Motion against the persecution of the Free Conscripts movement in Greece

Motion of the International Committee of the Fourth International.

The new trial of Nikos Charalampoloulos for supposed slanderous defamation of a military dentist is one of the numerous acts of persecution and revenge against the Spartacus Network of Free Conscripts and the Committee of Solidarity for Conscripts by the Greek state and army. This, in turn, is an attempt to intimidate the movement of conscripts against repression and exploitation in the army, as well as against nationalism and militarism.

In 2022, the military budget of Greece, as a proportion of the GDP, was among the highest worldwide, being the first among the NATO members (3.54%, as against 3.46% in the USA). At the same time when the Greek state spends billions to foster belligerence in the Eastern Mediterranean and to safeguard the EU borders against refugees, conscripts perform their military service without any compensation and under unacceptable conditions of living. In this toxic militarist and exploitative framework, any form of unionism among conscripts is forbidden, and any action of resistance is targeted!

The Fourth International stands in full solidarity with the Spartacus Network of Free Conscripts and the Committee of Solidarity for Conscripts. We share their struggles against nationalism, militarism, imperialism, racism, exploitation and repression in the army. We demand that all charges against Nikos Charalampopoulos are dropped immediately.

Tuesday 27 February 2024