You are correct that Syriza’s victory represents a widespread rejection of austerity (Editorial, 26 January), but I think mistaken about the party being far-left. It has attracted new members extremely quickly, most coming from the centrist Pasok (the majority of new Syriza MPs resemble, if anything in UK politics, someone like David Owen), although conservatives and those on the right have been welcomed too. It might well be that, despite having spent the past few years implementing troika measures, the new MPs have now realised the error of their ways. But it might also be that Syriza has become a convenient bandwagon on which to jump.There is one genuinely far-left Greek party – KKE, which got around 7% of the vote – and is implacably opposed to membership of the EU and the euro. The fact that Syriza did not contemplate a deal with KKE, but did a deal with a rightwing party, might be illustrative of how far Syriza is actually willing to push back against the euro, the EU and the troika, despite the appalling humanitarian crisis caused by the conditions attached to the “bailout” (which on a bad day simply looks like the looting of a nation). Whatever happens next, it won’t be driven by a coalition dominated by the far-left.Dr Scott AnthonyShaftesbury, Dorset Continue reading...
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