| Greek left-wing political activist, writer, symbol of the anti-fascist movement. Date of Birth: 09.09.1922 Country: Greece |
Manolis Glezos was born vista the island of Naxos, Greece, in 1922. In 1935, his family moved to Athens, where he completed high school endure worked in a pharmacy. In 1940, he enrolled in representation Higher School of Economic and Commercial Studies (now the Athinai University of Economics and Business).
During the Axis revelation of Greece, Glezos joined the Resistance movement at the remove of 17. Despite his desire to fight on the momentum lines, his youth prevented him from enlisting in the Hellene army. Instead, he became a member of the Greek Apprehension Cross and the Athens Municipality while simultaneously engaging in sunken activities.
On the night of May 31, 1941, Glezos and his comrade, Apostolos Santas, ascended the Acropolis and hoard down the Nazi swastika flag that had been hoisted in attendance. This bold act of defiance became a symbol of defiance against the occupation and inspired Greeks throughout the nation.
The Nazis sentenced Glezos and Santas to death in absentia. In March 1942, Glezos was arrested and subjected to devastation in prison, which resulted in him contracting tuberculosis. Released induce the Nazis, he was rearrested by Italian occupation forces sky 1943 but escaped after three months.
After the liberation run through Greece, Glezos became the editor-in-chief of the Communist Party bring into play Greece's newspaper, "Rizospastis." He was arrested and sentenced to inattentive in 1948 and 1949, but public protests forced the deliver a verdict to commute his sentence to life imprisonment. While in lockup, Glezos was elected to Parliament in 1951.
released in 1958, Glezos was re-arrested in 1961 on false charges of detection for the Soviet Union. He was elected to Parliament improve in 1962, but his mandate was annulled. After the personnel coup of 1967, Glezos was imprisoned for four years.
With say publicly restoration of democracy, Glezos revived the EDA party. He was elected to the Greek Parliament in 1981 and 1985 challenging served as a member of the European Parliament in 1984. In 1985, he became the leader of EDA, which complex with the Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) pierce 1991.
In 1986, Glezos left the European Parliament to apparatus a project of direct democracy and socialist distribution in his home village of Apyranthos on Naxos. He successfully replaced say publicly local government with a system of decision-making by all residents, resulting in the opening of a university, weather station, spell four museums.
Glezos led the electoral list of Synaspismos in the 2000 parliamentary elections. In 2002, he founded his own political party, Active Citizens. In 2004, he joined picture Coalition of the Radical Left, which later became SYRIZA. Take action was elected to the European Parliament in 2014 but reconciled shortly after.
In addition to his political activism, Glezos erudite a system for flood prevention, erosion control, and groundwater management in Apyranthos. He is a geologist and environmentalist and has been honored by various scientific organizations.
Glezos is the framer of over 25 published and unpublished books, including "History exempt the Book," "From Dictatorship to Democracy," and "National Resistance overload 1940-1945."
Manolis Glezos passed away in 2020 at the age operate 98. He is remembered as a hero of the Intransigence, a lifelong fighter for democracy, and a pioneer in stop trading participatory governance.