EXPROPRIATION OF LAND

On August 12, 1922, as Kemal Ataturk’s forces crushed the Greek army at the battle of Afyonkarahisar, the anti-Venizelos government coalition passed law 2948 "On the Promotion of Industry and Small-Scale Manufacturing" in the Official Government Gazette, signed by Dimitrios Gounaris, who was minister of Justice at the time, which allowed the "forced expropriation" of public or private estates, unless owned by another industry, for the purpose of installing new or expanding existing industrial facilities. Over the next years, the resulting expropriations were a boon to Elefsina’s industries–after all, besides the late 19th century, the interwar period was the second most extensive period of industrialization for the city. Consequently, in 1925, three adjacent land plots equal to a total area of 762 square meters were expropriated for the expansion of the company "Charilaos and Kanellopoulos", also known as Elaiourgeio (Olive Oil Mill). In the summer of 1928, the government of Alexandros Zaimis decided to expropriate approximately one stremma of land in favor of the Iris paint factory of Menelaos Sakellarios; this was signed into effect by Eleftherios Venizelos’ government during the Second Hellenic Republic, the eleven-year period of suspension of constitutional monarchy in Greece. In 1926, during the dictatorship of the Elefsina-born military officer Theodoros Pangalos, 11 parcels of olive trees in Vlycha, equal to almost 55 stremmas and belonging to residents of Elefsina, were expropriated for the establishment of the company "Greek Ordnance and Munitions Manufacturing", which subsequently formed part of the Greek Powder and Cartridge Company, also known as PYRKAL, controlled by Prodromos Bodosakis-Athanasiadis. In 1937, during the dictatorship of Ioannis Metaxas, an additional 6 stremmas of land were expropriated in the same area for installing PYRKAL’s shell-loading unit.

These expropriations were temporarily suspended because of the calamities during the 1940s, combined with the Axis occupation of Greece and the Greek Civil War. Greece’s industrial production was already in decline. The expropriations at the Thriasian Plain during the 1950s mainly concerned the construction of the National Road, which was proposed by urban planner Konstantions Doxiadis. The expropriations restarted during the Colonels’ Dictatorship, during the third and final stage of Elefsina’s industrialization, this time involving more than purely rural areas. According to legislative decree no. 797 "On forced expropriations" issued by the military government in 1971, the minister of Finance may issue a decision to expropriate both rural and urban properties "for the execution of works of any nature aiming at the economic development of the country". Over the next few years, grounded on this new regime of "opportunities" for industries, residential/resort areas were expropriated in favor of Elefsina shipyards and the refineries of PETROLA.

The right of expropriation for reasons of "public need" or "public interest" is vested in the state by the first Greek constitution of 1844 and further sanctioned by the subsequent constitutions of 1864, 1911, 1927, 1952, the 1968 junta constitution, and by the current constitution of the Metapolitefsi, effective from 1975 onwards. Since the early 20th century, large rural areas in Elefsina were expropriated mainly for archaeological purposes, which are sanctioned by all constitutions as a public amenity for the people’s benefit. Nevertheless, the extensive use of law 2948 during the interwar period demonstrates that the coming of industry in the area identified "public amenity/need" with expropriations for installing or expanding factories. Before the war, the equation of the economy’s industrialization with "public amenity/need" was a common understanding between elected officials–liberals and nationalists alike–and dictators; the Colonels’ Dictatorship took the next step when it concluded that whole townships and communities of people could be considered expropriable when it came to the advancement of heavy industry.