The use of a picture of Pavlos Fyssas, who was murdered by Golden Dawn member Giorgos Roupakias in September, in a poster of PASOK’s youth division has caused the immediate reaction from the Fyssas family.
The poster, which also features the pictures of Grigoris Lamprakis, Sotiris Petroulas and Nikos Temponeras, was created by the youth division for the 40th anniversary celebrations of the Athens Polytechnic uprising in 1973 that heralded the collapse of the seven-year dictatorship.
The Fyssas family lawyer Giorgos Marangos condemned the use of the photo and accused the PASOK youth party of attempting to hi-jack the tragic murder: “This caused us surprise, anger and indignation. Fyssas did not belong to them for them to put him on their party posters. He was not a part of their politics and furthermore, he was deeply against the bailouts”.
The PASOK youth division responded that Pavlos Fyssas is a symbol for the struggle for democracy and that “symbols belong to the people”. PASOK MP Panagiotis Rigas explained that while Fyssas’ death is related to the Athens Polytechnic uprising, as part of the overall struggle against fascism, he objected to the poster.
