Mikis Mandakas ( el, Μίκης Μάντακας; June 13, 1952 – February 28, 1975) was a
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
student who was murdered by
far-left
Far-left politics, also known as the radical left or the extreme left, are politics further to the left on the left–right political spectrum than the standard political left. The term does not have a single definition. Some scholars consider ...
activists
Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...
in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
during the
Years of Lead.
Biography
Mikis Mandakas was born in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
. He was the son of
army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
officer
An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...
Nikos Mandakas and mother Kalliopi Mandakas. During the dictatorship he was studying in Italy, first in Bologna and later in Rome, for dissertation on medicine studies. There he joined the youth of Italian right party the
Italian Social Movement
The Italian Social Movement ( it, Movimento Sociale Italiano, MSI) was a neo-fascist political party in Italy. A far-right party, it presented itself until the 1990s as the defender of Italian fascism's legacy, and later moved towards national ...
(MSI)'', FUAN''.
The Murder
On February 24, 1975 in the city of
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, the trial of three leftists accused for burning the
house
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
of Mario Mattei, the secretary of the local organization of the right party MSI, began. On 16 April 1973, his home was set ablaze and his two children, Stefano and Virgilio (8 and 22 years respectively), were burnt alive after the arson attack.
Police in
riot gear
Riot control measures are used by law enforcement, military, paramilitary or security forces to control, disperse, and arrest people who are involved in a riot, unlawful demonstration or unlawful protest.
If a riot is spontaneous and irration ...
surrounded the courthouse and began removing hundreds of protestors due to the high number of leftist demonstrators. Eventually the protests become violent, with individuals throwing bricks, stones and Molotov cocktails. The fights continued over the next two days, and
on the fourth day of the trial a protest rally where the MSI condemned the inaction of the government towards the incidents occurred.
At around 9:30 AM, Achille Lollo appears in the historic center of the city with two
carabinieri
The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign polic ...
, which ultimately causes more violence and uproar outside the court. Further conflicts arose between neo-fascist and communist demonstrators, resulting in one demonstrator receiving bullet wounds to their
calf
Calf most often refers to:
* Calf (animal), the young of domestic cattle.
* Calf (leg), in humans (and other primates), the back portion of the lower leg
Calf or calves may also refer to:
Biology and animal byproducts
* Veal, meat from calves
* ...
and a
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
being wounded by a brick. Michalis and other members of the MSI are present with Lollo during the trial. At noon the court interrupts the meeting, at which point the fascists organize to leave.
At 13:15 a large group of leftists gathered outside the offices of MSI and attempt to storm the building and the corridor behind the main entrance. Michallis, Lollo and the few still present in the building decide to attempt an escape through the side door, but are quickly spotted as they attempt to flee. At this point the leftists open fire and a bullet pierces the skull of Mikis Mantakas wedging itself inside the right temple.
Mantakas loses consciousness, but was still alive as his partners carried him back into the office and waited for aid. He is later transferred to Spiritus Santos hospital, were he undergoes several blood transfusions. The Doctor in charge of Mantakas' surgery stated: "The projectile entered the left area of the parietal bone and crossed the entire skull..". Mantakas would not survive the ordeal. At approximately 18:30, after two hours of surgery, Mikis Mantakis' heart stops beating and he is pronounced dead.
As a result of the fighting, 22 people were wounded by gunfire.
Reactions
The killer was
Alvaro Lojacono
Alvaro Lojacono (born 7 May 1955) is an Italian terrorist, currently a Swiss citizen.
Biography
Lojacono was born in Rome, the son of a member of the Italian Communist Party.
He participated in several far-left extra-parliamentary organization ...
, member of the Italian Communists and later the Red Brigades. Lojacono was sentenced to 16 years jail time in 1981, however he is yet to serve any of the time on his sentence.
Newspaper: Αυγή: Ο Μίκης Μάντακας ως επικαιρότητα; Mikis Mandakas as topical
/ref>
Political unrest in Italy followed the murder of Mandakas, resulting in the creation of an armed branch Nuclei Armati Rivoluzionari
The Nuclei Armati Rivoluzionari ( en, Armed Revolutionary Nuclei), abbreviated NAR, was an Italian terrorist neo-fascist militant organization active during the Years of Lead from 1977 to November 1981. It committed 33 murders in four years, an ...
(NAR) of former members of the MSI. The NAR would eventually incite an attack on 28 February 1978 which resulted in the assassination of a man and three of his comrades. The attackers claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that the attack was in memory of Mikis Mandakas at the three year anniversary of his murder.
See also
* 2013 Neo Irakleio Golden Dawn office shooting
On 1 November 2013, two people were killed and a third injured in a drive-by shooting attack outside the offices of the Golden Dawn (political party), Golden Dawn political party, in Irakleio, Attica, Neo Irakleio, Athens committed by two unknown ...
* Acca Larentia killings
The Acca Larentia massacre was the journalistic name given to a double homicide that occurred in Rome on 7 January 1978. Five teenagers of the youth wing of the Italian Social Movement were ambushed while leaving the local party headquarters ...
*
* Primavalle fire
The Primavalle fire (''Rogo di Primavalle'' in Italian) was a political arson-attack that occurred in Rome in 1973. It resulted in the death of two people.
Background
On 12 April 1973, in Milan, policeman Antonio Marino of the '' Reparto Mobile' ...
References
External links
*
Ελληνικός Κόσμος
*
Ελληνικές Γραμμές
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mantakas, Mikis
People from Athens
Greek murder victims
Greek nationalists
Italian neo-fascists
Terrorism in Italy
1952 births
1975 deaths
Communist terrorism
Greek people murdered abroad
Assassinated activists
Murdered students
Deaths related to the Years of Lead (Italy)
1975 murders in Italy