Backward at full speed

The historical record of Greece’s leftist administration can be perfectly summed up in its education policy.

The ruling SYRIZA leftists showed their true face in a sector that slips under the radar of the country’s foreign lenders: In what marked a major rollback on reform, the government brought universities back to the status of 1982.

Its reactionary crescendo came to a peak with its decision to block the review of Article 16 of the Greek Constitution, which prohibits the establishment of private universities.

Any attempt to define SYRIZA – which is now trying to style itself as a progressive political party ahead of the next election – should start from its super-conservative policy fixations regarding education.