GREECE

‘Our people have not been broken’

lOllowing ;
Ing is intervi
the g an interview

°VOsti Press Agency
; te clans, First Secre-
€ntral Committee of

Munist Party of Greece.

Meets! the situation in
a at present, four
ii, 2 half months after

ic ‘fascist coup?’

Bry tion is very grave.
foe going through

8. They are suffering
Oke of fascist tyran-

|, Military junta, which

a With the force of

Sol of the aggressive

y erican imperialism,
0, and also of the

local Oligarchy of

to ie have sold them-

a, “Igners. In the four

ghlte t, Ith have elapsed
i SCist coup, the dic-
ik already shown by

titty a its aim, as was
bihhanet® by our. Party,

A 4, Y Serve the inter-

cf local and foreign

ft, | 2cilitate the imple-
Of the schemes of

ana Petialism in the

; tie the eastern part
ttysh wenean Sea, for-

Fz —

( bags NA 0 chariots.
icy Cus consequences
0a aprhich is directed
Nheres lave already told
SPY op Of state and pub-
te rece’ the nation’s
‘stant M the imperialists
ealth easing: the
\ ca Seta being sold
the 4. Ropolies, and, first
‘ ita €tican monopolies;
‘It Aud Of the working
M goons Still crueler,
homic position is
Rgerous signs of
Micrag, peeating, and
tablish trading and in-
S u ments are going
lamatsst characteristic
ib, g le fact that the
ite gyPite all its ef-
iy Ae - Social and na-
Ayits f eC8Y: could not
fs Colla none the people
A Wor} Orations in the
oun” JUst like it could
‘ fh th “oe internal

} q e)

te" ov as r hand, our
se juntee blow dealt
rt 4S fascist at-

wt? jun cP. resistance
ere is an
8 ordination
in! fore! all the anti-
‘Of thee? €nd for the
tins S© forces into a
hygtit front,

ft lan >. is following

‘ge cammush it, is step-
; Dergapi8n of fascist
rough ction, which it
3 Moment the country

het it seized

fy trop “Up Campaign of
arbitrary rule

x Tetineg wentist lead-
Beit Office, nerals and

eects.
Ms f° Much talk in

) .
the ! Ga Teactionary

Posits © And abroad
oy a Of the royal
alleged good

Ut

intentions and good initiative of
King Constantine. This is being
done, first of all, with the object
of exonerating him from blame
for the present situation, and,
secondly, of saving the monar-
chy -in case of the overthrow of
the dictatorship. However, the
royal court, irrespective of the
differences with the colonels’
junta, differences which do not
change the essence of the mat-
ter, is greatly responsible for
the Constitution being trampled
and for a fascist dictatorship
being set up in the country. It

is impossible to conceal this and

phase. The fascist junta is has-
tening to carry out the pledges
which it made to its patrons—
the U.S. imperialists and NATO
— the patrons who are try-
ing to incorporate Cyprus in the
system of their nuclear missile
bases in the Mediterranean. In
that way the U.S. imperialists
would like to implement the
plans aimed against.the socialist
countries, anti-imperialist and
democratic movements in that
area.

The Israeli aggression against
the Arab countries, an aggres-
sion made at the instigation,

nciorecesd Democracy” by Erich Enge, GDR.

it is impossible to forgive this.
Our Party (even when no
other party shared this view)
declared that the monarchy has
always been playing this part.
At present the court is streng-
thening its ties with the junta.
Alarmed by the growing isola-
tion of the dictatorship inside
the country and abroad and
frightened by the development
of the movement against the
dictatorship, the local reaction-
ary forces, prompted by the

‘court, raised clamour in connec-

tion with King Constantine’s trip
to the USA and in connection
with the “revision” of the Con-
stitution and the alleged ‘‘resto-
ration” of parliamentarism in
Greece.

The Greek people will not let
itself be fooled by such maneu-
vers, just as it will not agree to
a single decision which is being
planned in secret so as to white-
wash the dictatorship and pro-
vide it with some kind of “con-
stitutional” or “parliamentary”
grab.

What influence did the fascist
dictatorship in Greece and its
policy have on the Cyprus ques-
tion?

The fascist dictatorship. in
Greece has rendered complicated
the Cyprus problem which is
now in an extremely critical

with the help of and at the
instructions of the Anglo-Ameri-
can imperialists, showed even
more clearly the essence of the
policy of American imperialism.
These attempts are coming up
against the resistance of the peo-
ple of Cyprus and its govern-
ment, and that is why the junta
is preparing, under the guidance
and with the help of the CIA, a
fascist coup on Cyprus. There is
a threat of extensive bloodshed
on Cyprus which is quite a tense
area in the world as it is. That is
why, besides increasing vigi-
lance and intensifying the strug-
gle of the peoples of Cyprus and
Greece, it is also necessary to
increase international vigilance
and render ever growing support
to the cause of a just and peace-
ful settlement of the Cyprus is-
sue for the purpose of recogniz-
ing the independence and the
sovereignty of Cyprus, removing
foreign bases and troops from
its territory and reaffirming the
right of its- people to shape its
future for itself.

