Maria Karystianou, the leader of the Greek political movement Elpida gia ti Dimokratia (Hope for Democracy), said on Monday that she has evidence of an organized effort to undermine the party, including messages showing that certain people approached the movement with deliberate intent.
Speaking on the Greek television channel OPEN, Karystianou was responding to criticism that followed the departure of several senior members of the movement, as well as accusations that it operates under a single-leader model.
She said there had been indications that people would come to try to take over the movement, adding that there were even plans for organized interventions, including occupying a space with television crews present and pressuring the party to hold a congress before it had been properly prepared.
Karystianou became a prominent public figure in Greece as a leading voice among the families of victims of the February 2023 Tempi train crash before founding Elpida gia ti Dimokratia earlier this year.
"I don't speak without proof"
Karystianou said her public accusations were based on evidence rather than assumptions. She said she does not come out to speak easily unless she has proof, and she called on those criticizing the way the movement is run to present equivalent evidence for their own accusations.
She said her side would present the data it holds on what she described as events that took place behind the scenes.
On the addition of her own name to the movement's title, she explained that the decision had been made only two days earlier. She said it had not originally been her wish, but was judged necessary to protect the project from possible attempts to control it or change its direction.
Allegations over rallies and money
Karystianou also referred, without naming the person, to a former official of the movement in Thessaloniki. She said this person had reportedly called on citizens to attend rallies and asked them for money, claiming the funds were intended for her.
She called on anyone who had paid money under these circumstances to contact the movement so the matter could be examined.
She added that candidacies for the party's electoral lists have not yet been determined, and that anyone asking for money while promising an electoral candidacy is not acting on behalf of Elpida gia ti Dimokratia.
"Decisions are made by the Political Council"
Responding to accusations of centralized control, Karystianou said decisions are made by the movement's Political Council, whose members, she said, come from different political and ideological backgrounds.
She said she had not personally known more than half of the members who had left the movement.
She said there was nothing more democratic and transparent than this process, adding that accusations made without specific evidence amount to slander. She said she was waiting to hear proof, since claims without evidence are slander, and repeated that she had not personally known more than half of those who had departed.
Elections and the Thessaloniki fair
On the movement's electoral plans, Karystianou was clear that Elpida gia ti Dimokratia will take part in the next elections, telling OPEN that of course the party will run.
She said an initial framework of core positions and priorities would be presented at the Thessaloniki International Fair, with the full program to follow later. The fair is an annual trade and political event in northern Greece traditionally used by the prime minister and other party leaders to set out policy.
She linked this approach to her view that some of the movement's policy proposals have in the past been adopted by other political spaces, including the party of Alexis Tsipras, the former Greek prime minister.
What she said about abortion
The discussion also turned to earlier remarks Karystianou had made on the issue of abortion.
She said her position had been presented differently from what she intended to convey, and made clear that there was no question of repealing women's right to abortion.
She said the issue was linked to Greece's demographic problem, and that the state should provide women facing an unwanted pregnancy with more information and more options.
She said no one takes away anyone's rights, and that the law on the matter is very clear and unambiguous.
