Leader of Opposition, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, New Democracy, on the occasion of the 43rd anniversary of restoration of Democracy at the Presidential Palace in Athens, Greece on Monday, July 24, 2017. NurPhoto/Press Association. All rights reserved.Greece has had more than its fair share of European and international headlines during the past years of crisis and austerity. Whether it was a looming bankruptcy, another bailout programme, mass protests or the complete realignment of its political system, commentators around the world were quick to catch up with developments in the sunny corner of the Mediterranean.
But the last couple of years have seemed rather ‘quiet,’ giving the impression that not much is happening any more in the austerity-ridden country. Greece seems to have left deficits behind, with the economy slowly growing again, while EU Summits and Eurogroup sessions have lost their thriller-like character, reaching one positive resolution after the other on the country’s third adjustment programme anticipated to conclude in the summer of 2018.
Who is to blame for today’s polarisation?
Yet, someone taking a closer look at Greece nowadays will soon notice that the climate in the public sphere has become extremely polarised if not toxic. And it is not just the SYRIZA-led government to blame for this newfound toxicity. To be sure, both SYRIZA and ANEL, the two unlikely partners in government, have consistently pursued sharply antagonistic strategies, both while in opposition and after ascending to power in 2015, tirelessly attacking their political opponents who they depict as the ‘old party establishment.’
