When the criminal organisation Golden Dawn decided to establish a branch in Cyprus, it entrusted the task to a very trusted associate of convicted organiser Michaloliakos, Christos Christou.
Christou was not just an ordinary member of Golden Dawn but part of the “elite” guard unit of the neo‑Nazi party leader. He appears in numerous photographs standing by his side, and he was also a member of Golden Dawn’s political council at a time when it operated as a closed circle.
As later revealed in 2016 by fellow convicted organiser Ilias Kasidiaris, Christou came through the same “school” as him. The so‑called “Golden Dawn school” in Solonos Street, near Exarchia, where he had been active during his student years in Athens in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
For those with short memories, it is worth recalling that ELAM’s first attempt to register as a political party in Cyprus was under the name “Golden Dawn Cyprus”, a request which the state rightly rejected.
They were subsequently rebranded as ELAM, but in their early years they functioned as little more than a local branch of the Athens‑based neo‑Nazi organisation. Their first constitution remains undisclosed to this day.
Golden Dawn MPs frequently travelled to Cyprus to speak at ELAM events, and there is extensive photographic material documenting identical activities carried out by the two organisations.
It is also remembered that on 18 September 2013, following the murder of Pavlos Fyssas by Golden Dawn member Roupakias, who acted under orders from the organisation’s leadership, Christou appeared on television attempting to justify the unjustifiable.
Just days earlier, before Greek authorities had arrested his associates, he had openly stated: “We are Golden Dawn Cyprus, we have never hidden it. We have excellent cooperation and we consider the Greek nationalist movement a brother movement.”
When asked whether he agreed with the actions of Golden Dawn MPs, he replied, “Yes, I agree.”
Even a year later, he continued to claim on television that “the truth will shine” and that Golden Dawn members would be vindicated, describing them as “hope for Greece” and stating that they stood by them “in difficult times because they believe in them.”
Starting from the present, ELAM today has 'forgotten' everything about Golden Dawn, denies any link and has rebranded itself to remove any shadow. Those who believe them can continue to do so. Fascists do not change so easily, as their behaviour continues to show even today.
They have even distanced themselves from their former allies in pursuit of power, abandoning both their leaders and figures such as Kasidiaris and Lagos.
Today, just days before parliamentary elections, and unfortunately for a large part of the political system, ELAM is no longer treated as a neo‑Nazi or fascist formation but as just another political force.
They have been fully normalised, with political actors cooperating with them and looking towards alliances for access to power, from the presidency to the leadership of parliament.
On Sunday night, some will see the face of the monster again and will not be afraid, perhaps because they have started to resemble it.
Cast your vote wisely.
