This book provides a comparative analysis of how two radical left parties achieved government participation and their subsequent political experiences. In the face of the most severe and most prolonged crisis in the history of capitalism, it would be expected for radical left parties to seize the opportunity to promote their political agenda. Although reality has often confounded prognosis, two particular radical left parties - the Greek SYRIZA and the Cypriot AKEL - were elected to the highest government office. The author uses these two examples to engage with the broader question of what to expect when left-wing radicals achieve governance. This question is now of particular importance given the emergence of radical leftists in other parts of Europe, including Corbyn in the UK and Podemos in Spain.

This book analyses the processes and factors that contributed to the emergence and eventual consolidation of the Greek Cypriot Right in the era of British colonialism. It seeks to understand political developments in Cyprus in the period extending from 1900 to 1955 with regard to their social, ideological and economic determinants. By examining changing forms of political life, a general reconstitution of the political sphere and a specific set of changes in the ideology and organisation of the Greek Cypriots, the author offers a framework for analysing Greek Cypriot right-wing party politics, identifying its sources of mobilisation and main actors such as the Church of Cyprus, and understanding its subsequent transformations.

This book provides a comparative analysis of how two radical left parties achieved government participation and their subsequent political experiences. In the face of the most severe and most prolonged crisis in the history of capitalism, it would be expected for radical left parties to seize the opportunity to promote their political agenda. Although reality has often confounded prognosis, two particular radical left parties - the Greek SYRIZA and the Cypriot AKEL - were elected to the highest government office. The author uses these two examples to engage with the broader question of what to expect when left-wing radicals achieve governance. This question is now of particular importance given the emergence of radical leftists in other parts of Europe, including Corbyn in the UK and Podemos in Spain.

Cypriot pollitics are among the most contentious in Europe, and frequently attract the attention of the international community. Here, Yiannos Katsourides traces the historical development of the Cypriot party system, and in particular the growth of the Communist Party, now known as AKEL- the first formally organised political party on the island. The party was a political movement with a specific programme for radical reform that conficted both with the British Empire and the local establishment. It was treated with hostility and declared illegal. Based on new archival research, Katsorides addresses the social, religious, economic and political environment in which communist and working class politics existed on the island, and locates them within the context of a country connected inextricably with Turkey, Great Britain and Greece. This book will be of significant interest to anyone interested in the history of Cyprus, European communist movements or British colonialism and diplomacy in the Mediterranean.

Cypriot pollitics are among the most contentious in Europe, and frequently attract the attention of the international community. Here, Yiannos Katsourides traces the historical development of the Cypriot party system, and in particular the growth of the Communist Party, now known as AKEL- the first formally organised political party on the island. The party was a political movement with a specific programme for radical reform that conficted both with the British Empire and the local establishment. It was treated with hostility and declared illegal. Based on new archival research, Katsorides addresses the social, religious, economic and political environment in which communist and working class politics existed on the island, and locates them within the context of a country connected inextricably with Turkey, Great Britain and Greece. This book will be of significant interest to anyone interested in the history of Cyprus, European communist movements or British colonialism and diplomacy in the Mediterranean.