulou: Each child in Greece owes 32,500 euros". ThemaNews. Proto Thema. 31 May 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  9. ^ a b c d Greece Just Elected the Most Right-Wing Parliament Since the Return to Democracy "Course for Freedom" Jacobin 28 June 2023, Retrieved 29 June 2023
  10. ^ a b "New Greek PM vows to press ahead with ambitious reforms". The Guardian. 25 June 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  11. ^ a b c "Populist parties in Central and Eastern Europe: Regional trends in comparative perspective". Poliarchie/Polyarchies (Special Issue 2023). Trieste: EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste: 63. 2023. doi:10.13137/2611-2914/35183. ISSN 2611-2914. Among them, the top performer was Greece (28.4%) thanks to the combined result of three left-wing populist parties (see Tsatsanis et al. 2021): SYRIZA (23.8%), the European Realistic Disobedience Front (3.0%) and Course of Freedom (1.6%).
  12. ^ [7][10][11]
  13. ^ a b If you love Greece, help us get rid of Alexis Tsipras and his zombie party : "We ask for the support of all progressives, including our friends in the Labour party..." The Guardian by Zoe Konstantopoulou 7 September 2018, Retrieved 24 June 2019
  14. ^ "Why Greece's Left May Give Conservatives A Smooth Sail To Victory". HuffPost. The Huffington Post. 23 June 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
  15. ^ a b c European elections 2019: Love and hate in EU after economic rescues BBC 13 May 2019, Retrieved 21 June 2023
  16. ^ a b Kordas, George (10 July 2023). "What the 2023 elections told us about anti-establishment politics in Greece". EUROPP – European Politics and Policy Blog. London School of Economics and Political Science.
  17. ^ [15][16]
  18. ^ a b Uğur Ekinci, Mehmet; Yusufoğlu, Yusuf (31 July 2023). "Why the Left Fell and the Right Rose in Greece". Politics Today. There is fierce competition among left-wing parties to fill the vacuum left by SYRIZA's decline. The Course of Freedom (PE) party, led by Zoe Konstantopoulou, a former SYRIZA member, managed to enter the parliament with a program close to the radical views that SYRIZA advocated before it came to power.
  19. ^ a b "Minister Christos Stylianides causes a stir with "Cyprus is half Turkish" comment". Neos Kosmos. 22 February 2024. This comment garnered reactions from Greek and Cypriot politicians and parties, with far-right Ελληνική Λύση (Greek Solution) party MP Kostas Hitas saying he had been "left speechless" and left wing Course of Freedom party leader Zoe Konstantopoulou demanding a retraction.
  20. ^ a b Messinis, Aris (26 June 2023). "Conservatives win Greek elections". Azərbaycan24. Another newcomer in the legislature is the left-wing Course of Freedom party, whose leader Zoe Konstantopoulou briefly served as speaker in 2015.
  21. ^ a b "Postal Vote for Euro-Parliament Elex, Referendums Passed By Ruling Party Majority". To Vima. 24 January 2024. Voting in favor were all 158 MPs of ruling New Democracy (ND) party, while six deputies of the small left-wing "Plefsi Eleftherias" (Course of Freedom) party – founded and headed by former Parliament president Zoe Konstantopoulou – voted "present".
  22. ^ a b Maltezou, Renee (22 June 2023). Frances Kerry (ed.). "Explainer-Greece's election on Sunday: how the system works". SWI swissinfo. Opinion polls suggest that up to seven parties could enter parliament, including the leftist Plefsi Eleftherias, founded by former Syriza lawmaker Zoe Konstantopoulou, and a newly set up far-right party called Spartans.
  23. ^ [11][18][19][20][21][22]
  24. ^ Z. Konstantopoulou: "The attack on the Freedom Cruise is neither from within nor spontaneous" : "...the other parties are even stealing the slogans of Freedom of Navigation. In particular, "since 2019, we have been saying "we are neither looking to the right nor to the left, we are looking forward...", ERT, Ert-news 12 June 2023, Retrieved 22 June 2023
  25. ^ a b "Greece". Europe Elects. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
  26. ^ a b c Zoe Konstantopoulou: Mr. Tsipras is destroying the country : "Precisely how would Plefsi Eleftherias describe its political identity? Some critics say that you do not belong to the Left [...] We are a force that aims to overturn the establishment, and we are appealing to all democratically active citizens, without the walls of old-party divisions. We look neither to the Left nor the Right" in.gr 21 October 2018, Retrieved 24 June 2019
  27. ^ a b Evgenia Choros (15 April 2016). "Zoe Konstantopoulou to Present New Party 'Course to Freedom'". Greek Reporter. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  28. ^ "Ιδρυτική Διακήρυξη". Freedom Sailing. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  29. ^ Greeks not ready to give up the name Macedonia Kosovo 2.0 9 February 2018, Retrieved 29 June 2023
  30. ^ Konstantopoulou: I am not ceding my homeland, I am not erasing its history in.gr 19 January 2019. Retrieved 29 June 2023
  31. ^ "European elections 2019: The leaders of "I don't pay" on the Konstantopoulou ballot". CNN.gr. CNN. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  32. ^ "Konstantopoulou: The vote on Freedom Sailing will only be the beginning". CNN,gr. CNN. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  33. ^ Schminke, Tobias Gerhard (5 June 2023). "Greek centre-right set to win second election round". Euractiv.
