An evening with "L'Altra Europa con Tsipras"

Published on Friday, 04 April 2014 18:29

Alexis Tsipras delivered a speech at a crowded venue in Palermo, Italy where various members of the political parties of the Left, representatives of the trade unions of FIAT and FIOM, MEP Rita Borsellino-Democratic Party (sister of late judge Paolo Borsellino, killed by a Mafia car bomb in 1992) and members of the public of all the ages shared their enthusiasm for the Greek leader of SYRIZA and candidate for the presidency of the European Commission. Tsipras addressed the audience after an introduction by Marco Reveli, where the well-known Italian intellectual stated that, “Greece is the tragic outcome of the European austerity policies, but at the same time, is a brilliant paradigm for the Left. SYRIZA overcame the fragmentation and marginalization of the Left, and in a short period of time will be the first truly Left government in Europe.”

Alexis Tsipras, candidate for the presidency of the European Commission on behalf of the European Left, said that SYRIZA’s electoral victory will be emblematic for all European countries, heralding the beginning of the end of the austerity-era in Europe. “In the upcoming elections, we vote for Europe, for our societies, for our own lives,” Tsipras declared, emphasizing the significance of the May elections.

According to Tsipras, the European Left is the only political party that places high importance on the need for an alternative plan to the EU's current mode of governance, and highlighted that the May elections are crucial because the results will define Europe’s future. He continued, “We are struggling for the ‘realistic utopia’, not only for the prospect of the left governance, but also for the project of the left hegemony.”

The real dilemma of the Parliamentary elections, according to Tsipras is, “What will be decided is whether Europe will continue to regress under the neoliberal management of crisis, or will flourish again with new policies.”

Referencing the recent drowning tragedies in the Mediterranean, Tsipras called for changes in European migration policy: “Europe cannot afford any other ‘Lampedusa’. Europe cannot take another ‘Farmakonisi’. It is a shame that the Mediterranean has become a cemetery of immigrants”.

Tsipras also made mention of the phenomenon of right-wing extremism, noting that it is inherent element of the current political establishment. Using Greece as an example to prove his point, Tsipras cited that the far-right “closely co-operates with the establishment, as it was revealed in Greece, where the secret communication between Samaras' government and the neo-Nazis of the Golden Dawn was recently exposed. The far-right serves as the long arm of neoliberalism. The supporters of the far-right don’t oppose the system that produces the inequality, but instead choose to target immigrants."

Links

corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it

livesicilia.it

listatsipras.eu