The government places the issue of security and political violence high on the agenda, on the occasion of the murder of Vagia Nestora in Thessaloniki, and seeks to highlight the tackling of lawlessness as a central political stake.In this light, the “law and order” doctrine returns to the forefront, which has long been a key element of the policy of the Maximos Mansion and is endorsed by the vast majority of citizens from whom it seeks the vote in electoral processes.
In this specific case, the priority is the swift solving of the case and the arrest of all those involved, physical and moral perpetrators. In the government staff, they believe that the effectiveness of the Hellenic Police in this particular case will constitute a decisive test of the credibility of the strategy followed in recent years to deal with violence and terrorism.
In his Sunday post, Kyriakos Mitsotakis wanted to send the message that the government’s choice to confront lawlessness is not going to change, arguing that the policy implemented since 2019 has provoked reactions from those who seek destabilization. The Maximos Mansion treats this murderous attack as a direct challenge to democratic normality and makes it clear that those responsible will be identified, referring to the dismantling of “17 November” and the dissolution of Golden Dawn.
Divisive rhetoric
At the same time, the prime minister sought to connect the case with the overall political climate, arguing that toxicity and extreme divisive rhetoric can function as factors that favor violence. In this way, the government seeks to open a broader political discussion around the limits of public confrontation and the responsibilities of the political system in shaping an environment that leaves no room for tolerance of extreme practices, in practice calling on all parties to assume their responsibilities toward citizens.
In the same direction moved the government spokesperson, Pavlos Marinakis, who set as a basic priority the full investigation of the case by the prosecuting authorities, so that Justice may proceed on the basis of complete evidentiary material. At the same time, he argued that the murder cannot be examined in isolation from a series of attacks and incidents of political violence in recent years, maintaining that such actions were often treated with leniency or relativized in public discourse.
Dealing with political violence, they insist on arguing in the government, cannot be limited to condemning the most extreme incidents, but requires a clear rejection of every form of delinquency, from attacks on political figures and journalists to occupations and violent actions in university spaces. In this context, they once again issue a call for a common stance toward the application of the law, without ideological exceptions or differentiations. Something, of course, which they consider certain will not be accepted by most -at least- opposition parties.