Tzannis Tzannetakis - Prime Minister, 2nd July - 7 October 1989

7 October 1989

The Greek legislative election, June 1989 left the PASOK party of Andreas Papandreou in the minority, following a series of government scandals. New Democracy, however, now led by Constantine Mitsotakis, could not form a government despite its significant lead in the popular vote, because of changes to Greek electoral law that PASOK had voted into effect before the elections. The result was the formation of the first coalition government since the fall of the Greek dictatorship in 1974 and the first government to include tbe communist left snce 1944.

The government was based on an alliance between ND and the Coalition of Forces of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos), which then included the Communist Party of Greece, with a mandate to conduct a clean-up ("katharsis") after the scandals. The agreement was for a short-term government which would last only until the process of parliamentary investigation of those Members of Parliament accused of involvement in the scandals had been completed. Tzannetakis was a compromise candidate for Prime Minister, given that the left refused to accept Mitsotakis in this role. In contrast, Tzannetakis was acceptable to the left because of his credentials from the anti-Junta resistance. In addition to the premiership, Tzannetakis also retained the portfolios of Foreign Affairs and of Tourism.

The formation of a government bringing together the Greek right and the communist left was regarded as symbolising national reconciliation after the 1940s civil war. One of the government's acts was to burn all the secret police files held on Greek citizens during the post-Civil War period.

The parliamentary investigation into the scandals concluded with the lifting of the parliamentary immunity of several former government ministers, including former Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou himself, and their referral to the justice system. This was the first time that a former Greek Prime Minister had ever been referred for trial.

The Tzannetakis government also abolished the state monopoly on TV broadcasting and allowed private TV stations to function for the first time.