GREEK MINISTERIAL RECONFIGURATIONS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ATHENS 001547

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL GR
SUBJECT: GREEK MINISTERIAL RECONFIGURATIONS

REF: ATHENS 1535

Summary

--------------


1. (U) Prime Minister Papandreou's first organizational act after
taking office October 6 was to reconfigure government ministries in
accordance with his campaign promises to create a "tight,
economical, job oriented" ministry scheme. Papandreou merged the
Culture and Tourism ministries; resurrected a separate Finance
Ministry; and inaugurated a "super ministry" for the Economy,
Competitiveness and Marine that absorbed much of the old
Development Ministry and the merchant marine operations of the old
Merchant Marine, Aegean, and Island Policy Ministry. The Aegean
and Island Policy were transferred to a reshuffled Interior,
Decentralization, and Electronic Governance ministry under a new
secretariat. A hybrid "homeland security" ministry, named
Citizens' Protection, was established to absorb the Public Order
and Civil Defense secretariats from the Interior ministry as well
as the Coast Guard, the secretariat for Ports and Port Policy, and
the directorate for Shipping Safety from the now defunct Ministry
of Merchant Marine, Aegean, and Island Policy. Citizens'
Protection will also oversee the National Intelligence Service.
The Ministry of Infrastructure, Transportation, and Networks
assumes the bulk of operations of the old Environment and Public
Works Ministry, with a separate Ministry for the Environment,
Energy, and Climate Change created to focus on environmental issues
that are positioned high on the PM's agenda. Finally, Papandreou
eliminated the Ministry for Macedonia and Thrace and attached a
secretariat for Macedonia and Thrace to the Interior Ministry.



Economy and Finance

--------------


2. (SBU) In the economy, which was the main focus of both major
parties in the election campaign, the division of the National
Economy and Finance ministries into two separate ministries has
been perceived as a palpable sign of Papandreou's intention to
increase centralized planning of productivity, production, public
spending, government revenue, and the management of Greece's
burgeoning public debt and budget deficits. On the other hand, it
potentially sets the stage for conflict between the fiscal
approaches of new ministers Katselis and Papakonstantinou. The
abolition of the Ministry for Merchant Marine, Aegean, and Island
Policy has not been received well among the powerful (but usually
apolitical) community of Greek shipowners. On the other hand, by
making the independent Finance Minister the leader in debt talks
with the EU, market watchers said, Papandreou signaled his
intention to move rapidly in re-negotiating a comprehensive plan
for debt reduction with Greece's European partners.



Law Enforcement

--------------


3. (SBU) The creation of the new Ministry of Citizens' Protection,
essentially a police and civil defense department, has been
interpreted as Papandreou's opening move in a multifaceted
initiative to reform the police force;

build effective cooperation between agencies charged with fighting
wildfires, one of Greece's most pressing civil defense issues; and
bring all of the country's law enforcement organizations under one
unified "homeland security" command. Michalis Chrysochoidis, the
new Citizens' Protection Minister, has called for "democracy with
firmness," in an attempt to balance the party's leftist roots with
the need for public order, and has promised a reorganization of the
antiterrorist branch of the Hellenic Police to deal with the
younger generation of domestic terrorists. Chrysochoidis has also
said he will emphasize Greece's heavy burden in dealing with
illegal immigration to the "highest level" of EU organs. Although
Papandreou's PASOK party has traditionally criticized its
conservative predecessors for their management of the police, it
remained relatively quiet throughout the campaign on the security
aspects of illegal immigration and on the resurgence of domestic
terrorism in the wake of the December 2008 riots. A number of
specialized commentators have noted that PASOK has not articulated
how it would deal with a possible new outbreak of large-scale
rioting. There is considerable speculation that new violence may
occur to mark the first anniversary of the riots December 6, as
well as the upcoming trial of the police officer charged with the
teenager's shooting (scheduled to start December 15),making this

ATHENS 00001547 002 OF 003


issue all the more pressing.



