Unity, not division
It is odd how passionately some people reacted to Thursday’s pro-Europe rally in Syntagma Square.
The often-vehement reactions to the gathering first and foremost reveal a deeply undemocratic mind-set. Democracy has functioned well in this country since 1974. Everyone has the right to their opinion, to protest and to mobilize. If there are those who want to impose establishment-dictated restrictions on what one should or should not believe, they should get Greece ousted from the Europe Union first. But the large pro-European majority in the country, irrespective of who they vote for, will not let them do that.
The prime minister should come forward and condemn this repression of free expression and rhetoric of division. He should realize that his biggest ally in the negotiations is the mass of people who believe in the country’s European prospects and the possibility of an honest compromise.
If he allows these phenomena to grow out of control, division is a risk. After all, our anxiety about the future should unite us, not revive nightmares of the past.
