Communist Youth of Greece


The Communist Youth of Greece is the youth organization of the Communist Party of Greece. It is a Marxist-Leninist organization which mainly seeks to familiarize the youth of Greece with the policies of the KKE.
It publishes the monthly magazine Odigitis which operates as the Organ of the Central Council of KNE. The annual panhellenic festival of the organization gets its name from this magazine.
KNE is a member of the World Federation of Democratic Youth.
WWW kne.gr

History

KNE was founded on 15 September 1968, with a decision of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the KKE, during the Greek military junta of 1967–74, as an organization of youth with revolutionary and communist features.
It is the historical continuation of OKNE, of all the organizations of youth which had already taken part in people's struggle in Greece, such as EPON, DNE, D.N. "Lambrakis".
In 1989-1991, a deep crisis shocked KNE and the KKE. In autumn 1989, disagreeing with the participation of the KKE in the Tzannetakis and Zolotas national unity governments, a large group, including the major part of KNE under its secretary-general, from the KKE and formed the New Left Current. The KKE, then part of the Synaspismos coalition, attempted to dissolve KNE into the Synaspismos Youth League. Later in 1991, the KKE left the coalition, purged all non-hardliners, and restored KNE with the efforts of some hundreds of members. In March 1993, the 6th Congress of the Organization took place.
In the late 2000s, KNE decided to constitute MAS which was finally founded by students' organizations in Athens, 6 November 2009.

The Congresses of KNE

  • 1st Congress
  • 2nd Congress
  • 3rd Congress
  • 4th Congress
  • 5th Congress
  • 6th Congress "The hope is in our struggle, with the KKE we open the road to the future"
  • 7th Congress "Youth's counter-attack to imperialism, with the KKE for Socialism"
  • 8th Congress "Youth dynamic in struggle with working class and the people, for the Front, for the Socialism"
  • 9th Congress -
  • 10th Congress - "Communism is the youth of the world, KNE our organization"
  • 11th Congress - "Pioneer youth of the KKE - combatively en route for the socialist tomorrow - without crises, wars, exploitation"
  • 12th Congress - "Even more, more capable, we pave the way for what is truly contemporary and young, for a world “worthy of our dreams, and worthy of our people”, Socialism!"
  • 13th Congress - "We are the spark that will turn darkness into light!"

List of Secretaries of the Central Council

The Secterary of the Central Council of KNE is the highest position in the organization, respective to the role of the General Secretary of the Central Committee in communist parties, such as the mother party of KNE.
  1. Dimitris Tsiaras
  2. Dimitris Gontikas
  3. Spyros Chalvatzis
  4. Giorgos Grapsas
  5. Takis Theodorikakos
  6. Nikos Sofianos
  7. Themis Gionis
  8. Giannis Protoulis
  9. Thodoris Chionis
  10. Nikos Abatielos
  11. Thodoris Kotsantis

KNE-Odigitis Festival

The Festival of the Communist Youth of Greece and Odigitis, known simply as KNE-Odigitis Festival, is a series of festivals organized in most of the major towns and cities of Greece. They have been taking place annually since 1975. The main festival has always been in Athens, where Tritsis Park has been the venue for the last decades.