Environment and Infrastructure

--------------


4. (SBU) Papandreou fulfilled one of the central points of PASOK's
election platform by establishing a Ministry of Environment,
Energy, and Climate Change. Critics have questioned his
appointment of speechwriter Tina Birbili to the post, arguing that
although she may have Papandreou's ear, she lacks the experience
and political gravitas to run this ministry in the face of serious
opposition to the "green approach" by powerful special interests.
(Note: Greek media commented negatively on her wearing blue jeans,
sneakers, and a backpack while accepting the mandate from President
Papoulias.) The new Ministry of Infrastructure, Transportation,
and Networks must focus on key lingering issues, viz. the land
register (cadastre) project, which has already attracted EU
attention repeatedly over allegations of waste and mismanagement of
EU support funds. The "networks" part, just like the "electronic
governance" part at Interior, is linked to one of Papandreou's
keenest interests: "Internet for all." The new ministry will
direct existing programs of expanding access to broadband -- a
fiber optic project, funded by the EU, is already under way -- and
will need to devise an all-round Internet policy that the previous
government lacked. Papandreou assigns great importance to Internet
technologies as "force multipliers" in both business and government
and is expected to take personal interest in this area.



Regional Ministries Downgraded

--------------


5. (SBU) The abolition of the Ministry for Macedonia and Thrace has
generated considerable negative reaction, particularly from the
rightwing LAOS part, but even from inside PASOK, primarily for
symbolic reasons. Critics of the move stress that with the
Macedonia name issue at a critical juncture, and with Turkey
showing intense interest in the welfare of the "Turkish" minority
in Thrace (identified as the Muslim minority by the Greek
government),the downgrading of the ministry to the status of a
secretariat sends an improper signal to both Skopje and Ankara.
According to the consensus of Greek pundits, the atmospherics
surrounding the name issue inside Papandreou's kitchen cabinet are
far from the traditionally "patriotic." The abolition of the
Ministry for the Aegean and Island Policy has elicited similar
reactions.



Culture and Tourism

--------------


6. (SBU) Finally, the merger of Tourism with Culture has been
criticized by many over the risk of commercializing culture to meet
tourism bottom-line imperatives. The appointment of Pavlos
Geroulanos, one Papandreou's closest advisers, to head the new
ministry, however, has been interpreted as a sign of personal
Papandreou interest in the interaction of both fields in light of
the new PM's repeated references to culture being a "national
treasure" that should be "properly deployed" to increase Greece's
prestige and credibility.



Comment

--------------


7. (SBU) Papandreou has evangelized for a number of years about
"re-establishing" the state and reforming its relations to the
public. Using American-style rhetoric, he has promised results
within six months of his cabinet taking the oath of office on
October 7, 2009. Ministerial reconfigurations play a key part in
these announced intentions. With the corrupt, ossified state
bureaucracy recognized widely as one of the greatest obstacles to
Greece's development and growth, observers are watching closely
Papandreou's significant attempt to re-define missions and tasks of
large parts of the government. Incoming prime ministers always
reshuffle some of the existing cabinet structure, but the extent of
Papandreou's changes is unusual in Greece. Papandreou has
emphasized throughout the campaign, and during his opening speech
to his cabinet, his intention to crack down on the "pandemic" of

ATHENS 00001547 003 OF 003


corruption and emphasize transparency as one of the key principles
of his new government. These ministerial reconfigurations, along
with practical measures like the planned expansion of electronic
governance, comprise important parts of this initiative. As Greek
commentators have noted, they also allow Papandreou to emphasize
from the outset that his approach to government will differ from
that of his predecessor, whom he severely criticized for allegedly
allowing the country to stagnate. Nevertheless, Papandreou's bold
reconfiguration will require considerable effort to put into
practice given deeply rooted habits and the Greek bureaucracy's
disinclination for interagency cooperation, and this effort could
conspire against Papandreou's ability to push forward other
ambitious reforms.
Speckhard