The government tightens its grip on the Golden Dawn

In his statement today PM Antonis Samaras condemned the brutal murder of Pavlos Fyssas and assured that "the government is determined not to allow the heirs of the Nazis to poison our social life, to commit crimes, terrorize and undermine the foundations of the country that gave birth to Democracy."

Samaras urged everyone to avoid tension, inflammatory statements and violence, wherever they come from, and said that this is no time for infighting.

The PM added: "We all know that the country is in an extremely critical moment. And that the Greek people endure the greatest sacrifices to beat the crisis and achieve economic regeneration. Any political disputes must be solved through democratic dialogue, not with incendiary disputes, nor by force, no matter where it comes from, and not with blood, which divides us inside our own country and exposes us outside of Greece. I have been fighting and will fight to the end to stop the upslope of sacrifices for the Greek people. However, the downhill of violence destroys any prospect for Greece to acquire what it deserves: development, peace and prosperity. So let everyone of us respect the people, their labors and their sacrifices. Democracy is much more powerful than what its enemies imagine."

Nikos Dendias forwarded to the prosecutor a file containing information on the activities of the Golden Dawn

Public Order Minister Nikos Dendias took today the first step in order to initiate legal proceedings against the Golden Dawn in its characterization as a "criminal organization" by PM Antonis Samaras and vice PM Evangelos Venizelos.

Dendias forwarded to the Prosecution a file with police data and newspaper articles that relate to the organization and action of the Golden Dawn, in order to initiate the statutory procedures against the party if there is sufficient evidence.

According to Dendias the actions of the Golden Dawn "seem to be peculiar to a criminal association and the exercise of organized criminal activity."

As he says, "the activity described in the letter of the State Security, diverts from the limits of individual incidents, it provokes the public sentiment, undermines the authority of State law, infringes human rights and human dignity and endangers the public order and security of Greece."

The Public Order minister says that the behavior and practice of the members of the Golden Dawn expose the democratic tradition and legal culture of Greece.

"Tackling this behavior requires alertness of the State and the activation of all necessary means provided in the Constitution, the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure" Dendias adds.