  34. ^ "Greece working with UN to send aid to Gaza". ekathimerini.com. Kathimerini. 2 November 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  35. ^ "Z. Konstantopoulou: Freedom Sailing will be the voice of Palestine in our country". ERTNews. Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation. 2 November 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  36. ^ a b "Nine new hands and 12 old ones heading to Strasbourg". E-Kathimerini. Kathimerini. 10 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  37. ^ Greek ruling party heads toward split before bailout vote Reuters 13 August 2015, Retrieved 21 June 2023
  38. ^ "Meet The Latest Rising Greek Political Star Who Says No To Austerity". HuffPost. The Huffington Post. 24 July 2015. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  39. ^ "Zoe Konstantopoulou announces new party". themanews.com. Proto Thema. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  40. ^ "Greece: Can't pay, is paying". Red Pepper. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  41. ^ ""This is not a time for splitting up, but for convergence." An interview with Zoe Konstantopoulou". openDemocracy. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  42. ^ a b Konstantopoulou aims to double her party's vote Kathimerini, e-Kathimerini 28 May 2023, Retrieved 16 May 2023
  43. ^ Ruling New Democracy wins Greek elections, far-right make gains, pseudo-left Syriza routed World Socialist Web Site 26 June 2023, Retrieved 27 June 2023
  44. ^ a b "Party leaders agree on a second poll". No. 25 May 2023. Kathimerini. e-Kathimerini. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  45. ^ "With Resounding Win in Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis Tightens Grip on Power". The New York Times. 25 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  46. ^ "Greece: Parties at a glance". PolitPro. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  47. ^ "Greek prime minister earns resounding electoral win, as far right makes gains". Edition CNN. CNN. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  48. ^ The true message from the ballot box Kathimerini, e-Kathimerini 27 June 2023, Retrieved 29 June 2023
  49. ^ a b "The underground of new parties in the European Parliament". EUnews. 10 June 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  50. ^ a b Aims and expectations in Sunday's election Kathimerini, e-Kathimerini 21 May 2023, Retrieved 21 June 2023
  51. ^ a b "Greek Conservatives win big in parliamentary elections". Brussels Signal. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  52. ^ New elections in Greece: How owls carry to Athens Die Tageszeitung (taz.de) 24 May 2023, Retrieved 1 July 2023
  53. ^ "Greek Election: No good News for migrants and refugees". Lens.Civicus.org. CIVICUS. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  54. ^ Mitsotakis before his second term 26 June 2023 Die Tageszeitung (taz.de) , Retrieved 8 September 2023
  55. ^ Conservative New Democracy wins majority in Greek parliamentary elections, far-right makes gains The People's Dispatch 26 June 2023, Retrieved 26 June 2023
  56. ^ "Poll gives New Democracy 15.1-point lead over SYRIZA". E-Kathimerini. Kathimerini. 6 June 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  57. ^ Poll gives New Democracy 21.5-point lead over SYRIZA Kathimerini, e-Kathimerini 23/06/20230, Retrieved 26 June 2023
  58. ^ [1] Kathimerini, e-Kathimerini 13/06/20230, Retrieved 27 June 2023
  59. ^ Populist Right Finds Fertile Ground in Greece Agenda Pūblica 26 June 2023, Retrieved 27 June 2023
  60. ^ "New Democracy Victory Reinforces Political Continuity in Greece". FitchSolutions.com. BMI Research. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  61. ^ Why the Left Fell and the Right Rose in Greece, Politics Today, 31 July 2023, Retrieved 15 September 2023
  62. ^ a b Ιδρυτική Διακήρυξη Πλεύσης Ελευθερίας The Founding Declaration of Course of Freedom
  63. ^ "'I don't pay' movement by Zoe Konstantopoulou". Parapolitika [el]. 7 February 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  64. ^ Greek debt 'illegal, illegitimate and odious' BBC, BBC News 18 June 2015, Retrieved 24 June 2023
  65. ^ "Zoe Konstantopoulou: "The greek debt is illegal and should not be paid"". Euronews. 23 October 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  66. ^ "Why Greece's Syriza party is not sticking to the script on an IMF deal". Channel 4. Channel Four Television Corporation. 21 May 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  67. ^ Hellenic Parliament's Debt Truth Committee Preliminary Findings – Executive Summary of the report Hellenic Parliament Press Office 17 June 2015, Retrieved 24 June 2023
  68. ^ Greek parliament votes in support of Macedonia name change : "Zoe Konstantopoulou, former parliamentary speaker for Syriza and now leader of the pseudo-left Course of Freedom (Plevsi Eleftherias), called in the newspaper Ta Nea for a referendum on the deal.", World Socialist Web Site 30 January 2019, Retrieved 30 June 2023
  69. ^ "Surprise performance for two minor parties". eKathimerini. Καθημερινή. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  70. ^ "Konstantopoulou: I will close all the media and confiscate the assets of those who put us in the Memoranda". Proto Thema. 28 October 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  71. ^ "Konstantopoulou proposed citizen participation in public order bodies". Parapolitika. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  72. ^ "Parliament: Broad consensus on same-sex marriage bill – Which parties say "yes" and which "no"". SKAI. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  73. ^ "Greek opposition parties push government to recognize Palestine". E-Kathimerini. Kathimerini. 23 May 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
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