GREEK ROYALISTS FAIL TO SWEEP POLLS

Chronicle (Levin), 2 April 1946, Page 5

GREEK ROYALISTS FAIL TO SWEEP POLLS

Press Assn .-

, Voting Conducted Fairly, Secretly and Peacefully \ 1

By Telegraph

Copyright

Received Tuesday, 12.15 a.m. LONDON, April 1. The results of the Greek elections thus far are regarded as indicating that the Royalists failed to sweep the country, as was expected, says Reuter's Athens correspondent. Although it is clear that the largest number of votes were cast for them, they will probably not have an absolute majority. It is argued that, if this trend is boine out, the Royalists will be unable to regard the election as resulting in favour of King George. The masses of the Greek people ,ccnsidered the election primarily as, firstly, a vote for or against the King's return, secondly, for or against retention of ihe British troops. All members of Mr. Sofoulis' Cabinet have been defeated, except Mr. Sofoulis himself, the Minister of Justice (Mr. Mavros), the Minister of Rehabiiitation (Mr. Krassathakis) and the Governor-General of Orete (Mr. Volouthakis). Of the total of 35,000 registered voters in 50 electoral districts in Athens, 23,376 went to the polls, of whom 11,711 voted for the Populist Parfcy, 5477 for the Papandreou Party and 4536 for the Liberal Party. The percentage of electors who voted in 14 Greek towns was 73. The Daily Herald's Athens correspondent, after a day-long tour of Athens and the surrounding towns and villages, reported that the voting was conducted fairly, secretly and peacefully.

The chiei (loubt in the ininds of mdependent observois hbout che fairne&s oi the Greek election couceras t-ie voang, says Reuter's Athens correspondent. ti. was decided at the last luonient 1103 to use indelibie stiun to prevent voters from voting more than ouce. Tne Daily Mail correspondent, however, was weu satisfied that the s«.aiupiiig' and signing of each vo :er's book was an adequvue safegnard. Correspondent, s who visited severai poliing booLhs v.erc satlshed witli :iie procedure. The voter's iu.entj.sy oaro was iirst ciieched. and he then toox ali the ballot pa>.er.'. behind a cnrtain. selected the oue he wanted, sealed ic xn : an enveiope and dropped it into a sealea box. The dilcmma oi some voters, however, ! was showa by a maimai worker at 1 hiraeus, wiio said he Iiad two part -tane jobs and wuuhl nndouhtodly iose one oi : them toniorrow. Both h'S e.npioyers ; had demanded to see nis voting- boo:-; j after the poll. One had threatened to sack him if it was maio.ed as having i voted, wirle the other threateued to do so if he did not vote. The Allied nussion wliich observea | the election announced that its report i would not be compieted antil April 10, when it y/ould be caMed to ijon..on. Paris and Washington for simiiltaneoua reiease. "The judgment of the mission as to whether the elections are fair and free can only be reaehed after reports are received irons the ocsorver teams 1 thronghont Greece," the mission stated. i "Any eonjeeture by the mission before complete mlonuation is avaiiaoie wouln be premature.' ' The Green Populist Party ieader, Mr. ' lsaldaris. said the elections were heli in j an absolutelv orderiy manner, aespite j those who demanded an adjourn.nen:. Abstentions had not gone beyond the usual proportions, despite the Leitists ooasts. The E.A.M. oilicially protested agams. the Minister oi the Interior aiiowing the poliing statioiis to stay open toi tliree hours after sunset. The ij.A.ivL. descrihed the measure as "dragooumg" i the electors to go to the polls after they j were due to close. The Moscow radio says: "The effort-s j of the reactiouaries were direoted to- i ward cornpelling the voters in the u-ree.. j elections to participate by means or j biackniail threats. Employeeo of Gov | emrnent and -private enterprises weix threatened with dismissal if they refused to partieipate in the voting. The elections are thus not heing iield unde. conditions guaranteeing a free expres sion of the people 's wlh." The Ministry of Puhlic Order an nounced that two persons were killed m a clash hetween supnorters of the Righc and the Left at Meligala. The notori ous outlaw Manganas, leader of the Royalist Organisation, is reported to have appeared at the head of 25 men, seized the corpses from the police and carried them ofi to the liills. The cor respondeni of the Associated- Press, conimenting, says the incident gi-/8o some indication of the conditions unde. which the elections were being held, at least in Peloponnesus. Other correspondents, however, are unanimous that the amount of terrorisrn prevaiiing has oeen exaggerated. The Premier (M. Sofoulis) was barIrV from voting at Athens hecause he Ay-Jejhto get a voter's hooklet. ' An oflicial Greek report states that six pclicemen and four Greek army sergeants were killed and others were wounded when 100 Conununists, equip ped with mortars and small arms, last night attacked and hurned down the police station in the Litohoro village, south of Salonika. Greek army reiniorcements were rushed from Salonixa.