What is the way proposed by
the Communist Party of Greece
out of the present situation, and
what methods it regards now as
most effective?

The Communist Party of
Greece considers that the way:
out of the present exceptionally

difficult situation is in toppling
as soon as possible the fascist
dictatorship, restoring democ-
racy and opening the road to
normal and steady democratic
development. This will take
place all the sooner if our
people fight energetically, if all
the parties, all the democratic
and anti-dictatorship forces join
their efforts in the best and the
closest possible way. Such a join-
ing of forces is possible only on
the basis of a joint anti-dictator-
ship democratic program. This
program, in our opinion, can be
implemented if all the parties
fight simultaneously, parallelly.
and collectively.

To promote efforts towards
this end, our Party has proposed
to all anti-dictatorship forces a
program consisting of the fol-
lowing points:

| overthrow of the dictator.

—reinstitution of constitution: |

al and democratic freedoms; |

freedom of action for all
ios.

estys

nding of the junta;
“unc rd.

Proposing this program our
Party is fully aware that, apart
from the items included into it,
there are other problems as well.
Considering that today it is the
overthrow of the fascist dicta-
torship that is of primary im-
portance, the Party is ready to
examine any proposal from any
side, if this will promote large-
scale anti-dictatorship unity and
cooperation.

We have already scored cer-
tain progress in our work to rally
anti-fascist forces: a Patriotic
Front has already been built up
of representatives of the Left-
Centre and Right-wing parties
and has launched its struggle
against the dictatorship. Efforts
to attain nation-wide patriotic
cooperation in Greece, as well as
abroad, where there is a large
number of Greek settlers, stu-
dents, intellectuals and political
emigrees, are growing more
active.

Our Party considers the
chief prerequisite of success to
be in that all the parties and
political leaders waging a strug-
gle against the dictatorship
should draw the necessary les-
son from the past and from the
present severe trials of our peo-
ple. Our Party will not stop in-
vesting all efforts to pursuade
other democratic and all other
parties, groups and their leaders,
who come out against the dic-
tatorship, of the necessity of
cooperating within the frame-
work of a broad patriotic anti-
dictatorship front. We proceed
from the fact that within this
front each and every party and
group retains fully its indepen-
dence, but will struggle jointly
for one and the same coordina-
ted aim.

In these hard days of ruth-
less persecution, when the jun-
ta is dealing its main blow at

y¥

October 6, '1:967—-PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Poae 9

the Communists — unflinching
fighters, standard-bearers of
unity and inspirers and organi-
zers of the people’s struggle
against the dictatorship — our
Party emphasizes: we consider
the establishment of strong ille-
gal organizations of the Com-
munist Party of Greece to be
our primary and paramount
duty.

We appeal to all Communists
to help organizing all Left for-
ces. There are various views on
the forms and methods for over-
throwing the dictatorship. We
consider that we must not and
cannot exclude in advance one
or another form of struggle. In
accordance with the situation it
is essential to make use of all
forms without exception, from
simplest to the most resolute.
Our Party’ had stressed at its
Eighth Congress, by the way,
that under certain, definite con-
ditions attention should also be
paid to non-peaceful forms of
struggle. This applies to the pre-
sent conditions too, of course.

Such is the way proposed by
our Party out of the present
situation. We consider that the
outcome of anti-fascist struggle
will be decided by the unity and
struggle of our people, of all
the anti-dictatorship forces with-
in the country. That is why we
concentrate our main efforts
along this line.

I convey our profound grati-
tude to all democrats, anti-
fascists and all people of good
will who support our people in
these hard days. We have faith
that this solidarity and support
will be growing wider and

- stronger, will acquire ever more

resolute forms, and will exert
a great influence on our inter-
nal situation in the interests of
the forces of democracy and pro-
gress. Of particularly great value
to us is the movement of the
world public for saving and re-
lease of all the fighters whom
the dictatorship has thrown into
prisons and concentration camps
and who are threatened with
savage reprisals.

Our people have not been
broken and shall never be
broken, despite brutal persecu-
tion by fascist tyranny. Fascism
Shall not take roots in the coun-
try where Democracy was born.
Fascism will be wiped out by
the joint forces of the Greek
people supported by the world
democratic public.

Although the Greek
tary regime claims that
number of political pri:
ers in custody is 2,500, |
real figure is between 3,
and 6,000, said a member
the executive committee
Amnesty _ International
Rome recently.

Dr. Gustave Comba, w
went to Greece last we
appeal for the rights of p
tical prisoners guaran
by the U.N. Charter,
the prisoners “cannot t
their lawyers and there’
cannot defend themse
properly.” . :

“Also,” he said,
government does not allo
them to know exactly
charges they are fac

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