December 16, 2011
Twenty-five years ago Makis Voridis was an axe-wielding fascist who patrolled the streets of Greece in hot pursuit of leftist fellow students.
Not much later, after his expulsion from Athens University's law school, he headed the youth wing of Epen, the far right party founded by the imprisoned former dictator Georgios Papadopoulos.
With a seat in the European parliament the group enjoyed close ties with Jean-Marie Le Pen, the former leader of the National Front in France, openly espousing many of his extremist views.
Today Voridis is a senior member of Greece's coalition government, embraced by the business community as the near-bankrupt country navigates its worst crisis in modern times.
"Some bad things were done in the past but we've all put water in our wine," says Alexandros Xenakakis, who has long worked with the politician. "We're not Nazis. We're patriots who care about our nation."
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